First annual picnic of the “Knights of Labor” – more fun for the spectators than for the performers
Subject(s): Capitalists and financiers, Corruption, Cost and standard of living, Employees, Field, Cyrus W. (Cyrus West), 1819-1892, Gould, Jay, 1836-1892, Knights of Labor, Monopolies, Roach, John, 1813-1887, Sage, Russell, 1816-1906, Social classes, Vanderbilt, William H. (William Henry), 1821-1885, Wages
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Print shows Jay Gould, William H. Vanderbilt, Cyrus W. Field, Russell Sage, and John Roach riding in a carriage past a crowd of laborers labeled “Knights of Labor” and “Pittsburg Free Strikers” who are watching a man labeled “Workingman” trying to climb a “Greased” pole carrying a child on his back and with a woman and child hanging from his belt. The pole is greased with “Monopoly Grease,” at the top are “Higher Wages, Bread, Tobacco, Wine, [and] Ham.” The view from the pole shows factories in the middle distance and the “Roach Monopolist Ship Builder” facility in the background.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1882-06-21
Creator(s)
Keppler, Joseph Ferdinand, 1838-1894
Period
New York State Assemblyman (1882-May 1884)
Repository
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Page Count
1
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
First annual picnic of the “Knights of Labor” – more fun for the spectators than for the performers. [June 21, 1882]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o287948. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Keppler, Joseph Ferdinand, 1838-1894. First annual picnic of the “Knights of Labor” – more fun for the spectators than for the performers. [21 Jun. 1882]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. January 29, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o287948.
APA:
Keppler, Joseph Ferdinand, 1838-1894., [1882, June 21]. First annual picnic of the “Knights of Labor” – more fun for the spectators than for the performers.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o287948.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. January 29, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
APA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.