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Effects of the Great Depression on Industrial America
Christine Nobley
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The purpose of this lesson is for students to understand the effects of the Great Depression on millions of Americans, particularly those that worked in factories. Students will read a transcript from an interview with a striking textile mill worker involved with a labor union.
1. Labor Union Word Search (Teacher will need to create this. See terms listed in Bell Assignment.)
2. Pencils and paper
3. White board and markers (for teacher)
4. Table (or desks pushed together) at front of the room
5. Costume for Interviewer (microphone and sport coat)
6. Costume for Striking Worker (factory worker's uniform shirt)
7. Copies of the interview transcript
8. Copies of Callaway Mills Textile Strike (photo)
60 minutes
1S2
Describe the effects of the Great Depression on the factory workers in America.
Students will complete a word search (Labor Union Word Search) using words pertaining to labor unions, factories, and strikes. These words will be referred to in today's instructional activities.
Words in the word search: WPA, mill, union, strike, reluctant, Bedeaux System, stretchout, oath, dues, picket line, New Deal, eviction, overseer, Victory Bus.
Allow students to work in groups of 4-5, preferably with classmates close by, keeping movement to a minimum. Pose this question to the groups:
Suppose your principal has decided that starting next week all students will be required to wear a uniform to school. If you do not agree with this decision, what options do you have individually? Collectively?
Groups will brainstorm ideas and then share them with the class as the teacher records their ideas on the white board on a T-chart (How students can respond individually on the left, how students can respond collectively on the right). Discuss potential consequences of these actions.
Possible Individual Actions: change schools, tell your mom and have her talk to the principal, talk to the principal yourself, refuse to wear the uniform
Possible Collective Actions: have a group of friends change schools with you, get a petition started, join together and collectively refuse to wear the uniform, talk to the press, picket in front of the school/school board.
Question Students: When do you have more power collectively or individually? Why? Guide students to see that typically a group has more power than an individual, but that sometimes even as a group you may not achieve the desired results.
1. Set up an interview table (or desks pushed together) in the front of the classroom.
2. Allow 2 students to sit at the table, one dressed as the interviewer (Langford) and the other dressed as the striking worker (Lewis).
3. These two students will read aloud the first page of the actual transcript of a striking textile mill worker being interviewed.
4. At the end of the first page, teacher will ask for two more volunteers who will put on the costume and read the next page.
5. Continue until all 6 pages have been read (about 15-20 minutes).
6. Allow students to comment/discuss what they think about the interview.
Possible discussion questions:
- How old was Mrs. Lewis when she went to work in the textile factory? Why would someone that age go to work? Why would her parents allow her to go to work? ANSWER: Mrs. Lewis began working in the factory at age 13. She probably had to go to work because her parents could not make enough money, even with both of them working. Wages were too low, and it was common at this time for children to have to go to work as well, and give all their earnings to their parents.
- When the strike could not be settled, how did Mr. Callaway get workers for his factories? ANSWER: Mr. Callaway (and other factory owners) sent out "Victory Buses". These buses went to other areas (Mr. Callaway went to Heard County and Alabama) to bring new workers in to run the mills. There were many people who were willing to risk crossing the picket line since jobs were scarce at this time and families desperately needed money for food and rent.
- What pressures did factory workers face to join the union? Do you think Mrs. Lewis really knew all of the facts when she joined her union? Why did she join? ANSWERS: In the case of Mrs. Lewis (and many others), it was the pressure from coworkers and union leaders that caused them to join the union. The union leaders would come in and get the workers "fired up" about the benefits of joining. Co-workers would continue to pressure undecided workers by telling them that "everyone else is joining". They were to take an oath and stick together. There was safety in numbers. It does not appear that Mrs. Lewis knew all of the facts. The interview states that Mrs. Lewis did not really even know what a union was at the time she joined. Most likely she joined because of peer pressure.
- When workers went on strike, how did it effect their housing? ANSWER: Many industrial workers at this time lived in factory owned houses. If they went on strike, the factory owner would give them an ultimatum: get back to work or get out of my house. If you did not return to work, you were given 3 months notice to move out. This is what happened to Mrs. Lewis.
- One of the main complaints of the striking workers was the Bedeaux System. Explain this system and tell why factory owners would want to use it. ANSWER: The Bedeaux System was a system in which workers would have to do more work in the same amount of time, for the same pay. Mrs. Lewis , for example, was to go from spinning 8 sides to 16 sides. Workers felt they were given more work than they could handle, with no pay raise. Factory owners would be in favor of this system because they would be getting twice the work for the same pay.
- What happened to Mrs. Lewis and her husband after they went on strike and refused to cross the picket line? ANSWER: Overseers tried to get them to return to the factory, but when they refused the Lewis's were given 3 months notice to move out of their factory-owned house. As part of FDR's New Deal program, the WPA (Works Progress Administration) put her husband to work in Pine Mountain clearing land.
- TEACHER NOTE: Extensive information is provided in "Notes" concerning causes and consequences regarding the local Callaway Mills Strike in Troup County.
Review the words from the word search used during bell work at the beginning of class. Write the words on the board and ask students to help you define them (all words appeared in the interview and students may refer back to the dialog and use context clues to determine meaning). Teacher will write definitions on the board.
