The Lowell System was a labor production model invented by Francis Cabot Lowell in Massachusetts in the 19th century. The system was designed so that every step of the manufacturing process was done under one roof and the work was performed by young adult women instead of children or young men.
Where was the Lowell factory system?
Lowell, Massachusetts
The Lowell mills were 19th-century textile mills that operated in the city of Lowell, Massachusetts, which was named after Francis Cabot Lowell; he introduced a new manufacturing system called the “Lowell system”, also known as the “Waltham-Lowell system”.
What did the Lowell factory produce?
At this site, on the shores of the Charles River, industrialist Francis Cabot Lowell (1775–1817) built the Boston Manufacturing Company, the first complete cotton spinning and weaving mill in the United States. Here the raw cotton fibers were processed to produce cloth.
What was the significance of the Lowell system?
Why was the Lowell System Important? Lowell was not the only entrepreneur to bring the production of textiles to the United States. But he was the first to do so with a vertically integrated system, thus introducing the modern factory to the United States.
How did the Lowell Mills work?
Waterwheels, wheels that rotate due to the force of moving water, powered the mills; the rotation of the wheel is then used to power a factory or machine. Belts ran up from the wheels to all floors to run the machines.
What did the factory system do?
The factory system was a new way of making products that began during the Industrial Revolution. The factory system used powered machinery, division of labor, unskilled workers, and a centralized workplace to mass-produce products.
When was the Lowell System made?
The Waltham-Lowell system was a labor and production model employed during the rise of the textile industry in the United States, particularly in New England, amid the larger backdrop of rapid expansion of the Industrial Revolution the early 19th century.
What were working conditions like in Lowell Mills?
Conditions in the Lowell mills were severe by modern American standards. Employees worked from 5:00 am until 7:00 pm, for an average 73 hours per week. Each room usually had 80 women working at machines, with two male overseers managing the operation.
Who mainly worked in the Lowell factories?
women
By 1840, the factories in Lowell employed at some estimates more than 8,000 textile workers, commonly known as mill girls or factory girls. These “operatives”—so-called because they operated the looms and other machinery—were primarily women and children from farming backgrounds.
How did the factory system impact workers?
The movement toward industrialization often led to crowded substandard housing and poor sanitary conditions for the workers. Moreover, many of the new unskilled jobs could be performed equally well by women, men, or children, thus tending to drive down factory wages to subsistence levels.
How did the factory system affect workers?
Factories brought workers together within one building to work on machinery that they did not own. They also increased the division of labor, narrowing the number and scope of tasks. The work-discipline was forcefully instilled upon the workforce by the factory owners.
What caused the factory system?
The factory system began widespread when cotton spinning was mechanized. Raw cotton would be brought to the factory and spun, bleached, dyed, and woven into finished cloth. Richard Arkwright is the person credited with being the brains behind the growth of factories.
Who invented the factory system?
Richard Arkwright
Discover how Richard Arkwright kick-started a transformation in the textiles industry and created a vision of the machine-powered, factory-based future of manufacturing.
What was child labor like in the factory system?
Those working included children as young as three. Young children working endured some of the harshest conditions. Workdays would often be 10 to 14 hours with minimal breaks during the shift. Factories employing children were often very dangerous places leading to injuries and even deaths.
What are the advantages of the factory system?
The point of it all
In conclusion, the factory system had more advantages compared to the domestic system. Work was faster, cheaper, more efficient and got paid more than farm workers. But equal amounts of disadvantages came along such as severe injuries, strict discipline, long tiring shifts and lesser freedom.
How did the factory system affect the economy?
The factory system that was created during the Industrial revolution had many positive effects on the economy. It increased wages, allowed the production of goods to be faster, and allowed more goods to be produced.
What were the possible positive and negatives effects of the factory system?
The positive include cheaper clothes, more job opportunities, and improvement in transportation. And the negative would include exploitation of women and children, workers work long hours and environmental damages.