Factory Life Document Analysis

Notes-Part 1

Industrial revolution

~ First adopted in england in the 1750s as a method of

manufacturing.
~ They were run by water or steam
~They required almost skill & just had people move things
~lowered costs of goods
~ Between 1800 & 1850 parliament passed laws to regulate factory
work.
~ They also regulated the amount of hours that children could work,
to 60 & 10.5 hours daily.
~Several commissions investigated working conditions in factories,
like politicians, academics, doctors, & other public figures wrote
books, pamphlets, speeches & newspaper article in support or
against regulating the country's growing factory system.

Guiding Questions- Part 2

Follow along and annotate as we read documents A and B together as a class.

Document A: Dr. Ward

1) (Sourcing) Why is Dr. Ward being interviewed by the House of Lords Committee?

Because he not only is a doctor but because he particularly worked with children in those
factories, this is how they did research.

2) (Close Reading) What does he mean when he refers to factories as nurseries of disease
and vice?

This means that they are filled with disease & vice, they got diseases there.

3) (Close Reading) What evidence does Dr. Ward use to back his claim that factories were
unhealthy and unsafe for children?

He says that the health situation of children in cotton factories are much worse than any other
manufacture

Document B: Dr. Holme

 Factory Life Document Analysis

1) (Sourcing/Corroboration) How is the source information for this document similar to and
different from document A?

The similarity is that it was by the house of the lords both times but different year & different
people. They did however both interview a doctor but they did have different point of view.

2) (Close reading) What evidence does Dr. Holme use to back his claim about the health of
children in factories? Do you think this is convincing evidence?

That in his time researching, there hasn't been any evidence to help him change his point of
view & he's been a physician for 24 years. He also uses statistics

3) (Close reading) Why might it matter that Mr. Pooley asked Dr. Holme to examine the
children at his factory?

IT might have been a bribery so that his factory looks good, people support him & he gets
more workers.

4) Which document, A or B, do you think is more trustworthy? Why?

I would say that document A is more trustworthy because having a cotton factory be bad for
children sounds about right and because the doctor wasn't employed by the owner of the
factory.

Guiding Questions- Part 3

With a partner, read documents C and D. Annotate the documents and answer the guiding
questions below.

Document C: John Birley

1. (Sourcing) What type of document is this? When was it written?

It was written during 1849 & its more of a newspaper thingy.

2. (Sourcing) How old was John Birley when this account was published?

39

3. (Corroboration) Which document, A or B, does this account more closely match? How?

This matches more document A because it states more of the things closely relating to what
Dr. Ward had said in his interview.
 Factory Life Document Analysis

4. (Close reading) Why did John Birley not tell the truth about life working in the mill to the
inspectors?

HE didn't say the truth because he was afraid of what the people he worked for would do to
him.

Document D: Edward Baines

1. (Sourcing) Who wrote this article? When was it written?

The author is baines Edward & it was written in 1835

2. (Sourcing) Why did Baines write this article?

He wrote this article to inform people of what really goes on in the factories & to try & shine
some light on the truth.

3. (Close reading) What does he mean in the second paragraph, when he states, But abuse
is the exception not the rule?

I think he means that beating them sometimes works for them , in making money, but it's not
the right thing to do at all.

4. (Close reading) What is Baines main point in the final paragraph?

The main point is that because factories arent the best but yet they are good for the workers,
because the children get opportunities.

5. (Corroboration) Which document, A or B, does this account more closely match? How?

This more matches document B because of the fact that they both are more in favor of the
factories.

6. Who do you think is a more trustworthy source, Birley or Baines? Why?

I would say that birley is more trustworthy because he had a first hand experience in how the
factories already operate.

Putting it All Together- Part 4

 Factory Life Document Analysis

By yourself, write a paragraph in the space below, using specific evidence(at least 3) from the
documents to support your claims.

Do you think that English textile factories were bad for the health of working class
families?

I would say that the factories weren't good for the children at all. One point from the text that
helps support this is in document A, when the doctor was in the factory & couldn't even breath
right. This shows the fact that factories not only had working conditions but also was a
terrible place for children. In document C, it states that the interviewee had a first hand
experience in how the factories work when they stated that he would get hit by the overseer.
Another statement that the interviewee said was that they were even sort of blackmailed into
lying to these three gentlemen that asked them question & if they didn't lie, that they would
regret it. This all ties everything together because it shows how cruel the factories were on
workers overall, no matter the age.