WV Coal Mining Trapper Boy, 1908
Entitled: "Trapper Boy, Turkey Knob Mine. Boy had to stoop on account of low roof, photo taken more than a mile inside the mine. Location: MacDonald, West Virginia." A trapper's job was to open and close the wooden doors (trap doors) that allowed fresh air to flow through the mine. They would usually sit in total darkness for up to twelve hours at a time, waiting to let the coal tub through the door. It was not hard work but it was boring and could be very dangerous. If they fell asleep, the safety of the whole workings could be affected. Child labor refers to the employment of children in any work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend regular school, and that is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful. According to the 1900 US Census about 1 in every 6 Children between the ages of five and ten were engaged in "gainful occupations" in the United States. This trend alarmed Americans who, while supporting the traditional role of children in agriculture, found the idea of American youth laboring for meager wages in industrial factories appalling. From 1909 to 1921 the NCLC (National Child Labor Committee) capitalized on this moral outrage by making it the focal point of the NCLC campaign against child labor. They hired Lewis Hine, a teacher and professional photographer trained in sociology, to document child labor in American industry. Over the next ten years Hine would publish thousands of photographs designed to pull at the nation's heartstrings. Photographed by Lewis Hine, October 1908.
Size: 3174px × 4350px
Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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