Week 8

Last week was spring break, so I did not go into my internship. This week I went in and explored the labor movement from the perspective of Agnes Nestor. She was a very accomplished woman, who supported the glove industry and labor issues for women. I am amazed at how many amazing things and accomplishments women achieve even in the face of oppression. Agnes Nestor’s family immigrated from Ireland and moved to Chicago in 1897, and by 1898 she was leading a strike within the glove factory. She served in many leadership roles within many labor unions within Chicago. Agnes Nestor was a pivotal figure for the labor movement in the south side of Chicago. I want to continue to research the labor movement and suffrage actions within the labor movement because I want to discover more about the African American side to the story. Lori also wants me to start discovering more about the women’s parade in 1913. She wants me to specifically find more about the Chicago/Illinois reaction to Ida B. Wells joining the Illinois delegation at the last second. I started to research this topic this week, but was not able to find anything at the surface level, so I am excited to have to dig deeper into that story. The office atmosphere was a little bit tense this week because they were unsure if they would be closing or not. Lori emailed us on Saturday morning letting us know that the Evanston History Center would be closed the following week, but we are able to continue our research at home. I am intrigued to find more information about the labor movement and women’s parade in the upcoming weeks.