Title: Spinner in Vivian Cotton Mills, Cherryville, N.C.: Been at it 2 years. Where will her good looks be in ten years?

Description

This image of a young girl working in a North Carolina textile mill in the early 20th century is from the Records of the National Child Labor Committee (NCLC) at the Library of Congress. The photograph is attributed to Lewis W. Hine (1874-1940), one of the leading American documentary photographers of the Progressive Era. Best known for his photography of urban social conditions in New York City, Hine also investigated conditions at cotton mills across the Carolina Piedmont. Working with the Reverend Alfred E. Seddon and journalist A.H. Ulm at the request of the Southern Office of the NCLC, Hine visited many mills in November 1908. Hine and his colleagues uncovered widespread disregard for child labor laws. Their exposé helped lead to reforms that improved working conditions for boys and girls in the Southern textile industry.

Spinner in Vivian Cotton Mills, Cherryville, N.C. Been at it 2 years. Where will her good looks be in ten years? Location: Cherryville, North Carolina.