Migrant Worker Collection

MIGRANT MOTHER, 1936. Florence Thompson, a 32-year-old migrant worker and mother of seven, with her children in a camp for migrant workers in Nipomo, California, 1936

MIGRANT WORKERS, 1941. Shacks of African American migrant workers in Belle Glade, Florida. Photograph, February 1941

Chinese quarter of the Chincha Islands, 1864. Creator: Unknown
Chinese quarter of the Chincha Islands, [Peru], 1864. Engraving from a sketch by Oswald Younghusband of the quarter inhabited by Chinese labourers employed in the guano trade

Hop-pickers on the Road - drawn by Phiz, 1858. Creator: Hablot Knight Browne
Hop-pickers on the Road - drawn by Phiz, 1858. Seasonal farm workers. Here meet together the respectable poor and the disreputable poor, the honest labourer and the thief (doing honest work now)

Migratory cotton picker with her baby, 1939. Creator: Unknown
Migratory cotton picker with her baby, 1939

Migratory cotton workers, 1939. Creator: Unknown
Migratory cotton workers, 1939

African Americans leaving the South, 1882. Creator: Unknown
African Americans leaving the South, 1882

Filipinos cutting lettuce, near Westmorland, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Near Westmorland. Filipinos cutting lettuce. California

Itinerant worker on U.S. 101 near San Luis Obispo, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
On U.S. 101 near San Luis Obispo, California. Itinerant worker. Not the old "Bindle-Stiff" type

Replanting chili plants on a Japanese-owned ranch, desert agriculture, Imperial Valley, CA, 1937
Desert agriculture. Brushed chili field. Replanting chili plants on a Japanese-owned ranch. Imperial Valley, California

Replanting chili plants on a Japanese-owned ranch, desert agriculture, Imperial Valley, CA, 1937
Desert agriculture. Brushed chili field. Replanting chili plants on a Japanese-owned ranch. Imperial Valley, California

Family between Dallas and Austin, Texas, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Family between Dallas and Austin, Texas. The people have left their home and connections in South Texas, and hope to reach the Arkansas Delta for work in the cotton fields. Penniless people

Once a Missouri farmer, now a migratory farm laborer on the Pacific Coast, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Once a Missouri farmer, now a migratory farm laborer on the Pacific Coast. California

Filipinos cutting lettuce, near Westmorland, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Near Westmorland. Filipinos cutting lettuce. California

Houses inhabited by Mexican citrus workers, Lindsay, Tulare County, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Lindsay, California. Houses inhabited by Mexican citrus workers. (Tulare County)

Migrant cotton pickers, Texas, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Migrant cotton pickers. Texas

Replanting chili plants on a Japanese-owned ranch, desert agriculture, Imperial Valley, CA, 1937
Desert agriculture. Brushed chili field. Replanting chili plants on a Japanese-owned ranch. Imperial Valley, California

Migrants, family of Mexicans, on road with tire trouble, looking for work...California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Migrants, family of Mexicans, on road with tire trouble. Looking for work in the peas. California

Once a Missouri farmer, now a migratory farm laborer on the Pacific Coast, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Once a Missouri farmer, now a migratory farm laborer on the Pacific Coast. California

Migrants, family of Mexicans, on road with tire trouble, looking for work... CA, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Migrants, family of Mexicans, on road with tire trouble. Looking for work in the peas. California

Houses inhabited by Mexican citrus workers, Lindsay, Tulare County, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Lindsay, California. Houses inhabited by Mexican citrus workers. Tulare County

Field worker irrigating alfalfa and barley fields, Near Indio, Coachella Valley, California, 1937
Field worker irrigating alfalfa and barley fields. The field produces eleven cuttings of alfalfa a year, yields nine to ten tons to the acre; sold for twenty-two dollars per ton in 1936

Family between Dallas and Austin, Texas, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Family between Dallas and Austin, Texas. The people have left their home and connections in South Texas, and hope to reach the Arkansas Delta for work in the cotton fields. Penniless people

On the move, Wagoner, Wagoner County, Oklahoma, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
On the move. Wagoner, Wagoner County, Oklahoma

Oklahoma refugees, California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Oklahoma refugees. California

Grandmother from Oklahoma with grandson, working on quilt, California, Kern County, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Grandmother from Oklahoma with grandson, working on quilt. California, Kern County

Grandmother from Oklahoma with grandson, working on quilt, California, Kern County, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Grandmother from Oklahoma with grandson, working on quilt. California, Kern County

