He began a successful political career, winning election in 18 as the city clerk of Terre Haute, and served one term in the Indiana State Assembly in 1884. The only local BLF officer in the Terre Haute lodge re-elected after the strike, Debs was named associate editor of Locomotive Fireman's Magazine in 1878 and then the national BLF's grand secretary-treasurer and editor-in-chief of the magazine in 1880.įor most of the 1880s, Debs continued to preach the virtues of industrial cooperation and to discourage confrontations with either employers or the government. history-the 22-year-old Debs gave a well-received speech at the Brotherhood's annual convention, defending the union from charges that it sought to encourage strikes or lawlessness. When the BLF organized a local lodge in Terre Haute in 1875, Debs signed up as a charter member and was elected recording secretary.įollowing the great railroad strike of 1877-the first truly national strike in U.S. But he did retain a close attachment to railroad work and railroad workers. Laid off during the depression of 1873, Debs eventually found another job as a clerk in the grocery business and never worked for the railroad again the rest of his life. At 16, he left school to work as a paint scraper in the Terre Haute railroad yards and quickly rose to a job as a locomotive fireman. 5, 1855, in Terre Haute, Ind., the son of Marguerite Bettrich and Jean Daniel Debs, Alsatian immigrants and retail grocers. Although none of his dreams were realized during his lifetime, Debs inspired millions to believe in "the emancipation of the working class and the brotherhood of all mankind," and he helped spur the rise of industrial unionism and the adoption of progressive social and economic reforms.ĭebs was born on Nov. The best-known apostle of industrial unionism in the early years of the 20th century, Debs ran for president of the United States on the Socialist Party ticket five times between 19, winning millions of votes. Later he helped found the American Railway Union (1894), the Socialist Party of America (1901) and the Industrial Workers of the World (1905). Beloved by many contemporaries as a man "too good for this world" who would give the clothes off his back to anyone in need, "Gene" Debs was a prominent leader of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen (BLF) in his youth.
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