Company Towns of the Pacific Northwest
“Company town.” The words evoke images of rough-and-tumble loggers and gritty miners, of dreary shacks in isolated villages, of wages paid in scrip good only at price-gouging company stores of paternalistic employers. But these stereotypes are outdated, especially for those company towns that flourished well into the twentieth century. This new edition updates the status of the surviving towns and how they have changed in the fifteen years since the original edition, and what new life has been created on the sites of the ones that were razed. In the preface, Linda Carlson reflects on how wonderful it has been to meet people who lived in these towns, or had parents who did, and to hear about their memorable experiences.

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Company Towns of the Pacific Northwest
“Company town.” The words evoke images of rough-and-tumble loggers and gritty miners, of dreary shacks in isolated villages, of wages paid in scrip good only at price-gouging company stores of paternalistic employers. But these stereotypes are outdated, especially for those company towns that flourished well into the twentieth century. This new edition updates the status of the surviving towns and how they have changed in the fifteen years since the original edition, and what new life has been created on the sites of the ones that were razed. In the preface, Linda Carlson reflects on how wonderful it has been to meet people who lived in these towns, or had parents who did, and to hear about their memorable experiences.

24.95 In Stock
Company Towns of the Pacific Northwest

Company Towns of the Pacific Northwest

Company Towns of the Pacific Northwest

Company Towns of the Pacific Northwest

Paperback(Revised)

$24.95 
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Overview

“Company town.” The words evoke images of rough-and-tumble loggers and gritty miners, of dreary shacks in isolated villages, of wages paid in scrip good only at price-gouging company stores of paternalistic employers. But these stereotypes are outdated, especially for those company towns that flourished well into the twentieth century. This new edition updates the status of the surviving towns and how they have changed in the fifteen years since the original edition, and what new life has been created on the sites of the ones that were razed. In the preface, Linda Carlson reflects on how wonderful it has been to meet people who lived in these towns, or had parents who did, and to hear about their memorable experiences.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780295742915
Publisher: University of Washington Press
Publication date: 09/01/2017
Edition description: Revised
Pages: 296
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range: 18 Years

About the Author

Linda Carlson has written or contributed to several books on business, including Services Marketing, The Publicity and Promotion Handbook: A Complete Guide for Small Business, and nine job-search guides. A graduate of Harvard Business School and a former member of the Humanities Washington speakers bureau, she has a special interest in company towns and social histories.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgmentsvii
1When the Boss Built the Town3
2Bunkhouses, Tent Houses, and Silk Stocking Row14
3Who Lived in Company Towns?36
4When the Dinner Bell Clanged50
5Education in the Company Town56
6Religion in the Company Town70
7Baseball, Bowling, Bands, and Bridge Tournaments79
8The Importance of the Company Store101
9Forty Miles from Nowhere115
10Getting the News in Company Towns136
11When the "Dead Whistle" Blew146
12Depression and World Wars159
13Fame--Even If Fleeting175
14The Paternalistic Company Town Boss187
15When the Town Shut Down199
16The Bottom Line208
Gazetteer213
Notes243
Bibliography267
Index275

What People are Saying About This

James B. Allen

This remarkable survey of life in the company towns of the Pacific Northwest and their significance to the economy of the region makes an important contribution to the social history of the West. Here Carlson identifies over a hundred full-blown company-owned towns, where, in most cases, the company provided all the housing, stores, schools, recreational facilities, law enforcement, and even ministers. Her well-written story reveals paternalism at both its best and its worst.

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