The Lowell System was a labor production model invented by Francis Cabot Lowell in Massachusetts in the 19th century. The system was designed so that every step of the manufacturing process was done under one roof and the work was performed by young adult women instead of children or young men.
Who worked in the Lowell factories?
By 1840, the factories in Lowell employed at some estimates more than 8,000 textile workers, commonly known as mill girls or factory girls. These “operatives”—so-called because they operated the looms and other machinery—were primarily women and children from farming backgrounds.
Why did the Lowell Mills prefer to hire female workers?
Employing women in a factory was novel to the point of being revolutionary. The system of labor in the Lowell mills became widely admired because the young women were housed in an environment that was not only safe but reputed to be culturally advantageous.
Who were the primary workers used in the Lowell system?
The Lowell Mill Girls. In Lowell’s case, vertical integration vastly increased the scale of production to the point that there were not enough typical local workers to hire at his mill. To solve the labor shortage, Lowell hired girls from nearby farming families, generally between the ages of 15 and 35.
Who did the Lowell Mills originally recruit to work in the factories?
Unlike the prevailing system of textile manufacturing at the time—the “Rhode Island System” established by Samuel Slater—Lowell decided to hire young women (usually single) between the ages of 15 and 35, who became known as “mill girls”. They were called “operatives” because they operated the looms and other machinery.
How did the Lowell System work?
The Lowell System was a labor production model invented by Francis Cabot Lowell in Massachusetts in the 19th century. The system was designed so that every step of the manufacturing process was done under one roof and the work was performed by young adult women instead of children or young men.
What were working and living conditions like for Lowell girls?
Between poor building structures, dangerous machinery, crowded boardinghouses, and a variety of frequent accidents, these women worked at their own risk. Work hazards were compounded by exhaustion, a frequent topic of reporting from inside and outside the mill.
How much did girls get paid in the Lowell System?
On average, the Lowell mill girls earned between three and four dollars per week. The cost of boarding ranged between seventy-five cents and $1.25, giving them the ability to acquire good clothes, books, and savings.
What did the Lowell mill do?
In the 1830s, half a century before the better-known mass movements for workers’ rights in the United States, the Lowell mill women organized, went on strike and mobilized in politics when women couldn’t even vote—and created the first union of working women in American history.
Who worked in textile mills in the 1830s?
The spinning room was almost always female-dominated, and women sometimes also worked as weavers or drawing-in hands. Boys were usually employed as doffers or sweepers, and men worked as weavers, loom fixers, carders, or supervisors. Mill workers usually worked six twelve-hour days each week.
What jobs did the Lowell girls have?
Most of the women who came to Lowell were from farms and small villages. Some had labored in small textile mills. Others had produced cotton or woolen goods or shoes for merchants who employed men and women in their homes and paid them by the pieces they produced.
What were two of the main challenges that workers faced at the mills in Lowell Massachusetts?
The two challenges that workers faced at the mills in Lowell, Massachusetts is: The first problem is the job insecurity and the next problem is dangerous working conditions. The mill owners forcing the workers to work harder at a faster pace and increased their working hours.
What were some difficulties that the Lowell girls had to overcome when working at a textile mill?
Difficult Factory Conditions
These women worked in very sub-par conditions, upwards of 70 hours a week in grueling environments. The air was very hot in these rooms that were full of machines that generated heat, the air quality was poor, and the windows were often closed.
What was life like for a Lowell mill girl?
Life for the Lowell Mill Girls
Hours were long and hard – even more so than work on the farms, with a 12- to-14-hour day that began before daybreak and ended well after sunset. The younger girls were called doffers because they doffed (or removed) the heavy bobbins of thread from the machine spindles.
