The Story of Hiram Munger’s Life as a Child
By: Drew P., Kayla V.,
Scarlet W., Goncalo C.,
What was life like in the early mills in Ludlow?
What were children’s lives like in early Ludlow?
What were the conditions that Hiram Munger worked under?
In our primary source we read parts of the autobiography of a man named Hiram Munger. In this we learned that he was born in Monson, Massachusetts on September 27, 1806. He was also a son of poor parents. His mother and father had five sons and six daughters. In 1809 his father moved to Ludlow. His father worked at a grist mill for a man named Putman. This area was called Put’s Bridge, and later called Jenksville. We know that this was near today’s bridge over the Chicopee River.Hiram was a gate keeper at Put’s Bridge. He also worked at Benjamin Jenks’s cotton mill. He worked with twelve to fifteen other people. When Hiram was working at the mills he would be providing money for the family. He was treated at the mills poorly, and even considered it a form of “slavery.” He also called Jenks, his boss, a “tyrant.”
Hiram also tells a story about something that happened when he was around ten years old. While he was babysitting his younger siblings, his little sister’s dress caught on fire, and he couldn’t put it out. He thought there was no other option except throwing her in the brook. It was a dangerous thing to do, but it put the fire out. From Hiram Munger’s autobiography, we learned that 200 years ago kids were treated differently than today. For example, some had to baby sit their siblings while their parents were off working at the mills to help support the family. We also learned that some kids also had to work in the mills themselves to help support the family.