The act to incorporate Lewiston, Maine was adopted by the city on 11/22/1862

          Come all ye Lewiston fact'ry girls
          I want you to understand,
          I'm going to leave the factory
          And return to my native land.
  
                  "The Lewiston Factory Girl," see From Farm to Factory by Jim Douglas 
                  & DigTrad & the late Hedy West.

Essentilly the same song as "Lowell Factory Girl." Most versions detail the dehumanizing, mind-dulling conditions.
Very few traditional songs refer at all to the difficulty of women in the work force. Nearly all of those brave Union songs ignore women workers alltogether. So this is an unusual & important as well as a good song. Hedy West sang it like she meant it.

Lewiston was first settled in 1770. A grist mill was built immediately but textile mills probably not until about 1820. The conditions of indentured servitude there, for the non-English-speaking immigrant farm girls, were barely less severe than enslavement. Still, many farm girls felt a one or two year stint was worth it. There were few other methods for them to bring in needed cash.

Copyright © 2005, Abby Sale - all rights reserved
What are Happy's all about? See Clicky