Justus H. Schwab (1847–1900) was the keeper of a radical saloon in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...

. An emigre from Germany, Schwab was involved in early

American anarchism Anarchism in the United States began in the mid-19th century and started to grow in influence as it entered the American Labor history of the United States, labor movements, growing an anarcho-communist current as well as gaining notoriety for v ...

in the early 1880s, including the anti-authoritarian New York Social Revolutionary Club's split from the Socialistic Labor Party and

Johann Most Johann Joseph "Hans" Most (February 5, 1846 – March 17, 1906) was a German-American Social Democratic and then anarchism, anarchist politician, newspaper editor, and orator. He is credited with popularizing the concept of "propaganda of the dee ...

's entry to the United States.

Life

Justus H. Schwab was born in Germany in 1847. His father was a Forty-Eighter. Schwab immigrated into the United States in 1868. He ran a saloon in

(50 East First Street) that was popular among radicals. Emma Goldman and the periodical ''Sturmvogel'' used the saloon as their mailing address. Writers including

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, and

James Huneker James Gibbons Huneker (January 31, 1857 – February 9, 1921) was an American art, book, music, and theater critic. A colorful individual and an ambitious writer, he was "an American with a great mission," in the words of his friend, the critic Be ...

also frequented the bar. The bar was advertised as "the gathering-place for all bold, joyful, and freedom-loving spirits". A financial panic in 1873 set off an

economic depression An economic depression is a period of carried long-term economical downturn that is result of lowered economic activity in one major or more national economies. Economic depression maybe related to one specific country were there is some economic ...

that lasted the rest of the decade with progressively worsening unemployment, homelessness, starvation, and general hardship. This depression gave rise to the American militant labor movement with demonstrations by the afflicted. As one such January 1874 demonstration in Tompkins Square Park devolved, Schwab walked towards the square with the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defended ...

's red flag, for which he was arrested for

incitement to riot In criminal law, incitement is the encouragement of another person to commit a crime. Depending on the jurisdiction, some or all types of incitement may be illegal. Where illegal, it is known as an inchoate offense, where harm is intended but m ...

. He sang " The Marseillaise" during his arrest. Schwab was cast out of the Socialistic Labor Party for opposing alliance with the

Greenback Party The Greenback Party (known successively as the Independent Party, the National Independent Party and the Greenback Labor Party) was an American political party with an anti-monopoly ideology which was active between 1874 and 1889. The party ran ...

in the 1880 election. He was involved in the formation of the splinter New York Social Revolutionary Club to pursue the

Gotha Program The Gotha Program was the party platform adopted by the nascent Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) at its initial party congress, held in the town of Gotha in 1875. The program called for universal suffrage, freedom of association, lim ...

in late 1880. Schwab represented the club at the 1881 Chicago Social Revolutionary Congress, where he was a key figure. Schwab spoke at the Social Revolutionary Club's reception for

's arrival in New York. Schwab became an

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

in early 1880s, a term that emerged during this period and was synonymous with social revolutionary, anti-authoritarian socialism. Schwab kept correspondence with

Albert Parsons Albert Richard Parsons (June 20, 1848 – November 11, 1887) was a pioneering American socialist and later anarchist newspaper editor, orator, and labor activist. As a teenager, he served in the military force of the Confederate States of Americ ...

during the latter's imprisonment. Parsons carved a tugboat with his pocketknife and asked Schwab to raffle it with proceeds to go to Parsons' family, which it did, for $150 ().

Life

Personal life

References

Bibliography

Further reading