City - St Loius MO - Working this corner 1910

Colorized photo from 1910, May... more

by Mike Savad

Title

City - St Loius MO - Working this corner 1910

Artist

Mike Savad

Medium

Photograph - Colorized Photo

Description

Colorized photo from 1910, May
Original title: Newsies selling near saloon
Photographer: Lewis Wickes Hine
Location: 7th and Walnut St, St. Louis, MO

In the past it wasn't uncommon to see children who had jobs that worked in the streets, some of them smoked even. Some of them worked for their own sake, to have a happy childhood so they can buy their own things. Other's helped to support their family. Kids were often hired to work in factories, because their small hands fit into tight spots, they worked for low pay, all jobs were entry level.

Lewis Wickes Hine, he was a teacher with a side interest of photography. He ended up quitting his job after he got a job at the National Child Labor Committee, as a staff photographer. He then walked the streets, photographing everyone and keeping careful notes, about ages, what they did etc. At times he would document notes in his pocket while they spoke if they seemed shy.

There were scenes from factories, newsies like these and other such jobs. Despite the fact that he started photographing them in the late 1900's, it wasn't until 1938 where real child labor laws were put into place. One of the biggest problems with children working early is, they didn't go to school. They never got an education and when they were adults, they didn't know anything, couldn't read and ended up poor and miserable.

Uploaded

August 28th, 2020