Little Oklahoma, the community that grew out of the need for help in the potato... CA, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Little Oklahoma, the community that grew out of the need for help in the potato and cotton fields. California

House in "Little Oklahoma", California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
House in "Little Oklahoma, " California

Migrant from Chickasaw, Oklahoma, stalled on the desert in southern California with no money, 1937
Southern California desert. Migrant from Chickasaw, Oklahoma, stalled on the desert in southern California with no money. He and his ten children are facing future in California

Family of four to be returned to Oklahoma by the Relief Administration, Holtville, California, 1937
Family of four to be returned to Oklahoma by the Relief Administration. "They won't go until they get so hungry that there's nothing else for them to do

Lettuce cutting in the Imperial Valley, California, 1937. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Lettuce cutting in the Imperial Valley, California. A Filipino crew of fifty-five boys, migrants

Lettuce cutting in the Imperial Valley, California, 1937. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Lettuce cutting in the Imperial Valley, California. A Filipino crew of fifty-five boys, migrants

Carrot pullers from Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas and Mexico in Coachella Valley, CA, 1937
Some of the carrot pickers in the Coachella Valley. There are one hundred people in this field coming from Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri and Mexico. California

Carrot pullers from Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas and Mexico in California, 1937. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Carrot pullers from Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas and Mexico. "We come from all states and we can't make a dollar in this field noways

Oklahomans in potato pickers camp near Shafter, California, 1937. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Oklahomans in potato pickers camp near Shafter, California

Nebraska farmer come to pick peas, near Calipatria, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Nebraska farmer come to pick peas. Near Calipatria, California

Nebraska farmer come to pick peas, near Calipatria, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Nebraska farmer come to pick peas. Near Calipatria, California

Filipino gang of spinach harvesters, near Santa Maria, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Near Santa Maria, California. Filipino gang of spinach harvesters

Nebraska farmer come to pick peas, near Calipatria, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Nebraska farmer come to pick peas. Near Calipatria, California

Freightcar converted into home in "Little Oklahoma", California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Freightcar converted into home in "Little Oklahoma, " California

Tubercular migrant in a potato pickers camp, Kern County, California, 1937. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Tubercular migrant in a potato pickers camp. Kern County, California

Home in "Little Oklahoma", California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Home in "Little Oklahoma, " a community that has grown out of migrant potato and cotton workers. California

Street and homes in "Little Oklahoma", California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Street and homes in "Little Oklahoma, " California

Migrants from Delaware picking berries in southern New Jersey, 1936 Creator: Dorothea Lange
Migrants from Delaware picking berries in southern New Jersey

Migrant cotton pickers at lunchtime, near Radstown, Texas, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Migrant cotton pickers at lunchtime. Near Radstown, Texas

Mexican migratory citrus worker's family, near Strathmore, California, 1939. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Near Strathmore, California. Mexican migratory citrus worker's family. Camped here

Shack in "Little Oklahoma", California, 1936. Creator: Dorothea Lange
Shack in "Little Oklahoma, " California

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"Migrant workers: Capturing the Struggles and Resilience of a Forgotten Community" In 1936, Dorothea Lange's iconic photograph "Migrant Mother" immortalized Florence Thompson, a 32-year-old migrant worker and mother of seven, along with her children in a camp for migrant workers in Nipomo, California. This image became an enduring symbol of the hardships faced by migrant families during the Great Depression. Five years later, in Belle Glade, Florida, another glimpse into the lives of African American migrant workers was captured through photographs. The shacks they called home stood as stark reminders of their marginalized existence. Marion Post Wolcott's lens then revealed migratory laborers outside a "juke joint, " highlighting moments of respite amidst their arduous journey. The struggle continued across borders and time. In Costa Rica in 1888, wood engravings depicted coffee harvests where migratory laborers toiled under challenging conditions to sustain themselves and their families. Moving forward to 1942 Texas and New Jersey, Arthur Rothstein and John Collier documented day laborers picking string beans among poles at Seabrook Farms while low-flying planes spread dust or insecticide over them—an eerie reminder of their vulnerability even on the job. The historical narrative extends beyond America's shores as well. A black-and-white photo from c. 1891 showcases plantation workers from India mustered at Depot upon arrival—a testament to global migration patterns that shaped societies worldwide. Dorothea Lange returned once again in 1939 near Shafter, California capturing an Oklahoma family during a cotton strike—highlighting not only economic struggles but also social unrest within this community striving for better working conditions. Lastly, Lange's lens turned towards Calipatria where she photographed a weary pea picker at day's end—a poignant representation of physical exhaustion endured by these hardworking individuals who often went unnoticed.