Populism and the Populists: The Incoherent Coherence of Coxey's March

Coxey's March was a multidimensional spectacle reflecting the disparate social and intellectual strands that comprised an energetic late 19th‐century producer's movement. This well‐staged, though seemingly spontaneous, march was emblematic of a brand of grassroots populism that united producers from farm fields to factory floors. Their cause was propelled by an eclectic array of reformers whose distinct ideas to change the economic landscape were united only in their common vision of a more cooperative, rather than corporate, vision of the future. Coxey shared in that vision with his bold public works plan. In choosing a direct form of democratic expression, and then adorning it with religious and utopian symbols, his march to Washington reflected the essence of a progressive populism churning throughout the Gilded Age.