Lehigh Valley Silk Mills

As the United States entered the Gilded Age, the demand for luxurious silk clothing spiked. During the late 1800s silk was becoming popular with the growing middle class who wished to emulate the wealthy tycoons of the day. The growing industrialized American silk industry answered this demand.[2] After the Civil War, an American silk industry became established in Paterson, New Jersey. There, the silk manufacturers relied on skilled workers, who demand good wages and working conditions. By 1880, new machines were changing the way silk was spun, knitted, and woven, as a result silk mill owners were looking to build new mills in areas with a large supply of low-cost labor. As it turned out, the collapse of the national railroad building boom in 1873 devastated the iron industry. In the wake of closing iron mills, Lehigh Valley business leaders saw an opportunity in the business of silk producers. They advertised the region's good railroads, secure supply of coal power, and cheap non-unionized labor.

Interest in silk in the Lehigh Valley can be seen as early as 1762,[4] but the industry did not become established on a large scale until The Adelaide Silk Mill, the first silk mill in the Lehigh Valley, opened in November 1881.[5] This was soon followed by the R.H. Simon Silk Mill in 1883.[6] By 1900, there were twenty-three silk establishments in the Lehigh Valley, making it and Pennsylvania the world's second-largest producer of silk, second only to New Jersey. As many as 224 mills produced silk in the Lehigh Valley between 1881 and 1989. The silk industry peaked in the late 1920s. The industry was Allentown's largest employer during this time. In 1928, the peak production year, 106 mills operated simultaneously in the Lehigh Valley.

The silk industry was drawn to the Lehigh Valley for its access to water, power and labor. The spinning machines in the mills required constant tending, and provided jobs that suited the women and children of that era. Because of this they had a tendency to be located near mines and other heavy industries that would attract men to work, who would bring their wives and children to possibly seek employment.[2]

In an attempt to address issues with youth unemployment, in 1883 Easton formed its first "industrial association". After establishing the association, the associates needed to attract business to Easton. They successfully developed a partnership with a New Jersey silk manufacturing company. Robert and Herman Simon expanded their enterprise from Union Hill, New Jersey west to Easton, Pennsylvania. It was at this time that the R&H Simon Company constructed buildings along 13th Street, Easton. At the start, the company had a workforce of 250 people. The facility expanded in 1899 by increasing its workforce to 1,060. The mill eventually employed 1,200 workers and included 1,500 pieces of machinery. The R&H Simon Silk Company was the largest producer of black silk ribbon in the world and at one point in time employed up to 2,000 workers at its Easton plant.[7]

The deaths of Robert Simon and Herman Simon in 1901 marshalled in a transformative period for the company. The Easton Industrial Corporation managed the company from roughly 1933 – 1985, periodically loaning the property. In 1991, Pfizer Pigments Inc. transferred the property to James and Helen Garofalo and Helen Beth Garofalo-Vilcek who subsequently transferred the property to the City of Easton in 2006.[7]

One of the most important men of the American Silk industry, Desiderius George Dery, also made his home in the valley. By 1920 he was the largest single producer of silk in the world, and 8 of his 15 mills were located in the Lehigh Valley.[2]

The demise of the silk industry in the Lehigh Valley can be traced to the Great Depression, Southern competition and new synthetics. After that the Great Depression, increasing labor unrest affected the industry locally and nationally. After peaking in the 1920s, silk, like the rest of the luxury goods industry, suffered heavily in the Great Depression. The Lehigh Valley lost at least fifty-eight silk mills from 1929 to 1939. Many new mills were opening in the South due to the availability of cheaper labor. During World War II the silk supply, which predominantly came from Japan, was cut off. After the war, new synthetic fibers developed during the war, such as nylon, replaced silk in many garments. Some mills clung on shifting to Rayon or other materials. By 1953, Allentown which had become the number one silk city, had decreased the number of looms by 80 percent, with only six mills working exclusively with silk.[2] The next few decades saw increasing international competition from low-wage countries. The Catoir Silk Co., established in 1918, was the last silk mill in Allentown and closed in 1989. The industry was killed off through the globalization of the 1960s through 1980s, that brought cheaper goods produced in other countries. Low wage labor, which had originally brought the silk industry to the Lehigh Valley, was what led to its departure from the region.

Throughout the late 1800s, child labor was common throughout Pennsylvania silk mills as many families depended on additional income for subsistence. Compared to adult males who's yearly wages hovered around $485.11 and adult females who's remained at $345.44, minors of either sex only earned roughly $143.64 yearly. This large wage gap made child labor attractive to mill owners, and quickly drew manufacturers to the Lehigh Valley area. Between 1880 and 1925, the value of silk products manufactured in Pennsylvania increased tenfold. At this time, working children were the cheapest form of labor used to maximize profits. In 1876, roughly 30 silk manufacturers opened plants in Pennsylvania largely due to the availability of child labor and the lack of concern for children in the wage labor force. By 1907, children comprised roughly 30% of the labor force throughout the Pennsylvania silk mills, many under the legal working age of 12.[8]

Although child labor persisted throughout the early 1900s, a progressive reform to keep children in school and out of the silk mills was quietly brewing. Throughout the Progressive Era, journalists, settlement house workers and a philanthropic organization called the National Child Labor Committee (NCLC) studied, documented, and publicized the dangers of the work place for growing children. The committee pushed for legislation limiting hours of work and types of employment for young people and helped set a minimum legal working age. Between 1900 and 1920, the changes the reformers pushed for were slowly implemented but suffered many setbacks. Lack of enforcement by state factory inspectors made it difficult to ensure that silk mill manufacturers were abiding by the terms of the progressive reform and many laboring families still depended on their children's wages.[8] Despite this, children's wages began to grow and soon after, children between the ages of 12 and 15 were slowly phased out of the silk mill labor force altogether. This progressive reform in setting a minimum legal working age lead to the shift from children in the workforce to female employment.

In 1925, around the Lehigh Valley area, a study of immigrant women conducted by the United States Department of Labor and the United States Women's Bureau illustrated that there was a large shift in the number of wives and mothers that occupied positions in the silk mill industry. In the early 1900s the silk mills employed a large population of girls under the age of 18 who worked to financially support their families during this time of economic distress.[8] Areas within the Lehigh Valley such as, Allentown and South Bethlehem, had two to threefold more girls under the age of 18 working compared to women over the age of 25.[8] As the 1900s began to take shape, starting around the 1920s, the age of women changed drastically as new progressive laws pushed young females out of the industry. New legislation during this time lead to an increase in employment of married women in labor industries.

The shift from child labor to the labor of adult, married women was one that all progressive pioneers strived for, yet may have seemed pessimistic during the late 19th century to early 20th century. As families began to require a higher level of financial assistance, this led to a need for at least more than one source of income. Wages at silk mills were often much lower than that needed to be able to efficiently support a family; although, the wage was helpful as it was better than no income at all. Even with respect to the new legislation passed, parents still kept their kids out of the workforce well over the legal age of fourteen.[8] By the late 1920s it was widely acceptable to see women work outside of the house in order to provide additional income for families.[8] In addition, young children were able to maintain more years of schooling, ultimately increasing their human capital for future endeavors.

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  Lipps & Sutton Silk Mill, central part.
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  Lipps & Sutton Silk Mill, north wing.
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  Warren Mill, south-west corner.
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  Warren Mill, tower.
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  Warren Mill, back yard.