Punishment in the factory

Children who worked long hours in the textile mills became very tired and found it difficult to maintain the speed required by the overlookers. Children were usually hit with a strap to make them work faster. In some factories children were dipped head first into the water cistern if they became drowsy. Children were also punished for arriving late for work and for talking to the other children. Parish apprentices who ran away from the factory was in danger of being sent to prison. Children who were considered potential runaways were placed in irons.

Factory food (yuck) :|

The factory owners were responsible for providing their pauper apprentices with food. Children constantly complained about the quality of the food. In most textile mills the children had to eat their meals while still working. This meant that the food tended to get covered with the dust from the cloth.

Sarah Carpenter:- Our common food was oatcake. It was thick and coarse. This oatcake was put into cans. Boiled milk and water was poured into it. This was our breakfast and supper.

Our dinner was potato pie with boiled bacon it, a bit here and a bit there, so thick with fat we could scarce eat it, though we were hungry enough to eat anything.

Tea we never saw, nor butter.

We had cheese and brown bread once a year.

We were only allowed three meals a day though we got up at five in the morning and worked till nine at night.

The overseer

The overseer was a man who looked over the factory floor to see if everything was flowing nicely and everyone was doing their jobs probably because if they weren't there wages would be dropped unfortunately !!! I tell you what you just couldn't do anything g in them days !!!

The heat :/

The workers could not open windows making the works atmosphere hot and very stuffy they could not stop work otherwise there wages decreased (shocking) the older generation didn't have to clean the equipment so thats why they employed good children to climb inside the gigantic machines to clean them. Most Children lost limbs because they didn't know what they were doing. Just for one minute put yourself in there shoes and think to yourself would you like to be forced to go into the massive machines and clean them ........ I think not !! Shocking isn't it what they would make poor inisent children do !!!!!

my diary "life in a 19th Century Factory"

dear diary,

today was my turn to clean the machine and because I'm just that skilled I didn't loose ANY limbs... I am so very tired now though as my day started very early 6:30 am to be pricice!!! I went into the factory and got told what to do. the first thing I had to do was help a lady called Jane fold the long piece of cloth that she had just made, I then  had to help my friend Jeremy get himself out of the machine, he had got stuck in (awkward) & then I gave the machine a good clean but not just one 3 of them huge things!!!! it took me hours to do. Once I had done that I was filthy and boiling so, I went outside came back in,to find that Jeremy had broken his arm!! what a day I was knackered it was 10 mins before I could clock out so as a child would do, I went and annoyed the overseer and so after that he had the last laugh because I got told to go home then got got proper done 

Jim Bob 

dear diary,

this week was tough I went to school learned all my subjects but then had to go into the factory although I didn't have to do as much work I  had to do a drawing of the factory but I was told to make it look better than it really was, which in my opinion was was extreamly hard. I have paint all over my BEST SHIRT so I'm looking forward to going home to get absoutley shouted at by my mum (not) Well I got home got absoutley pasted by mum because of the paint so I told her how it had happened and do you know what she said "your not going in again" , know I should have been very pleased but I wasn't, I was anything but pleased I screamed at her she screamed back. I swore I wasn't going in again, but what she didn't know was my days start at 6:30 she was still asleep. I WENT INTO WORK 

Jim Bob 

 

now for the workers...

 this is a picture of a few of the workers who worked in a 19th century factory

as you can see they are smartly dressed but as anyone can imagine it would have been very hot in the factory. the workers are enjoying a day out and what a lovely picture that has been taken!!!

this picture could suggest that after a long weeks work the workers enjoy their colleges. notice there are more women than men because women are better at working the machines than men (no offence)

although the overseer and the big boss were men, men were good at that job and by that we mean they were good and bossing and ordering people around :0

inside Templeton factory

Hand loom weavers in Templeton's Tullis St factory towards the end of the 19th century, producing Chenille Axminster carpets.