What is the meaning of a company town?
Definition of company town : a community that is dependent on one firm for all or most of the necessary services or functions of town life (such as employment, housing, and stores)
What was the purpose of company towns?
In some situations, company towns developed out of a paternalistic effort to create a utopian worker’s village. Churches, schools, libraries, and other amenities were constructed in order to encourage healthy communities and productive workers.
What is an example of a company town?
For example, Homestead, Pennsylvania was a company town situated next to the Homestead Steel Mill. Similarly, Pullman, Illinois was a company town for workers employed at the factory that produced Pullman railroad cars.
Where are company towns?
But here are 12 examples of company towns you can still visit today.
- Pullman, Illinois. Raymond BoydGetty Images.
- Kohler, Wisconsin. Wikimedia Commons.
- Batsto, New Jersey. John GreimGetty Images.
- Kennecott, Alaska.
- Hershey, Pennsylvania.
- Coltsville, Connecticut.
- Lowell, Massachusetts.
- Steinway Village, New York.
Who created company towns?
The first truly planned company town was Lowell, Massachusetts. In the early 19th century, Francis Cabot Lowell, a merchant from Boston, visited factories in England to try to memorize and (illegally) bring back to the United States the technology he saw there.
What were the benefits of company towns?
As access to surrounding municipalities increased, residents of company towns gained access to an increasing amount of government-funded public resources such as schools, libraries, and parks. Modernization and the increase in material well-being had also lessened the perceived need for paternalism and moral reform.
Why did workers resent the company in company towns?
Because company towns were inherently isolated from other cities and locales, that meant that workers couldn’t easily seek other job opportunities—opportunities which might pay better or offer safer conditions.
Is Hershey a company town?
Due to the remote location of the factory, Hershey also constructed a town for his employees, intending it as an industrial utopia that reflected his progressive beliefs. However, after the chocolate king died in 1945, Hershey survived, unlike other company towns, and chocolate is still made there today.
Was Hershey PA a company town?
Hershey is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Derry Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is known as the home of The Hershey Company, which was founded by candy magnate Milton S. Hershey.
What companies had company towns?
The companies that ran the towns were primarily labor companies such as coal, steel, lumber and various war industries. Most of the people living in these towns were immigrants new to the country.
How many company towns were there?
At their peak a century ago, there were more than 2,500 company towns housing 3% of the US population, according to The Economist. As CityLab notes, many early company towns served as a way for corporations to manage labor relations, since they owned all the homes and could evict strike leaders.
What was wage slavery in company towns?
In hard times, a steady wage and company-provided food and shelter can sound like a pretty good deal, but the wages were often paid in “scrip,” company-printed currency that could only be spent at stores and establishments owned by the company. The effect was to increase workers’ dependancy on their employers.
What does company town mean?
Community Answers. A company town is one that is built around and by a company, in other words, a planned community. In such a town, the company owns the majority of the land, buildings, utilities, and small businesses.
What is a Corporate Town?
A company town is a place where practically all stores and housing are owned by the one company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schools, markets and recreation facilities.
What is a company town?
The town of Siedlung Eisenheim in Oberhausen , Germany. A company town is a place where practically all stores and housing are owned by the one company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, churches, schools, markets and recreation facilities.
What does town business mean?
town business A reference to things that go on in the streets of Oakland. Sideshows, street crime—events that occur in the underworld. Someone who just finished a fight said, “I’m just takin’ care a town business.”