The Bread Riot in Richmond, 1863

THE BREAD BIOT IN BICHMOND, 1863 William J. Kimball Ample record exists that long before April, 1863, many of the inhabitants of Richmond were in dire need of the necessities of existence, to say nothing of the luxuries which had been commonplace to some before the war. Slightly more than three months after the faU of Fort Sumter the Richmond Daily Whig (July 19, 1861) stated that the "stock of provisions is so nearly exhausted that it is unnecessary to give quotations." This statement, of course, did not speak for aU of the citizens; some like the Chesnuts had sent from their country home wine, rice, potatoes, ham, eggs, butter and pickles about once a month,1 and the Tabb-Rutherford wedding supper served during the waning months of the Confederacy was "doubt it as you may ... a sumptuous repast."2 Nevertheless in a city whose prewar population of 38,000 had more than doubled before 1865, one which depended for its supplies of all kinds upon long and exposed lines of railway, the grim specter of starvation was an unwelcome resident in many overcrowded homes.3 There are adequate reasons for believing that near-starvation promptedmany people in the crowd to march on the stores, but it seems to be equaUy obvious that once the riot was underway, general looting prevailed. To President Jefferson Davis' mind, it was not bread they wanted; the mob was bent on nothing but plunder and wholesale A member of the faculty at Mary Baldwin College, Staunton, Virginia, William J. Kimball is the author of Richmond in Time of War. He also has done extensive research on Civil War novels. 1 Mary Boykin Chesnut, A Diary from Dixie (Boston, 1949), p. 283. 2 John H. Wise, The End of An Era (Boston, 1902), p. 410. 3 When there was no tariff on domestic produce ( as there was for a short period in the winter of 1861-62), foodstuffs were brought into Richmond by wagon from neighboring farms. Yet even after the tariffs were lifted, the inhabitants were at the mercy of the hucksters who charged what they pleased for their merchandise. On the very day of the bread riot, meal was selling for $16 per bushel. See Sally Brock Putnam, Richmond during the War (New York, 1867), pp. 113-14. 149 150WILLIAMJ. KIMBALL robbery.4 The causes of the "disturbance" which "darkened the annals of Richmond" on that day can never be fully known.5 Early on April 2, within the gates of Capitol Square, a crowd of several hundred women and boys stood quietly together. One of their number—a pale, emaciated girl, not more than eighteen—who could no longer stand, took a seat on a nearby bench. As she raised her hand to remove her sunbonnet, her loose calico sleeve slipped up, and revealed a mere skeleton of an arm. Perceiving that the sight of her emaciated limb had startled a woman who was sitting on the bench and who was not a member of the crowd, she hastily pulled down the sleeve with a short laugh and exclaimed, "This is all that's left of me; it seems funny don't it?" In answer to a question of whether there was to be some celebration, she answered that there was. They were going to celebrate their right to live. They were starving; and as soon as enough of them got together, they were going to the bakeries and each of them would take a loaf of bread. It was little enough for the government to give them after it had taken aU their men, she added. Just then a fat old Mammy waddled up the walk to overtake a beautiful child who was running before her. "Come dis a way, honey," she caUed, "don't go nigh dem people," adding in a lower tone, 'Ts feared you'll ketch somethin' fum dem po' white folks. I wonder dey lets 'em into de Park." The girl turned and with a wan smile rose to join the long line that was formed and was moving. She said simply, "Good-by! I'm going to get something to eat!" The mob now rapidly...