The following is a series of images of the interior of the Hathaway, Soule & Harrington factory on Cambridge Street which I acquired a number of years ago. They had once belonged to George M. Barden, Jr., great-grandson of Andrew Alden who had served as superintendent of the
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington office, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington cutting room, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington stitching room, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
This view likely depicts the stitching room. Once the uppers were cut, they were lined and stitched together. Much of this work was performed by women. The gentleman standing to the right and marked by an "x" is James Gardner Alden, the eldest son of Andrew Alden. Although records fail to indicate his position in the firm, it is likely that he was employed as a department foreman.
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington stitching room, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Possibly another view of the stitching room. Carrie Shuman who is seated at the far end of the room is marked by an "x". She was one of several operatives who went to work at Alden, Walker & Wilde when Hathaway, Soule & Harrington closed its Middleborough plant. Sanborn fire insurance maps of the era indicate that part of the plant's fire protection included "pails throughout" and a number of these galvanized buckets may be seen hanging near the ceiling. Although the visible clutter in the room raises doubts about the plant's concern for fire safety, the building was in fact equipped with fire escapes on either end of the structure, one of the earliest Middleborough manufactories with this provision.
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington stitching room, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Yet another view of the stitching room. Unstitched uppers appear in the lower left corner of the photograph. The fabric pieces are apparently linings which would have been attached to the uppers during this stage of the work. Note that the women not only wear aprons to protect their clothing, but protective oversleeves as well.
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington lasting or McKay room, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
This view is possibly of the lasting room. Once the uppers were stitched, wooden lasts were inserted to facilitate the process of bottoming, that is the addition of the soles. Machines produced by the McKay Company helped revolutionize the process of stitching uppers to soles.
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Like his brother Arthur, Frederic Lawton Alden joined the family in manufacturing shoes shortly after his graduation from school. The younger Alden appears towards the center of the photograph marked by an "x".
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
Hathaway, Soule & Harrington, Cambridge Street, Middleborough, MA, photograph, late 1890s
The mechanized nature of the shoe manufacturing process is indicated in this photograph by the belts and shafting over the heads of the workers. While new machines greatly facilitated the production of shoes, they could prove hazardous to workers. In July, 1888, "a man named Farrington, of Middleboro, employed at Hathaway, Soule & Harrington's shoe factory, cut off a thumb a few days ago in some of the machinery. Lysander Richmond also cut his hand severely on the same day in the same shop." [Old Colony Memorial, "County and Elsewhere", July 19, 1888, p. 4].
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