Items

• Mildred Reece

  Letter from factory at Donnelly Garment Company. Reece describes steady work and the ways in which the Donnelly Garment Company and Nell Donnelly Reed helped her family through difficult financial struggles. Reece also expressed her belief that the wages she earns are higher than at other factories.
  

• Lynn Davis

  Letter by a factory worker describing her antipathy to the International Ladies Garment Workers' Union and its efforts to organize the Donnelly Garment Company. Davis criticizes the union and its president, David Dubinsky while also listing the characteristics of employment she values at the Donnelly Garment Company.
  

• Letter by Maids & Janitors at Donnelly Garment Company

  The only collaboratively authored text among the more than 700 letters written by employees at the Donnelly Garment Company, this letter is signed by the Black women and men whose employment opportunities were limited to custodial jobs. Like the other letter writers, the maids and janitors describe their satisfaction with their working situation and praise Nell Donnelly Reed.
  

• Ora Brown

  Letter by factory worker expressing satisfaction with her employment at the Donnelly Garment Company, including health insurance. Brown does not favor any outside union that might organize the the Donnelly Garment Company.
  

• Ethel Biewener

  Letter by factory worker expressing her desire for the Donnelly Garment Company not to be organized by the International Ladies Garment Workers' Union. Biewener references other women in union factories who are unhappy and would rather work at the Donnelly Garment Company.
  

• Iris Callowick

  Letter by factory worker expressing her belief that the workers at the Donnelly Garment Company do not need an outside union and that the workers could find a capable leader from within the organization to represent their interests.
  

• Lucille Turner

  Letter by factory worker asserting her right to express her own opinion on the working conditions, hours, and wages at the Donnelly Garment Company. Turner does not want an outside union to represent her or her coworkers.
  

• Nettie Ely

  Letter by factory worker describing her family's desperate financial circumstances before she began working at the Donnelly Garment Company. She expresses her satisfaction with wages and working conditions as well as the annual Christmas gifts from the company.
  

• Dora Mattox

  Letter by factory worker distinguishing the Donnelly Garment Company from a sweat shop and expressing her gratitude to her employer, Nell Donnelly Reed
  

• Edna Flynn

  Letter by factory worker expressing her satisfaction with working conditions, including paid holidays and a company-sponsored Christmas party.
  

• Katherine Hamel

  Letter by factory worker who identifies herself as a long-term employee of the Donnelly Garment who had work through the Great Depression. Hamel is satisfied with her wages and working conditions.
  

• Opal Stufflebean

  Letter by factory worker comparing her wages at the Donnelly Garment Company to other midwestern factories.
  

• Minnie Allen

  Letter by factory worker describing her 15 years of employment at the Donnelly Garment Company and her satisfaction with wages and working conditions. Allen has used her wages to advance the education of two sons and care for her aging mother.
  

• Rhoda Jackson

  Letter by factory worker noting that she has been employed at the Donnelly Garment Company for eight years and the company had not had labor disputes during that time. Jackson describes her wage and working conditions and notes she is saving to buy a home. She expresses her gratitude to Nell Donnelly Reed and to her coworkers.
  

• Gladys H. Austin

  Letter by factory worker in which she describes her range of work experiences and notes that she is satisfied with her wages and the congenial atmosphere at the Donnelly Garment Company.
  

• Anna L. Molle

  Letter by factory worker expressing appreciation to Nell Donnelly Reed and the Donnelly Garment Company.
  

• Bernice Anderson

  Letter by factory worker expressing appreciation to Nell Donnelly Reed and the Donnelly Garment Company. The worker describes her work history in other garment factories and notes that the working conditions at the Donnelly Garment Company are much better.