Possible student definitions: (Definitions may vary)
WPA- a program from the New Deal that put men back to work (The teacher should add that this program wasinitiated by FDR and created by Congress- men built bridges, hospitals, libraries).
mill- a factory
Victory Bus- A bus that factory owners sent out to find workers to run the mills during a strike
union- a group of workers that took an oath to stick together (Teacher will need to explain that usually unions fought for better working conditions, higher wages, shorter work day)
strike- when a group of people stop working (Teacher will need to explain that a strike usually occurs as a way to get factory owners to listen to workers' demands).
reluctant- hesitant, not sure, afraid
Bedeaux System- wage incentive program
stretch out- synonym for Bedeaux System
oath- promise, pledge
dues- money paid on a regular basis, fees; to belong to a group or organization
picket line- a line of striking workers in front of a factory
New Deal- (Teacher may need to assist with this one.) A series of programs started by FDR hopefully to help get the U.S. out of the Great Depression. The goal was to get people back to work.
eviction- to get kicked out, thrown out
Hand each student a picture (Callaway Mills Textile Strike, II. 16a) of a family packing up and moving during the Great Depression. Students will write a short essay (2-3 paragraphs) about what happened to striking factory workers (Students may retell the story of Mary Lewis). Students must use at least 8 words from the board in their essay.
REASONS FOR THE CALLAWAY MILLS TEXTILE STRIKE:
1. Cason Callaway's leadership style as chairman of the board beginning in 1920.
Callaway Mills was largely founded by Fuller Callaway and others; he was well liked by his employees. He treated his workers nicely, at Christmas gifts of candy, fruit, nuts, ham and turkey were the norm. He also gave his workers a large Christmas bonus. His son, Cason Callaway, did not relate well to the employees. He was more of a "business" man and was not sympathetic to the concerns/needs of his workers.
2. The Bedeaux System
Beginning in the 1930s, the Callaway plants began to implement the Bedeaux System- more work for less pay.
3. Wage Reduction
Callaway Mills was on the verge of implementing a 20% wage reduction to go into effect in February, 1935. Cason Callaway said that the company was losing money and that they were expecting to continue to lose more.
TIME LINE:
Thursday, February 28, 1935- 1,500 workers in LaGrange walk out of 4 Callaway mills: Hillside, Elm City, Oak Leaf, Unity.
Mary Lewis stated that the strike was not planned, they were not prepared to strike on that day. Most walked out because they did not want to get into an altercation with the management and they thought that management would settle with the union and that everyone would soon be back to work.
Shortly afterward, the LaGrange Daily News had an article in the paper titled, "Go Back to Your Job", warning striking workers to go back to work because it will effect the entire town.
Cason Callaway denied that there was any increase in employee workload. He stated that the walkouts were due to a misunderstanding of his wage reduction policy.
March 2, 1935- The local union organizer gathered 700 striking workers and encouraged them to demand an end to the Bedeaux System and demand a restoration of wages.
A union organizer (working at a Callaway mill in Manchester) was abducted from his home and beaten. He was told to stop making speeches to mill workers. Callaway employees in LaGrange requested protection from the striking workers at plant entrances. The Governor (Talmudge) claimed LaGrange to be under Martial Law and ordered 700 militia men to LaGrange to prevent strikers from harming people who wanted to work. 2835 mill workers wrote Governor Talmadge and thanked him for protecting their "right to work".
March 11, 1935- Cason Callaway announced that he refused to go to Washington D.C. for a meeting scheduled on March 18. The meeting was called by the Textile Labor Relations Board and was to include representatives from Callaway Mills and union representatives in an effort to settle the grievances.
April 8- April 20, 1935- Local hearing at the Elk's Club on Vernon Street.
It was decided that hearings would be held locally, in LaGrange, to allow mill workers to testify on both sides. The hearing concluded in Washington, D.C..
May 12, 1935- Board's Decision
The Board concluded that Callaway Mills had not violated the wage laws. They did not rule on the Bedeaux System because at one point the union accepted it.
The strike ends with the defeat for the union organizers.
CONSEQUENCES:
1. Cason Callaway lets replacement workers keep working. He said, "It would be bad faith not to keep on those we have taken on to fill the strikers' places".
2. Some families lost residential leases because renting a home from the company was contingent on employment at the mill. They lived in factory-owned homes and were evicted by refusal to continue to work. Many sought help from Troup County Federal Emergency Relief Administration. Others worked for the W.P.A. and moved to Harris County.
3. Some went to find work in other mills but were "blackballed" for their participation in the strike.
4. Families were torn apart. Many families had some members to join the union, while others did not. This caused some families to become distant, if not separated.
5. Community tensions developed due to some people supporting the union and others crossing the picket line. There was animosity between the two sides that spewed into the community.
6. Later in 1935, Cason Callaway became Chairman of the Board and his younger brother, Fuller Callaway, Jr. became president. Fuller, Jr. acted more like his father. He continued to build tennis courts, a library, pools- winning back the respect of the community.
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Callaway Textile Mill Strike_SI2 Nobley
Callaway Mill Strike_SI2 Nobley