Although today it seems that a young girl would never have the courage to leave home, and sacrifice almost everything to start supporting her family, there was once a time when doing so was a regular occurrence. In the 1800s, during the Industrial Revolution, the “Lowell Experiment” was created. As English industries continued to face disastrous conditions, the American people were paying close attention to their country to try to avoid making similar mistakes. The experiment was an industrial project designed to reach typical manufacturing and industry goals without facing any of England’s issues. In order to be successful, the experiment required the labor of countless workers, and with some persuasion, thousands of industry owners were able to convince many young girls’ families to let them work.
The argument used to convince women’s father’s to send their girls Lowell proved to be very convincing. Families were continuing to struggle financially, and sending away one family member would mean one less expensive mouth to feed, and one more salary to add to the their income. The experiment was said to aid the girls themselves as well, by teaching them the manners of a lady, independence, and responsibility. It was of course difficult for fathers to make the choice of sending their daughters away, but they had no other money options, and were hopeful that their little girl would personally be positively impacted by their decision. Industry owners made the choice seem very promising, and thousands of women were brought to work.
Despite there being several good reasons to join the Lowell experiment, working there wasn’t ideal for the girls who joined. They were told to expect more independence, which they did receive from living on their own, but they lost the freedom of being able to control their work load and daily schedule. The type of work they did was very different. Rather than doing different types of feminine tasks throughout the day, they stayed in the same spot manning heavy machinery for the duration of the day. They all lived together in a strictly regulated boarding house with rules and authorities to obey. They did however get a chance to shop for themselves with their earnings and have the power to determine their own fate once their work contract ended. Some planned to eventually seek different work and pursue more feminine jobs, or to get married. As much as their independence was expanded from their choice to work in the mills, it was also equally limited in different ways.
Along with a more enforced working schedule and new restrictions, participating in the Lowell experiment came with a low pay; lower than it was meant to be. When farming, these ladies had never been paid a penny that was their own to keep, but losing some of their promised salary was still huge let-down when they knew they deserved more. The 15 percent wage-cut hurt the women’s families, and their pride, since it took away from some of their gained freedom. Strikes, protests and boycotting were brought to Lowell in the 1830s, and women were forced to stick by each other and fight for each other to receive what they deserved. This madness was definitely not what they had in mind when the first chose to take on the mills.
Attitudes of women in the 1800s were reflected through their opportunities and restrictions on their working lives. Their wage cuts and strict watch suggested that they were still thought of as less important than men (as they always had been). However, the fact that they were at least allowed some extra freedom and their own salaries shows that their treatment had been slightly improved. After their protests against wage-cuts many mill workers went on to become powerful figures fighting for womens rights. The 1800s was clearly a time when a woman’s image was gradually changing, and their protests helped to change that image even more by proving their ability to be rebellious and powerful.
The Lowell Experiment was expected to be a complete success, but turned out to have an equal amount of flaws and benefits. Of course we needed a few mistakes to learn from in order to improve our industries, and women’s rights. The protests that the experiment caused were the beginnings of many more to come which lead to gender equality, and factory conditions continued to improve with each mistake made in the industry world. The Lowell Experiment may have had its ups and downs, but it did help shape the world we live in today.
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