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J. B. Carr Chain Factory Photos of Workers |
The late Eve Grogan of Hawaii submitted these two wonderful old photographs. Although they are undated, Eve narrowed down the date to not earlier than about 1875 and not later than about 1885. She asked that we please credit Charles Wright, who found the photographs among the papers of his mother. Charles is a grandson of Isaac Hancox, who appears in the lower photo. Eve noted that many of the employees pictured were surnamed HANCOX or WILLETT and that they had come to Troy from Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. This part of England, known because of the thick dark smoke of its factories as "the Black Country", was the worldwide cradle of the Industrial Revolution. Troy, Rensselaer County, NY proudly bears the epithet "cradle of the Industrial Revolution in America". Eve said that she believed that the J. B. Carr Chain factory was located at the corner of Douw Street and Smith Avenue in Troy.
Shown above: The workforce of the J. B. Carr Chain factory in Troy, Rensselaer County, NY, in about 1880
Shown above: The workforce of the J. B. Carr Chain factory in Troy, Rensselaer County, NY, not later than 1885;
identified on the photograph are Eli Hancox, Hubert Hancox, Isaac Hancox and John Hancox.
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Lin Van Buren