John Russell Cutlery Etching and Cleaning Department Employees

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From the collections of PVMA • Digital image © Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Assoc. • Image use information


About this item

John Russell started his cutlery manufacturing business in Greenfield, Massachusetts, about 1834, at the “Green River Works” along the Green River. He moved his business in 1870, to the newly-planned industrial city, Turners Falls, Massachusetts. In 1880, 51% of the people who worked there in factories were employed by the cutlery. In this photograph taken around 1890, there are both men and women who worked in the Etching and Cleaning Department. Russell employed a mix of native- and foreign-born workers. Men and women from Ireland, Germany, and Eastern European countries worked in the cutlery making over 150 kinds of pocket knives among other types of cutlery. As of 1900, labor reforms would reduce the number of hours that women could work to 58 hours a week.

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Details

Item typePhotograph
PhotographerRussell Cutlery
Datecirca 1890
PlaceTurners Falls, Massachusetts
TopicIndustry, Occupation, Work
Immigration
Clothing, Textile, Fashion, Costume
Eastern European
EraRise of Industrial America, 1878–1899
MaterialPaper
Process/FormatPhotography
Dimension detailsHeight: 8.25 in Width: 13.00 in
Catalog #L06.034
View this item in our curatorial database →
Russell Cutlery, photographer. John Russell Cutlery Etching and Cleaning Department Employees. Photograph. ca. 1890. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/l06-034/. Accessed on October 15, 2024.

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