America vs. England: Conditions in the Mills

Although the Industrial Revolution was a time of wonderful inventions, it had its drawbacks.  Mills in both England and America were dangerous, and conditions were truly horrendous.  However, England clearly had the shorter end of the stick, and therefor had even worse conditions than America.  Accidents were unfortunately common in mills, and although America had its share of gory and heart wrenching experiences, the worst and most frequent accidents almost always took place in England.  A British doctor by the name of Michael Ward recalled the injuries, stating that, “...the muscles, and the skin [were] stripped down to the bone, and in some instances a finger or two might be lost”.  Fatalities were also an occasional occurrence in the mills, and they were horrifying to watch.  Mary Richards, a ten year old who worked in an English mill was killed when her apron was caught in a machine.  Instantly, the gears pull her in the machine, and what came next was a sickening sight.  One boy, Robert Blincoe, who was seven at the time remembered seeing “the bones of her arms, legs, thighs, etc. successively snap asunder, crushed, seemingly, to atoms, as the machinery whirled her round, and drew tighter and tighter her body within the works, her blood was scattered over the frame and streamed upon the floor, her head appeared dashed to pieces”.  

Accidents were not the only downside of the mills.  Food and living conditions were also less than desirable.  The English workers ate right at their machines, and by account of 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”.  In a video, it was said that the workers were given food “...of a bluish complexion”.  Sometimes, food would have pieces of wool on it, and the workers had to pick it off.  In America, however, the mill girls left the mills to eat, and they were provided meals by their boarding houses.  The meals were of a much better quality than the English meals, with meat and some flavorings.  The American girls also lived in boarding houses with a few other girls.  By contrast, most british factory workers lived in slums, which were filthy, crowded areas that were barely livable.  Clearly, England faced the worst of the conditions, with the quality of life being uncomparable to American living.  When American mills suffered a downfall, the conditions still never plummeted as low as England had.