The Database
The mapped data illustrate the dispersal of white-collar workers throughout the metropolitan area. By 1900, Brown Brothers employees already lived in a dozen different jurisdictions, and could be found in at least twenty by 1910. The site can be navigated by panning the map and clicking on dots to display additional information. A brief demographic summary is provided as a pop-up; clicking the indicated link will take the visitor to a page that includes a short narrative biography of the employee based on the Census data and in some cases insurance maps that display their home(s) and other primary sources about their lives.
Mapping the data enabled me to observe patterns in workers’ moves between the two Censuses and to draw some conclusions about the lives of women workers I had not been able to glean from my previous research. Of the 54 people found in both samples—44 men and 10 women—the data show that 4 of the women (40%) were in the same home in 1900 and 1910. The mapping of the geographic data suggests that preexisting family ties were the most important factor in women’s decisions to move. Of the 54 people found in both samples—44 men and 10 women—the data show that 4 of the women (40%) were in the same home in 1900 and 1910, while a fifth moved only a short distance within Brooklyn. All five were living with one or both parents or an older relative.