Worker Collection (page 3)

American seamstress and patriot. Betsy Ross making the first American flag. Drawing by Elisabeth Moore Hallowell
BETSY ROSS (1752-1836). American seamstress and patriot. Betsy Ross making the first American flag. Drawing by Elisabeth Moore Hallowell

The iron worker and King Solomon. Print showing a blacksmith sitting on a stool next to the throne of Solomon, thought to be a usurper, the crowd rushes forward to remove him

Women working during the First World War. Above: in a weapons factory, filling shells with explosives. Below: an outdoor scene with a woman bus conductor

VAN GOGH: SOWER, 1888. Oil on canvas by Vincent Van Gogh

Maintenance worker greasing pivots and slides
A Railway engineer, wearing no discernible protective clothing, greasing the pivots and slides with a grease gun. Photograph by Heinz Zinram. 1950s

Shaping metal with a steam hammer
Two metalworkers use a clamp and chain to hold a large piece of metal in place while it is shaped by a pneumatic steam hammer

BP employee opening the flow valves
A British Petroleum employee opens the flow valves of an oil plant in the Middle East (likely to have been in Iraq or Iran)

St Catherine of Siena
ST CATHERINE OF SIENA Italian visionary and miracle worker

Women workers, World War I
British women aeroplane workers in the Midlands, acetylene welding frame lugs for planes during World War I

Glass Blowing 1930S
A female glass worker blows glass for use in lamps, chemistry equipment, etc

Harvesting with Tractor
Havesting barley on a farm in Suffolk, England, using a Fordson tractor

Sorting Post 1930S
A postal worker at the General Post Office (GPO), at Mount Pleasant, north London, sorts out parcels on a conveyor belt in the warehouse

Covent Garden Market
COVENT GARDEN Early morning; a 21 year-old chap (Alfred John Lewis) in a flat cap, stands surrounded by baskets and crates of apples, fruit and vegetables

Amish Blacksmith
Anna Zhang

Cotton Plantation
A Cotton Plantation in the South, USA 1890s. Painting by Herman Hubner. Date: 1890s

View of Tirpentwys Colliery, Pontypool, South Wales
View of Tirpentwys Colliery near Pontypool in South Wales

ENGLAND: COAL MINERS. Coal miners at the Tilmanstone mine in Kent, England, early 20th century

Welsh miner in coal mine pushing truck
A Welsh miner, stripped to the waist, pushing a truck in a coal mine

Thailand farmers rice planting and grow rice in the rainy season. Chanwit Whanset

William Rust, British communist and newspaper editor
William Charles Rust (1903-1949), British communist activist, member of the Communist Party of Great Britain, and editor of the Daily Worker newspaper, seen here at his desk

Pulling the Hops - Hop Pickers - West Malling, Kent. Date: 1938

Coopering, making whiskey barrels at Wiley & Co, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, 1961. The photograph shows a worker from the bonded warehouse hammering the rings into place on a barrel

The Orator of the Strike, 1890-1891. Found in the Collection of Banca di Credito Cooperativo, Barlassina

MISSISSIPPI: LABOR, 1940. Cotton picking in the vicinity of Clarksdale, Mississippi. Photograph by Marion Post Wolcott, November 1940

EMPIRE STATE BUILDING, 1931. Steelworkers on girders of the Empire State Building, New York City. Photographed by Lewis Hine, 1931

An unemployed lumberjack with his wife in a migrant workers camp for the bean harvest, Marion County, Oregon
OREGON: LUMBERJACK, 1939. An unemployed lumberjack with his wife in a migrant workers camp for the bean harvest, Marion County, Oregon. The man has his social security number tattooed on his arm

BLACKSMITHS, c1903. Two blacksmiths making a metal hoop, possibly for a wagon wheel. Photograph, c1903

With a felling axe, Harry ( Heathfield ) the Hedger of Charing, Kent, has cut off the stumps of a hedge he previously trimmed. 6 February 1951 TopFoto

Cornish tin mining, 19th century
Cornish tin mining, 19th-century artwork. Miners working in a shaft in a tin mine in Cornwall, UK. Many such excavations were near the coast and extended out under the sea for nearly a kilometre

TENOCHTITLAN (MEXICO CITY). Great Tenochtitlan / The Market: detail from Diego Riveras mural of market day in the Aztec
TENOCHTITLAN (MEXICO CITY). Great Tenochtitlan/The Market: detail from Diego Riveras mural of market day in the Aztec capital. The Great Temple is seen in background

