Overview
The collection includes black and white gelatin silver print photographs, the majority taken by Lewis Hine, for the National Child Labor Committee, 1908-1923.
Dates
- Creation: 1908-1923
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Materials stored onsite. Please contact specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu for more information.
Extent
.5 linear feet (1 box)This collection of National Child Labor Committee photographs contains twenty black and white gelatin silver print photographs of workplace and living environments during the beginning of the twentieth century. The photographs were taken in Massachusetts, South Carolina, West Virginia, and New York between 1908 and 1923. Hine's images captured children at work in glass factories, textile mills, canneries, and outside the workplace. Each photograph has a number on the back, which was given by Hine.
Historical Note:
The National Child Labor Committee was formed after a conference held in New York between Edgar Gardner Murphy's Alabama Child Labor Committee and the New York Child Labor Committee in 1904. The non-profit organization was a leading proponent for the national child labor reform movement and sought ways to remedy the situation that saw 1 in 6 children working in factories at the turn of the 20th century. The NCLC hired New York City based sociology professor Lewis Hine in 1908 to photograph the working and living conditions of young children. Hine's photographs provided the American public with a sobering view of working conditions in factories and mills and living conditions of children. Many of Hine's photographs were published nationally, which attracted attention and initiated reform movements and national legislation.
Provenance:
Purchase 2005
Processing Information
Processed: May 2011
By: Benjamin Johnson
- Title
- National Child Labor Committee Photographs, 1908-1923: A Finding Aid
- Author
- Baker Library
- Language of description
- und
- EAD ID
- bak00168
Repository Details
Part of the Baker Library Special Collections and Archives, Harvard Business School Repository
Baker Library Special Collections and Archives holds unique resources that focus on the evolution of business and industry, as well as the records of the Harvard Business School, documenting the institution's development over the last century. These rich and varied collections support research in a diverse range of fields such as business, economic, social and cultural history as well as the history of science and technology.
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specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu