Description
The Mill Women of Lowell, Massachusetts--the first female industrial wage earners in the United States--were a new social and economic phenomenon in American society. In the 1830s and 1840s, drawn by the highest wages offered to female employees anywhere in America, they sought and found independence and opportunity in the country's first planned industrial community. Even after long work hours, the women found time and energy to write about their lives and aspirations. From their own literary magazine, the Lowell Offering, here are their letters, stories, essays, and sketches.
Status
Available
Call number
Publication
New York : Harper & Row, 1980.
Collection
User reviews
LibraryThing member Stevil2001
This volume collects some representative writings from "factory girls" working in Lowell, Massachusetts. As you might imagine, some of these are pretty good... some, not so much. There's a lot of pictures of how the mill system operates, many of which are quietly subversive or sarcastic, but many
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others are just kind of sanctimonious tales where someone learns a life lesson. But the idea of the book is quite neat: who would've thought that women working in factories would've published several issues of something like this? Despite the problems of the mills, they were quite the opportunity for most of their workers, as this book shows. Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original publication date
1977
ISBN
0061319961 / 9780061319969