Headley treats riots as a moral history of the city. He covers the slave revolts of 1712 and 1741, the Stamp Act riot, the Doctors’ Riot of 1788, election and abolition riots, the flour riot, the Astor Place riot, and, at greatest length, the Draft Riots of 1863, with stories of policemen and soldiers hidden by sympathetic citizens.
A classic, partisan but vivid chronicle of New York’s violent streets; its sympathies lie firmly with the police. Download the free EPUB.