Joe said 6 years old and his sister said 8 years old. Nine out of the seventy workers were from 6 to 12 years old. Mostly Syrians from Boston and Providence. Location: East Wareham [vicinity] - Maple Park Bog, Massachusetts.

Share

Two children, a boy the notes give as Joe, about 6, and his sister, about 8, are named in the record for this 1911 scene at Maple Park Bog in East Wareham, Massachusetts. The same notes count nine of the seventy workers on the bog as between 6 and 12 years old. Most of the pickers were Syrian families who had come from Boston and Providence for the autumn cranberry harvest, seasonal work that supplied the holiday trade. Scenes like this were often recorded during the period's campaigns against child labor, and the children's own words about their ages make this one unusually specific.

More from the Thanksgiving collection

Snapshots of the Past helps heritage brands, museums, historians and storytellers tell stories with history: historic prints, image licensing and historical storytelling drawn from more than 25 years of research and curation.