Ohio River at Cincinnati, Ohio, 1860s
Riverboats loading at the Ohio River levee in Cincinnati, Ohio, 1860s. Hand-colored woodcut of a 19th-century illustration

Chinese immigrants working on the transcontinental railroad
Chinese laborers constructing the Central Pacific Railroad, 1860s. Hand-colored woodcut of a 19th-century illustration

Typesetter at work, 1800s
Setting type by hand in a print-shop. Hand-colored woodcut of a 19th-century illustration

Building the railroad to Bismarck, North Dakota, 1870s
Laying railroad track in winter across the Missouri River at Bismarck, North Dakota, 1879. Hand-colored woodcut of a 19th-century illustration

Drink More Milk poster
Poster issued by the National Milk Publicity Council showing a pretty, and wholesome looking dairy worker enjoying a glass of fresh milk

An old Kikuyu lady picks coffee Taken in the 1960 s, this photograph depicts a traditional form of dress and ear ornaments among Kikuyu women, which has completely disappeared

Jamaica Street, Glasgow, 1901
MITCHELL AND KENYON 186 JAMAICA STREET GLASGOW 1901

Crowd outside the closed East India Dock Gates, Poplar, London, 1897. Men wait, locked out of the East India Docks, probably during a strike in which the dock workers demanded fair pay

Textile mill in Bergamo. Found in the Collection of Gallerie di Piazza Scala, Milano

Printing the Daily Telegraph newspaper, London, c1900 (1903). From Living London, Vol. II, by George R. Sims. [Cassell and Company, Limited, London, Paris, New York & Melbourne, 1903]

The Engineer, 1867. The workman is using a file on an engine part held in a vice. Engineers made and maintained the steam engines and machinery used in manufacturing and transport

Trade union. Manifest published by the World Congress in London
Trade union. Emerged from the development of the Industrial Revolution in the late nineteenth century in Great Britain. Manifest published by the World Congress in London. 1896

The NeedleWorker, WW1 knitting with Jessie Pope poem
Page from The Needle Worker from March 1915, advising readers on knitting for men and boys and featuring, The Knitting Song, a poem by Jessie Pope

CHIMNEY SWEEP, 1890. American advertisement for Pears Soap, 1890

McCORMICK HARVESTER. Demonstration of the horse-drawn harvester and binder invented by Cyrus Hall McCormick. Undated photograph

At Messrs James Burns Book Binding works at Esher. Gilding the edge. 15 May 1923

Mr A. W. (Jack) Pearce of Lymington, Hampshire is out to beat the world horse ploughing
Mr A.W. (Jack) Pearce of Lymington, Hampshire is out to beat the world horse ploughing record of 263 firsts and 100 cups. He is 64 and in fifty years he has won 231 first prizes

Women hop pickers in Beltring, Kent. Each worker has a gas mask over their shoulder in box in case of a gas attack. 1939

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The worker, a central figure in the capitalist pyramid, has been depicted throughout history in various forms of art and propaganda. From American socialist posters to Diego Rivera's murals at The Detroit Institute of Arts, these artworks shed light on the struggles and triumphs of workers. In 1911, an American Socialist poster showcased the harsh reality faced by workers within the capitalist system. It emphasized the unequal distribution of wealth and power, with a small elite benefiting from the labor of many. Diego Rivera's mural depicting the automobile industry in Detroit during the 1930s captured both the grandeur and hardships experienced by workers. It showcased their tireless efforts amidst towering machinery, highlighting their crucial role in driving industrial progress. During China's Cultural Revolution, Chairman Mao became an iconic symbol for workers' empowerment. A cultural revolution poster portrayed him as a guiding force leading them towards a brighter future. Labour Party posters from 1910 challenged societal inequalities such as House of Lords' rejection of budget reforms. These visuals aimed to rally support for fairer treatment and representation for working-class individuals. From Geevor Tin Mine in Cornwall to coal mines in South Wales and England during different time periods, images depict miners enduring grueling conditions underground while contributing to fueling industries above ground. Gustave Caillebotte's painting "The Floor Planers" immortalized manual laborers engaged in mundane yet essential tasks. Their stoic expressions reveal their dedication despite monotonous work environments. Artists like El Lissitzky used powerful imagery such as "Beat the Whites with Red Wedge" to promote communist ideals after World War I. This poster conveyed unity among workers against oppressive forces through its bold design elements. Soviet propaganda posters further highlighted worker mobilization during Stalin's Five-Year Plan era. Vladimir Lyushin's artwork celebrated young communists as shock troops driving economic growth through industrialization efforts. These diverse artworks remind us that workers have played a pivotal role in shaping societies and economies.