Imagined Glassboro Mural Proposal: Labor In GlassboroMain MenuAbout the Imagined Glassboro Mural ProjectAbout The Cultural GeographersProposed MuralLocation of the MuralFollowing the theme of remembrance, this proposed mural is in close contact with other similar piecesReflectionReferencesLiam Cunninghamab528ecd9e183259d44942096a654902bd998535
This image (See right), taken from 1898, features the “graduating class” of Whitney Glassblowers. These men and boys put a face to how we remember glassblowers from the past. Many of the graduates appear as young as fourteen. In fact, prior to child labor laws in this country, glass-making factories actually had a modern form of indentured servitude. Essentially, boys were ‘drafted’ to a particular factory from a young age, trained, and made to work at that factory.
Although we should not feel ashamed or guilty for having feelings of pride in Glassboro’s glass-making past, using images of these young men’s faces helps remind us of certain realities. In addition, the more ‘modern’ images are mere stock images of a farmer, retail worker, and a waitress. These jobs existed in Glassboro in the year 1898, but what is different is that they are still alive today. By placing the old images, the new images, and the Rowan Boulevard background together, a closer understanding of place and time is captured in just one mural. The intended effect of this is having a shared connection with those before us and with those around us.
