A Mill Girl Revolution

During the Industrial Revolution many mills were built to contribute to the revolution. Obviously with these factories people were needed to work in them, at this time boys were a good workforce but at the same time they were needed to help out on the farm; they were too valuable to give up. Girls on the other hand could also be put to work but weren't as helpful when it came to the family farm. This is the reason for why girls primarily were the ones put to work in the mills. Women who had the option to go to Lowell, most likely would make the decision to go. In Daughters of Free Men, Lucy Hall a somewhat younger mill girl, it was slightly because she desired freedom from her father, and some money to spend on herself. For most girls this was the reasoning, in most cases the daughters would send a part of their pay back home to be sure they were still somewhat helping out.

This is the cover of a book that contains stories from the mill girls themselves.

While these women were working in Lowell, they had many advantages. During time off from working, they had the chance to read, as this picture shows. This tells us the girls had the opportunity to get an education; for most this was better than anything they could have gotten at home. There would have been no opportunity for them there, in the case of Lucy Hall, when she went to work in Lowell she had the chance to attend a lecture from an author. These girls were not slighted at all when it came to opportunity. Other pros to working in Lowell were that the environment was shown to be peaceful and relaxing; good for any kind of reflecting or relaxation that I’m sure needed to be done.

When working in Lowell brought many advantages to these girls it also caused some grief for them as well. Overseers in the mills could sometimes be tyrannical and very demanding. They would be little these girls and cause them to think that being quiet and not standing up for yourself was the only way you could get anywhere in life. Other downfalls to working in Lowell were the obvious constant fear of wage cuts, frequently the girls pay was reduced because of the hard times everyone was facing. When this affects everyone it was more unfair towards the women who had given up their lives to work, if things did not work out and the pay could not support them then they would have nothing. If you worked in the mills then your were also in constant peril. Machines were very dangerous and the tiniest of things would cost you your health. In many cases girls with long hair were scalped, their hair was completely ripped off. other health issues were presented as well; machines were so loud it cost most people their hearing. Also the food the girls were provided was not even close to nutritious, it wasn’t giving these girls the proper nutrients their bodies would require to work as much as they did.

These opportunities and restrictions on the mill girls reflects the attitude toward women in the 1800s. Before the mill girls there was little to no education for women, this created more rights for women in general. The act of girls going to work in Lowell changed the way people viewed women working outside of their home and living away from their parents in a good way. Since the girls were watched over when they were working they never got out of line. These well behaved mill girls created a good image for the Lowell mills and the girls. The way people viewed women in general was also changed through this process, many of these girls who grew up working in the mills went on to become women’s right activists; really making a difference for themselves and others.