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Rachel Porter Teacher Lesson Page
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Grade Level: 7-12


 * Standard**: USII.2 Explain the important consequences of the American Industrial Revolution.


 * a. the growth of big business
 * b. environmental impact
 * c. the expansion of cities


 * Guiding Question:** Why did immigrants choose to work in factories and mills? Did they really have a choice? How did these immigrants fight for better working conditions? What factors may have deterred them from fighting for safe and fair working conditions? What possible consequences did they face by speaking out for more rights? What would you do if you were an immigrant worker and confronted with the conditions at the Pemberton Mills (Lawrence, MA) in 1860?


 * Title:** Worked to Death?: Immigrants' Struggle for Safe Working Conditions

====**Introduction:** You are an Irish immigrant living in Massachusetts in the mid-19th century. Having arrived in America with few possessions and little money, you are struggling to support your family. Your job opportunities are limited so you take work as an unskilled laborer in a factory. What are the working conditions in which many immigrants like you are employed? In particular, you read about the disaster at the Pemberton Mills in Lawrence, Massachusetts. As you read these stories, consider why immigrants chose to work under such conditions. Did they really have a choice? Did these immigrants fight for better working conditions? What factors may have deterred them from fighting for safe and fair working conditions? What possible consequences did they face by speaking out for more rights? As you consider these questions, as yourself what someone in your circumstances can do.====

====You are an Irish immigrant living in Massachusetts in the mid-19th century. In order to understand what life was like for you and others in similar circumstances, you will analyze and interpret documents which detail the working conditions and public reactions to Irish immigrants in the United States in the 1800’s. These documents include political cartoons describing how Americans viewed immigrant laborers; newspaper advertisements which illustrate discrimination against Irish immigrants; and a poem about the disaster at Pemberton Mills. You will use these documents to formulate an opinion on why immigrants endured such working conditions. Ultimately, you will write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper, citing the working conditions, and offering insight into how disasters like the one at Pemberton Mills could have been prevented. What do you want to reveal about working conditions and what changes in working conditions do you want to request of Congress and/or the public?====
 * Task:**


 * Lesson Process:**


 * Step 1:** Why did Irish immigrants move to the United States? Read the following set of letters, written by someone in Ireland to a family member in the United States, and a letter written from an Irish immigrant in the United States, to a family member back home, describing life as an Irish immigrant. Use the written document analysis worksheet to help you analyze the letters. Next, decide whether or not you would have moved from Ireland to the United States based on the two sets of letters you have read. Your response should be in the form of a well-written paragraph, and must describe the living conditions of immigrants in America, as well as the benefits and risks you took by either moving or staying.

Curtis Family Letters from Pennsylvania Historical Society.

July, 1846: July, 1845:


 * Step 2:** Now that you have learned about some of the reasons the Irish moved to America, you will investigate the type of jobs they had while in this country. To do this, you will be given a set of job descriptions and advertisements from 19th century newspapers, as well as political cartoons. As you analyze the documents, complete these guided handouts, the NARA Cartoon Analysis Worksheet and the Pennsylvania Historical Society "Anti-Immigrant Images" Worksheet.





//New York Times// July 18, 1855.

After viewing the video clip, scroll through the illustrations of the destruction at Pemberton Mills. @http://www.celebrateboston.com/image/pemberton-mill-collapse/001.htm What do these images show about the events and the workers?
 * Step 3:** By now, you have come to understand that job opportunities are limited for immigrants in the mid-19th century United States. Many immigrants worked as unskilled laborers in factories and mills, such as the Pemberton Mill in Lawrence, MA. Read the Wikipedia page to get background information on the Pemberton Mills. [] Click on the following link to watch a video that will provide you with an overview of the Pemberton Mill and what happened there in 1860. Click on "View of the Pemberton Mill" to watch the clip. @http://www.tourlawrence.org/tour/pemberton-mill/ What does it tell you about the conditions of the Pemberton Mill for those who worked there?

Now that you have a good sense of what happened in Lawrence, read the following poem and newspaper excerpts to see how people responded to this event that killed many workers, including Irish immigrants.

Here are excerpts from a poem that was written about the Pemberton Mill collapse. It is "A Poetic Sketch Written Upon the Sad Disaster at Lawrence, Mass...." by George Handy (1860). Read the selection entitled "A sister in the ruins."

Click on the following links to read two newspaper articles about how people responded to the tragedy in Lawrence.
 * "Horrible Calamity" New York Times, January 11, 1860
 * "Sad Disaster at Lawrence" New York Times, January 21, 1860

How did the people in the town of Lawrence respond when the Pemberton Mills collapsed? What actions did they take to try and rescue people from the wreckage? What was done to accommodate the survivors? Was it enough? Could anything have been done beforehand to ensure that this tragedy never occurred in the first place?

Use the information you have gained from these documents to write a letter to the editor of the Lawrence newspaper. In your letter, be sure to describe what life was like for immigrant factory workers living in Lawrence at the time. Describe the working conditions of the factories and mills that employed these immigrants. Take a stand about working conditions. What do you think could have been done to prevent this tragedy? Did people do enough to help? What should be done now to assist survivors? What do factory workers in an industrializing America deserve?


 * Conclusion:** Life was not easy for immigrants in the United States. Poor living conditions led to them to accept any job they could find to support their families and industrial factory work provided jobs. While some immigrants spoke out for better conditions, many were fearful of losing their jobs and being unable to feed their families. Unfortunately, sometimes it takes a tragedy to shed light on the truly dangerous conditions to which these immigrants were exposed.


 * Assessment:** 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 24, 27, 36, and 42

You will be graded on your letter to the editor, according to the following rubric.


 * // STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO… // || // STRONG // || // GOOD // || // ADEQUATE // || // INADEQUATE // || // WEIGHTING // ||
 * Describe the working conditions of 19th century factories and mills. || Students can accurately describe the working conditions of 19th century factories and mills in the United States, and can cite at least three specific examples of hazardous conditions. || Students can accurately describe the working conditions of 19th century factories and mills in the United States, and can cite at least two specific examples of hazardous conditions. || Students can accurately describe the working conditions of 19th century factories and mills in the United States, and can cite at least one specific example of hazardous conditions. || Students cannot accurately describe the working conditions of 19th century factories and mills in the United States. ||  ||
 * Explain why immigrants worked under such conditions. || Students can accurately cite multiple historical factors which forced immigrants to work in dangerous, low-paying jobs in 19th century United States. || Students can accurately cite some historical factors which forced immigrants to work in dangerous, low-paying jobs in 19th century United States. || Students can accurately cite at least one historical factor which forced immigrants to work in dangerous, low-paying jobs in 19th century United States. || Students are unsure of the historical factors which forced many immigrants to work in dangerous, low-paying jobs in 19th century United States. ||  ||
 * Explain how American citizens responded to immigrants' struggles to improve working conditions in the United States. || Students can accurately describe American citizens' reactions to immigrant workers' call to reform labor conditions, and can explain why Americans reacted in such a way. || Students can accurately describe American citizens' reactions to immigrant workers' call to reform labor conditions, and can explain why Americans reacted in such a way. || Students can accurately describe American citizens' reactions to immigrant workers' call to reform labor conditions. || Students do not know how American citizens reacted to immigrant workers' call to reform labor conditions. ||  ||

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 * Resources:**



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