Working ConditionsAmerican Industry

1870-1900

Primary Sources

• What is a primary source?

Work Conditions• In 1895, the average income of an urban male worker was only

about $400 a year, a sum insufficient to support a family. The labor of their wives and children helped to supplement the household income. Children under the age of 16 contributed about 20 percent of the income. These children worked not because their parents were heartless, but because their earnings were absolutely essential for their family's well-being.

400200

132

Annual Income ($)

MenWomenChildren

Men

Women

Children

0 0.5 1 1.5

Hourly Wage ($)

Hourly Wage ($)

Photographs

• Please complete your charts using the photographs posted around the classroom

• There are FIVE in total• Be thorough in your responses and provide

detailed conclusions

Photographs

• Is safety equipment visible? • Is the worker working in isolation or not? • Is there protective equipment around the

machinery? • Is the worker old or young?

“Coal Miners”

“Breaker Boys

“Weavers”

“Seafood Processor”

“Steel Mill Workers”