Florence Kelley Section: American History
Introduction Florence Kelley was born in Philadelphia in 1859 into a cultured and affluent family. Her family was actively devoted to social reform. Her father, Congressman William (Pig Iron) Kelley, fought passionately to persuade government to uphold the rights of the poor and weak. He strongly believed that every child in America, whether born rich or poor should be afforded the same opportunities and chances in life. Florence was conditioned from a very early age to despise the sight of little children hard at work.
Her father was a dominating influence throughout Florence´s life. He taught her to read at the age of seven. He provided books that focused on child labor and children who were far less fortunate1. He took her on a midnight tour of factories where young boys helped in the manufacturing of steel and glass. There she witnessed the deplorable and dangerous conditions children were forced to work under.
She often contends that through this experience, she developed her enthusiasm to advocate for child labor reform. She wrote while still a very young woman, We that are strong, let us bear the infirmities of the weak.2 ____________________ 1 Goldmark, Josephine Clara, Florence Kelley´s Life Story: Impatient Crusader. 1953.
University of Illinois Press, Urbana. ISBN# 0-8371-9011-8 2 *http://www.idbsu.edu/socwork/dhuff/history/extras/kelly.htm*, Florence Kelley — A Woman of Fierce Fidelity. Florence´s mother, Caroline Bartram-Bonsall, lost her parents at a very young age. Caroline´s adoptive family Isaac and Elizabeth Pugh, were close friends of her parents. It was through them that Florence was connected to Sarah Pugh. Florence´s Great-Aunt Sarah was a leading abolitionist who advocated on behalf of the women´s suffrage movement, the oppression of women, free trade, peace, and a single standard of morals for men and women.
Sarah was feisty and strong. She confided to Florence that she never used sugar and she only wore linen undergarments. Her reasoning, she explained was cotton was grown by slaves and sugar also. 3 I decided many years ago never to use either and to bring these facts to the attention of my friends. It was through these influences that Florence developed her passion for socialism. Florence was mature beyond her years. Her school attendance was often interrupted due to illness.
She was highly susceptible to infection. To make up for her sporadic attendance she was educated mainly at home and spent endless hours in her father´s library reading. 4 In 1876 Kelley enrolled at Cornell University; she was among the first generation of college-educated women. She graduated from Cornell in 1882 earning her Bachelor of Science degree. ____________________ 3 Goldmark, Josephine Clara, Florence Kelley´s Life Story: Impatient Crusader. 1953. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
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