CITY PLAQUE NOW MARKS
HAYMARKET TRAGEDY SITE

Following is the text of the bronze plaque installed by the City of Chicago to commemorate the Haymarket Tragedy of 1886. It can be found embedded in the sidewalk on the east side of Desplaines Ave. and a few steps north of Randolph St. There is usually short-term parking in a service drive nearby.

Site of the Haymarket Tragedy, 1886

"A decade of strife between labor and industry culminated here in a confrontation that resulted in the tragic death of both workers and policemen. On May 4, 1886, spectators at a labor rally had gathered around the mouth of Crane's Alley. A contingent of police approaching on DesPlaines Street were met by a bomb thrown from just south of the alley. The resultant trial of eight activists gained worldwide attention for the labor movement, and initiated the tradition of "May Day" labor rallies in many cities."

Designated on March 25, 1992
Richard M. Daley, Mayor