The author of this article is Harriet Hanson Robinson. She from the young age of 10 in order to help her family seeked out work in the mills of Lowell Massachusetts. She worked there from 1834 to 1848. In 1832 the prospect of working in the mills was made appealing as high wages were told to be offered to all classes of workpeople. This attracted mechanics, farmer’s sons and lonely dependant women.
The factory girl was subjected to influences that demolished her self worth and innocence. She was nothing more than a slave to be beaten, pinched and pushed about by her overseer. To flatter this image high wages were offered to prospective women. Early mill girls ranged in ages from not even 10 which were known as doffers, sixteen to twenty-five and some of middle age. Doffers worked for 15 minutes every hour replacing full bobbins from spinningframes with empty ones. If the overseer was kind the rest of the time was spent reading, knitting, or playing in the mill yard. They were paid $2 a week. Working hours for all began at 5 in the morning to 7 in the evening with a half hour each for breakfast and dinner. To their advantage few years later the ten hour law was passed limiting their working hours. Mill girls whom had homes would work 8-10 months of the year and the rest of the time was spent with family or friends whilst few taught in school during those free months of summer.
An incentive under which a dominant amount of mill girls worked for was to either educate a brother, son and in some cases someone who wasn’t even a relative. The ability to possess their own money influenced women’s characters greatly. As late as 1840 there were only 7 vocations in which women had entered. Women had no property rights, they were to only inherit a home from their fathers if remained single and widows would be left without her share of her husband’s property. They were not capable of spending their own money or anyone else’s. They were seen as a ward, appendage or relict. If a women worked as a servant or help she would earn 50 cents to €1 a week, if visited different homes everyday to spin and weave or work as a tailors would earn 75 cents and her meals for the week.
One of the first strikes to take place was that in Lowell in 1836 when it was announced that wages were to be cut down. The mills were shut down and girls would go to Chapel Hill to listen to speeches from early reformers. It was then that one girl stood upon a pump and expressed her companion’s feelings declaring that it was their obligation to resist attempts to lower wages. However the corporation would not come to terms and girls tired returned to their jobs with reduced wages. This strike gave way to many succeeding strikes on the account of wages in the future.
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5 comments:
What does a doffer have to do?
What percent of the girls could read?
HJ
Elle:
1)Doffers were required to work for 15 minutes every hour replacing the full bobbins on the spinning frame with new empty ones.
Elle, this article would be great if it was written in your words. I was able to go back to the original article and read your article versus the original and the words were virtually identical.
To avoid this problem you should write your summary purely based upon the way in which you answered your questions (purpose/argument questions). I know that you can do a stellar job and I would like to see you try this again. You have 48 hours to redo your summary for full points starting right now....
0/10
The author of this article is Harriot Hanson Robinson who worked in the mills of Lowell Massachusetts from 1834 to 1848. In order to get workers in the mills especially women high wages were offered.
Girls were perceived as lower and worked under conditions that drained their innocence and dignity. There were three different age groups working at the mills. They began at 10, which were the doffers, 16 – 25 and middle age. Doffers were required to work 15 minutes every hour by replacing a full bobbin with and empty one on the spinning frame. Working hours were long starting from 5am to 7pm. They received a half hour break for lunch and dinner. Wages were $2 a week. Mill girls with homes worked 8 – 10 months of the year whilst the rest was spent with family and friends.
Women were not recognized as money spenders therefore all income was for the education of the male member of the family. They had no legal rights thus could go unmentioned in the fathers will or after husbands death. The only professions open to women were that of a servant help, tailor or teacher which received low pay. To their advantage a law minimizing working hours to 10 was passed.
In 1836 a strike took place due to a wage reduction were for the first time a women stood up and protested for her and her coworkers rights. This was ignored and women tired went back to work for lower wages.
by elle
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