Cotton Picking Collection

A woman harvests cotton on her husbands smallholding

Women and children picking cotton, 1850
3478723 Women and children picking cotton, 1850; (add.info.: Illustration depicting women and children picking cotton in a field. Dated 19th Century.); Universal History Archive/UIG.

Cotton Picking Machine, 1885 (engraving)
1574564 Cotton Picking Machine, 1885 (engraving); (add.info.: Cotton picking machine for use in the American cotton fields. Engraving, London, 1885.); Universal History Archive/UIG.

Sorting cotton, between 1900 and 1910. Creator: Unknown
Sorting cotton, between 1900 and 1910

Picking cotton. 1902. Creator: Unknown
Picking cotton. 1902

Picking cotton back of Dodge Hall, 1903. Creator: Unknown
Picking cotton back of Dodge Hall, 1903

Picking and weighing cotton, 1872. Creator: Unknown
Picking and weighing cotton, 1872

Cotton pickers emptying sacks, Kern County, California, 1938. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Kern County, California. Cotton pickers emptying sacks at eleven a.m. Stopped from further work for the day by rain

Cotton picking in south Texas, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picking in south Texas

Small cotton farmer, Kern County, California, 1938. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Small cotton farmer stays at the wagon and keeps acocunt of the weight of each sack brought in by pickers from the field. Kern County, California

Cotton picker, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Emptying cotton after weighing, small cotton farm, Kern County, California, 1938. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Emptying cotton after weighing. Small cotton farm. Kern County, California

Cotton checkers, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton checkers. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton workers, outskirts of Firebaugh, west side of San Joaquin Valley, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Outskirts of Firebaugh. West side of San Joaquin Valley, California. Six families with twenty-two children live in this house. Cotton workers: "He's good (the boss)

Camp bulletin board in Shafter camp for migratory workers, FSA camp, California, 1938. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Camp bulletin board in Shafter camp for migratory workers, Farm Security Administration (FSA) camp, California. This notice is a statement of self-determined policy drawn up by the camp committee of

Cotton workers, outskirts of Firebaugh, west side of San Joaquin Valley, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Outskirts of Firebaugh, west side of San Joaquin Valley, California. Six families with twenty-two children live in this house. Cotton workers

Cotton pickers lunchtime, near Corpus Christi, Texas, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton pickers lunchtime. Near Corpus Christi, Texas

During the cotton strike, a striking picker applies for an emergency food grant, Shafter, CA, 1938
During the cotton strike, the father, a striking picker, has left his wife and child in the car while he applies to the Farm Security Administration for an emergency food grant. Shafter, California

Cotton weigher, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton weigher. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Motherless migrant children - they work in the cotton, 1935. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Motherless migrant children. They work in the cotton

Loading cotton, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Loading cotton. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton picker, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Pickers in cotton field, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Pickers in cotton field. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton pickers at work in the southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton pickers at work in the southern San Joaquin Valley, California. They receive one dollar and one dollar and twenty-five cents per hundred pounds

Picking cotton, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Picking cotton. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton weigher, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton weigher. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Loading cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Loading cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Loading cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Loading cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Weighing in cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Weighing in cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Weighing in cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Weighing in cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Weighing in and loading cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Weighing in and loading cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Loading cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Loading cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton. San Joaquin Valley, California

Weighing in cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Weighing in cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Loading cotton, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Loading cotton. San Joaquin Valley, California

Loading cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Loading cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Weighing in cotton, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Weighing in cotton. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton pickers bringing in their "pick" to be weighed, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936
Cotton pickers bringing in their "pick" to be weighed. They receive one dollar and one dollar and twenty-five cents per hundred pounds. San Joaquin Valley, California

Loading cotton, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Loading cotton. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton picker, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton pickers, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton pickers. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Picking cotton, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Picking cotton. San Joaquin Valley, California

Mexican cotton picker, Southern San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Mexican cotton picker. Southern San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton picker, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton picker, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton picker, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton picker, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. San Joaquin Valley, California

Cotton picker, San Joaquin Valley, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Cotton picker. San Joaquin Valley, California

All Professionally Made to Order for Quick Shipping

"Cotton Picking: A Glimpse into the Past and Present" Step back in time to witness the arduous yet vital task of cotton picking. In a smallholding, a resilient woman diligently harvests cotton alongside her husband, their hard work contributing to their livelihood. Meanwhile, near Clarksdale, Mississippi in 1939, day laborers toil under the scorching sun as they gather nature's white treasure. The echoes of history resound through powerful images like "A Days Work Ended" from 1887, depicting an engraving that encapsulates the grueling reality faced by those who depended on this crop for survival. The contrasting lithograph titled "Slavery and Freedom. " serves as a poignant reminder of how this very act was once enforced upon enslaved individuals. Traveling further back in time through a colored engraving reveals slaves meticulously picking cotton on southern plantations—a haunting representation of an era marked by oppression and struggle. Fast forward to Kern County, California in 1939; Dorothea Lange captures a sign along U. S. Highway 99 that symbolizes both progress and hardship—cotton fields stretching across vast landscapes. Photographer Walker Evans immortalizes Lucille Burroughs amidst the cotton fields of Hale County, Alabama in 1936—an intimate glimpse into the lives of those whose hands shaped America's textile industry. Chromolithographs showcasing cotton pickers highlight not only their physical strength but also their resilience against adversity. Beyond mere laborious tasks lies commercialization; colorful posters advertising J & P Coats Cotton remind us that this humble crop played an integral role in shaping economies worldwide. Yet it is crucial to remember that progress was not always linear or inclusive—the publication "The Result of the Fifteenth Amendment" stands as testament to ongoing struggles for equality during times when racial discrimination persisted. In black-and-white photographs capturing Mississippi's cotton picking scenes, we are transported to a time when this industry dominated the region.