Entrepreneurs opening textile mills west of the Mississippi in the late 19th century spoke very explicitly about their desire to avoid the high wages and unionization which already bedeviled mills in northeastern states. In order to escape the same fate, they recruited workers from the southeastern states, hoping to gain a passive workforce. However, these workers operated out of a set of expectations which could erupt in strikes confounding managers' hopes about the behavior of their workers.

The talk will last about an hour and a half, and will take place in the Margaret Liebman Berger Forum, room 227, of the New York Public Library.