Lawrence, Massachusetts

Lawrence is a city located in Essex County, Massachusetts on the Merrimack River. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 72,043. It and Salem are the county seats of Essex County{{GR|6}}.

History

Europeans first settled in the area in 1640. The site of the city was purchased in 1845 by a group of Boston industrialists headed by the wealthy merchant and congressman Abbott Lawrence, the community's namesake. The city was incorporated in 1853. The industrialists, most prominently Lawrence, established textile mills near sources of abundant waterpower. Working conditions in these textile mills were unsafe and in 1860 a factory collapsed, killing 88 workers. In 1912 the so-called Bread and Roses strike, one of greatest labor actions inAmerican history, began when textile-mill owners increased the speed of factory looms, and subsequently lowered wages for thousands of women and child workers. The Massachusetts National Guard, private and city police countered 23,000 strikers for two months, resulting in numerous deaths and mass arrests. When police and militia assaulted a group of women and children, public outcry forced mill owners to capitulate. The striking workers won wage increases for themselves and thousands of workers in New England mills. Lawrence was a great wool-processing center until that industry declined in the 1950s.

Related Topics:
1640 - 1845 - Abbott Lawrence - 1853 - 1860 - 1912 - Bread and Roses strike

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