From April 6 through May 10, 1938, 600 crab pickers, predominantly Black women, went on strike from Crisfield's packing houses, protesting wage cuts and demanding union recognition. Shiloh United Methodist Church was a meeting place for the strikers, who faced vigilante violence and other extreme measures from white packing house owners, local politicians, and businesses in attempts to end the strike. Ultimately, the cannery union prevailed and the unions remained active until 1990.