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Story: City children and youth

Laundering clothes (1st of 2)

Laundering clothes

Adolescent girls – with their hair down – wash clothes in a commercial laundry in Auckland, around 1900. Children’s wages were an important addition to working families’ budgets. Before compulsory schooling was introduced in 1877, children as young as eight were employed in factories and other workplaces. After this, workers had to be over age 12.

About this item

Auckland War Memorial Museum Tamaki Paenga Hira
Reference: M804

Permission of the Auckland War Memorial Museum Tamaki Paenga Hira must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

How to cite this page:

Ben Schrader. 'City children and youth', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 28-Sep-11
URL: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/city-children-and-youth/1/2/1