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Tenement Houses in New York City Photo: Hine, Lewis. Three girls and a boy working on garments. February 1910. National Child Labor Committee Collection, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
By 1867, there were an estimated 18,562 tenement houses where poor, working class families were forced to live in squalor, as they were unable to afford the rents in other parts of the city. Buildings were cramped, had terrible ventilation, and poor sanitation that led to outbreaks of disease, pollution, and crime. Children were forced to work long hours to provide for their families. Lights and Shadows of New York, Sights and Sensations of the Great City, 1872, James Dabney McCabe Jr 1842-1883 -
Jane Addams Opens Settlement House in Chicago Photo: Jane Addams. 1914. Miscellaneous Items in High Demand, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Jane Addams was a social activist who is most notably known for her creation of the Hull House in Chicago in 1889. This settlement house would become the basis for political agenda for stricter child labor laws. Addams provided daycare, evening classes, libraries, and free healthcare to families as an alternative to the tenement houses. P. Scott Corbett, Volker Janssen, John M. Lund, Todd Pffanestiel, Paul Vickery, Sylvie Waskiewicz. 2016. U.S. History . Houston, TX: OpenStax., 189. -
Jacob Riis Publishes "How the Other Half Lives"
Jacob Riis, a Danish immigrant who lived in the slums and tenement houses himself, used pictures to show the atrocious living and working conditions in New York City. He spoke against the immoral landlords, dangerous conditions, and high rents forcing poor children into the workplace. P. Scott Corbett, Volker Janssen, John M. Lund, Todd Pffanestiel, Paul Vickery, Sylvie Waskiewicz. 2016. U.S. History . Houston, TX: OpenStax., 189. -
Lillian Wald Opens Settlement House in New York City Photo: Hine, Lewis. Knitting Class, Henry Street Settlement. May 1910. Records of the Department of Commerce and Labor, Children's Bureau, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.
Modeled after the Hull House in Chicago, the Henry Street House in New York City offered families a place to live, provided children with education, and allowed men to keep their children out of the factories. Urban centers were in need of more settlement houses with the increasing number of poor, Hine, Lewis. Knitting Class, Henry Street Settlement. May 1910. Records of the Department of Commerce and Labor, Children's Bureau, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C. -
1900 United States Census Published Photo: Hine, Lewis. Bibb Mill No. 1, Macon, GA. January 19, 1909. Records of the Department of Commerce and Labor, Children's Bureau, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington
1 in every 6 children between ages 5-10 were working and paid considerably less than adults and able to work unskilled jobs. As a result, children were underweight, had stunted growth, and curvature of their spine. "Teaching With Documents: Photographs of Lewis Hine: Documentation of Child Labor." Teaching With Documents: Photographs of Lewis Hine: Documentation of Child Labor. Accessed June 26, 2017. https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/hine-photos. -
National Child Labor Committee Formed Photo: Hine, Lewis. Boy Running "Trip Rope" in a Mine, Welch, WV. September 1908. Records of the Department of Commerce and Labor, Children's Bureau, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.
Led by Florence Kelley, Lillian Wald, and Jane Addams, the NCLC formed to campaign for legislation to regulate child labor. The first campaigns against the coal and glass industry used propaganda to influence public opinion in New York City and other urban centers. "National Child Labor Committee (NCLC)." Open Collections Program: Women Working, National Child Labor Committee. Accessed June 26, 2017. http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/ww/nclc.html. -
Roosevelt Hosts White House Conference on the Care of Dependent Children
The NCLC gained the support of President Roosevelt in 1905, but it was never presented it to Congress. At the end of his presidency, he called a White House Conference to gather other supporters to change child labor laws in the United States. Participants lobbied to Congress for three years for legislative action. "National Child Labor Committee (NCLC)." Open Collections Program: Women Working, National Child Labor Committee. Accessed June 26, 2017. http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/ww/nclc.html. -
Creation of the Children's Bureau of the Department of Labor Photo: Julia C. Lathrop. Social Security Administration Archives, Washington, D.C.
President Taft signed the Children's Bureau into creation on April 8, 1912. Passing by a large margin, the United States became the first nation to have a bureau focused solely on children. Julia Lathrop was named director, the first woman in charge of a federal organization. "Children's Bureau." Social Welfare History Project. May 23, 2017. Accessed June 26, 2017. http://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/programs/child-welfarechild-labor/children%E2%80%99s-bureau/. -
Keating-Owen Child Labor Act Passed
The Keating-Owen Child Labor Act of 1916 was based on the governments ability to regulate interstate commerce to regulate child labor. It banned the sale of products produced in places using child labor under certain conditions. Keating-Owen Child Labor Act of 1916 (September 1, 1916) Enrolled Acts and Resolutions of Congress, 1789-; General Records of the United States Government; Record Group 11; National Archives., 1916, National Archives (http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=59). -
Hammer vs. Dagenhart (1918) Photo: "Hammer v. Dagenhart (1918)." Accessed June 26, 2017. https://billofrightsinstitute.org/educate/educator-resources/lessons-plans/landmark-supreme-court-cases-elessons/hammer-v-dagenhart-1918/.
Hammer vs. Dagehart rendered the Keating-Owen Act of 1916 unconstitutional. Roland Dagenhart of North Carolina wanted his sons to work at the textile mill beside him, arguing the regulation of commerce should be left to the states and it was his constitutional right in allowing his sons to work. "Hammer v. Dagenhart (1918)." Accessed June 26, 2017. https://billofrightsinstitute.org/educate/educator-resources/lessons-plans/landmark-supreme-court-cases-elessons/hammer-v-dagenhart-1918/. -
Revenue Act of 1919 (Child Labor Tax Law) Photo: Hine, Lewis. Faces of lost youth: Adolescent girls from Bibb Mfg. Co. in Macon, GA. February 1910. National Child Labor Committee Collection, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Companies employing children were required to pay a ten percent tax on their products. This legislation was an indirect attempt to control child labor standards in the country through the government's ability to levy taxes. This act would also be ruled unconstitutional 3 years later in the Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Company Child Labor Tax Case. BAILEY v. DREXEL FURNITURE CO. CHILD LABOR TAX CASE. (May 15, 1922).
