What is mill culture? Explain.
Answers
The Mill Villages were self sustaining communities within larger towns. At one time, Newberry had three distinct villages such as West End, Mollohon and Oakland. All the villages centred around the cotton mill which was the main source of income. The Villages all had their own schools, parks, churches, and stores. Houses were typically one of 3 main floor plans: a three room house, a four room house, and a six room double house. These houses were built and owned by the mill and rented to their workers. Eventually in the 1940's they sold them.
When the mills started up in the 1890's and early 1900's, there were no child-lobar laws. Children often went to work young to help support their families. While the village was in the city limits, they still had gardens and raised hogs to butcher in the winter. He was even known to raise a possum or two to eat.
The mills eventually closed in the 1930's - a much needed thing at the time. It helped push wages up and get rid of the child labor. The mill families were really big extended families. Everyone knew everyone else and were always willing to help each other out when things got tough. So here you have a diverse group of people who lived together, worked together, played together, suffered together, celebrated together, and worshipped together. An insult towards one was an insult towards all. They looked after their own. In short, mill life was a hard life, but it made for strong backs, strong work ethic, and strong character. Families made do with what they had and overall had good lives.
The Mill society was self-dependent, they lived in communities within larger towns. Families in this society were extended. People in the Mill society knew each other very well and they were always willing to help others when things went unfavorably. A diverse group of people lived together, they worked together, as well as they performed all the rituals together. The main source of income was the cotton mills, around which the mill people settled.