Eugene Debs was born in Terre Haute, Indiana. He left home at age 14 to work on the railroad. In 1875 he helped organize a local lodge of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen. He was elected national secretary and treasurer in 1880. He became president of the newly established American Railway Union (ARU) in 1893. WIth the ARU, Debs organized the Pullman Strike in 1894. He went to jail for six months for interrupting a federal courtroom. In 1897 Debs helped create a socialist party. He ran for president in 1900, 1904, 1908, and 1912 as the candidate of the Socialist Party of America. In 1905, Debs helped found the Industrial Workers of the World but resigned when the group became too radical. Debs ran for president in 1920 while in prison for treason. He received almost 1 million votes, more than he had ever received. In 1921 President Harding ordered Debs’ release, but his citizenship was not returned until after his death.
