Michigan has factories.
Michigan HAD factories.
More than likely either YOU worked in a factory, or a friend or family member did.

I had a good handful of friends that went to work in factories.
Some quit after a short time.
Others hung in for years.
I never did work in one.

Even though I never applied to work in a factory, had no desire to work in a factory, or even visited a factory, I still have to admire the people who worked in them. It was something I knew I wouldn’t have tolerance for, so I take my hat off to the ones who hung in there for years.

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And hung in there they did - under stressful conditions:
sweltering heat
numerous injuries
union problems
butthead bosses
deadlines
chemical inhalation
…I gotta give ‘em credit for putting up with certain conditions.

No, not all factories had extreme problems…but the ones from decades ago sure did. Especially when it came to ventilation and no air conditioning…it could get pretty intolerable during summer in some of those places. On top of all that, there was always some factory that was being closed and shut down, putting many hard-working people out of a job.

So applause, plaudits, praise, admiration, and pats on the back to the ones who endured factory life. The gallery below shows some of Michigan’s old factories, going back over one hundred years ago, from 1900 to the 1930s!

Michigan Factory Workers, 1900-1930s

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