The Lynch Family: Immigration and the Industrial Revolution

Grade Range: 4-12
Resource Type(s): Reference Materials
Date Posted: 10/21/2008

Students can learn about the Lynches and the realities of life for many Americans during the Industrial Revolution by examining a map and description of their apartment, a page from an 1885 account book, and objects from the period. In the 1870s and 1880s, Catherine Tracy Lynch, an Irish immigrant, and her daughter, Mary, rented one side of the Ipswich, Massachusetts house that is the focus of Within These Walls, an online exhibition. Catherine took in laundry and Mary was one of hundreds of workers employed by Ipswich Mills. Renting meant sharing space with boarders, other renters in the house, and probably relatives recently arrived from Ireland.  


National Standards

Historical Thinking Standards (Grades K-4)

Standards in History (Grades K-4)

United States History Standards (Grades 5-12)

Historical Thinking Standards (Grades 5-12)