The birth of the FDNY: How America’s worst urban riot gave rise to New York City’s Bravest

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/america-worst-urban-riot-gave-rise-fdny-article-1.2195912

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New York City burst in flames on the morning of July 13, 1863 — a conflagration of rage and resentment that exploded next to a draft office in Midtown.

A lottery to force able-bodied men into the military was underway, boiling over into a tense standoff between police and protesters, who opposed the draft into the unpopular Civil War.

New York was a town divided, with many abolitionists supporting Abraham Lincoln, while his critics railed against what they called his “n----- war” — a battle over slavery.

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also posted in NY