Workhouses In Victorian England

Unlike the gorgeous public buildings the workers homes were very similar. Each house had two stories with five rooms, including a cellar, pantries, and closets. I learned that Pullman’s intentions weren’t fully true. Though public facilities were marvelous, working homes were very bland. Cite: Huffman, Nicole.

Jane Addams was a major influence during the Progressive Era. As a progressive reformer she had attempted to eliminate the corruption of the government while trying to promote women’s suffrage. Throughout her life Jane Addams had assisted immigrants from all over the world, regardless of their color, and established the Hull House as a result of her efforts. Throughout her life, Jane had been noticed for her achievements and became an important figure for those around her. As a result she became the first female president of the National Conference of Social Work.

Working conditions were horrible and had very low wages. Child labor was common and the children could work in factories, mines, farms, and as newspaper sellers. The men that worked usually received $2 a day which was just enough to survive on. If children and women worked they would receive less

“People were forced to work in harsh, dangerous conditions in order to be able to provide for their families” (Document 8). Although most people were grateful to have a job, the conditions that they were forced to work for in order to provide for their families were unfair to them, and their families. Just because they obtained a job one day, doesn’t mean they would have it the next day, for example, if an employee was sick, or injured and had to miss a day of work the employee wasn’t guaranteed to continually have the job after they finally recovered. “I am at work in a spinning room tending four sides of warp which is one girl’s work” (Document 1) working conditions such as these are very harsh for the employees, not only do they have to keep up with the work of four people. Not only do the employees have to keep up with the sea of work, they also have to attempt not to get injured with the very harsh conditions lots of employees did in fact end up with serious injuries. “5 in the morning till 9 at night…” (Document 7) Those were the harsh working hours according to twenty-three year old Elizabeth Bentley. Long hours such as those were very common for factory workers, which made life hard for employees. Not only was harsh working conditions bad, but also the worst consequence that came about through the Industrial Revolution was child

Women working men’s jobs were not as welcomed in society as they were in factories. People held on to the belief that women should be house wives and not have to do much in the way of work. The man should provide for the family, and the women should take care of the family. Many of the women who worked were lower class and had to help provide for their families, or were the only providers for their families. Women who worked men’s jobs were looked down upon and thought to be no better than dirt. Although women working in factories were still women, men did not show them the same respect as they did a woman working as a secretary or teacher.

Working women also showed that they were not less lady-like, because in the mills they were able to live in decent conditions. According to Reverend Henry A. Mills the boardinghouses were to be kept “both inside and out…clean and in good condition,” (2) this allowed for women to live healthfully, clean, and orderly. They had busy schedules but that did not make them live any less than normal than any other women.

In this essay I will try to highlight the key attempts made to improve workers housing in Britain between the years of 1850-1910.

During the late 1800’s and early 1900’s thousands and thousands of immigrants flocked to America to find employment in the quickly-expanding industrial cities and to escape the perils of their homelands. These cities, such as New York and Chicago, were seen as the places to begin the journey to achieving “The American Dream’. However, the cities couldn’t grow and develop fast enough to house all of these workers. This problem was “solved” by the creation of tenement houses. In the beginning, tenements were essentially single family houses turned into multi-family dwellings. However once all of these were full, tenement buildings were built specifically to hold as many people as possible for the least amount of money. These housing communities

During the industrial revolution in Britain, the usage of child labourers dramatically increased as it became a cheap and easy form of labour. This lead to the continued abuse of many children in textile factories. In 1833, the Factory Act of 1833 was put forth which dictated that no children under the age of nine would work. Children ages nine to thirteen wouldn’t work more than nine hours a day and children ages thirteen to eighteen wouldn’t work more than twelve hours a day. In addition it introduced the circulation of four factory inspectors who were to enforce the new legislation. They were to certify whether children had received their compulsory education of two hours each day and report conditions to the government. This act brought forth attention and sparked debates from the public which made stronger note of the working conditions for children.

Not only was slavery divided up into different systems, but the roles of the slaves varied greatly. Field slaves were subjected to strenuous labor and strict overseers. They usually worked from dusk until dawn without receiving a day off. On the other hand, household slaves took care of the children, chores, and food and were sometimes seen as part of the family. There is a misconception that household slaves had an easier life than those working in the fields. However, regardless of whether or not someone was a household slave or a field slave, they were slaves nonetheless. The documentary fuels these misconceptions by making things seem right that Washington only worked his slaves six days a week, giving them Sunday off, and was known to have treated them well.

The Factory Act, 1833 was an attempt to set up a normal working day in

With factories trying to increases their productivity they made workers suffer from sun up to sundown with little breaks and little pay. Though some people were treated fairly like the people of Germantown in document 2. This document features a small excerpt from Philadelphia in 1844, written by Leon Faucher after his visit. In this excerpt, Faucher talks about what he observes “The young women are well and decently clothed…The houses…Mr. Ashton has built, 3000 of them, which he [rents] for…75 cents per week…Everywhere is to be observed a cleanliness which indicates order and comfort.” However not everything you observe is true. Such as the people in document 6 who are protesting for 8 hour work days. It was quite common for factory owners during the industrial revolution to overwork their workers causing many to protest this then later led to the 8 hour work days that we’ve come to know and love

The Victorian Age's morality also condemned any kind of sexual reference in literature. Victorian critics demanded from "serious" literature a didactic content and respect to the Victorian conventions which established that sex

Victoria was Queen of Great Britain and Ireland from 1837 to 1901. She was the only daughter of Edward, the Duke of Kent. Her father died shortly after she was born and she became heir to the throne. The Victorian Age was characterised by rapid change and developments in almost everything. From advances in medical, scientific and technological knowledge, to changes in population growth and location. Today, we associate the 19th century with the work ethic, family values, religious observation and institutional faith. In 1840, Queen Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. At first, the British public did not particularly like the German prince, and he was excluded from holding any official political position. At times, their marriage was hectic because they both had

The Victorian Period was a great influence to the authors who composed novels at that time where distinctions between social classes as well as between men and women were strongly marked. During this period, it was precisely a woman who ruled. Alexandrina Victoria who was born on May 24, 1819 became Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from June 20, 1837 until her death on January 22, 1901. Victoria’s reign was one of the longest of a female in history. At only the age of 18, after her uncle William Henry IV died, she began a span of 63 years of reign. In spite of her independence and power, Victoria fell into a deep depression when her husband died in 1861 and ever since she wore black every day for the rest of her