Library Guides: Prices and Wages by Decade: 1900-1909

Wages in the United States, 1900-1909

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WAGES -- GENERAL SOURCES (all occupations and worker types)

Weekly earnings of men, women and children in 1905
Lists earnings categories and the % of workers that fell into each. At the bottom of page 11, it gives average earnings for men, women and children. Source: Census of Manufactures, 1905.
Skilled labor and business owners - Average earnings, 1900
Shows earnings of surgeons, lawyers, artists, engineers, bankers, telegraphers, etc. Also lists earnings of tradesmen, artisans and some types of unskilled laborers (source).
Union Scale of Wages and Hours of Labor, 1907-1912
Table II shows union scale of wages and hours of labor in each trade, by cities, for each year from 1907-1912. The table showing wages by occupation extends from page 68-121, so be sure to scroll forward or use the magnifying glass tool to find a particular word in the text. The tables showing wages for jobs by city starts on page 16, with Atlanta, GA.
Women and child labor wages in early 1900s
Child labor wage rates are cited extensively in this 19-volume report from the U.S. Department of Commerce and Labor. The title page of each volume will tell what the volume focuses on, for example, vol. 1 covers the cotton textile industry, vol. 7 examines the conditions under which children leave school to go to work, etc. See also the summary volume published in 1915.
Rates of wages and hours of labor in the United States and Europe, 1890-1903
Provides tables that compare wage rates in U.S., Great Britain, Germany, France and Belgium for specific occupations, including blacksmith, boiler makers, bricklayers, carpenters, compositors, hod carriers, iron molders, general laborers, machinists, house painters, plumbers, stone cutters, and stone masons. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
African-Americans - Wages by occupation, 1890-1920
The book The Negro Wage Earner is not a government document but it cites government wage data. Use the table of contents to find the chapter on the type of job, then use the "Jump to..." box to quickly land on that page in the volume. Note that the U. S. Census report Negroes in the United States (1904) shows the most common occupations for Negroes in 1890 and 1900.
African-Americans - Wages by occupation in Columbia, MO, 1904
Tables show wages for males and females by occupation. Source: The Negroes of Columbia, Missouri a Missouri University thesis dated 1904.
Congressional salaries, 1789-present
Historical chart shows salaries of members of the U.S. Congress, along with dates of enactment and statutory authority for each pay increase.

WAGES by OCCUPATION / INDUSTRY

Building and construction wages by occupation, 1902-1910
Wages in 1902, 1904, 1907, 1908, 1909 and 1910 for bricklayers, stone masons, structural-iron setters, ornamental-iron setters, plasterers, tile setters, plumbers, steam fitters, gas fitters, carpenters, painters, stonecutters, electricians, sheet-metal workers, marble setters and cement finishers in each of 25 major American cities.
Farm workers - Wages and income, 1909 to 1938
Farm wage rates are broken out by year and geographic location. Wages for farm workers are compared to that of factory workers. Article starts on page 59 of the BLS Monthly Labor Review, July 1939 issue.
Farm labor wages, 1866-1909
Browse this book's table of contents for wage rates for all states and the US as a whole, including some rates from prior to 1866.
Farm laborers, 1818-1948
Lists average monthly earnings with board, by geographic divisions. Data for years: 1818, 1826, 1830, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890, 1909, 1919, 1929, 1940, 1948. Read the explanation and historical context for this table.
Farm and ranch hands - wages, 1900-1910
Members of the agricultural industry from select states report average wages (with and without board) per month at their farms, ranches, or dairies for the years 1900-1910.

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States include Illinois, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Appendix pages 1145 to 1151 have tables and brief accounts, to read full testimonies, use the index to witnesses to find page numbers.
Source: Investigation relative to wages and prices of commodities, Vol. 2 (Serial Set 5922).
Iron and steel industry workers, 1907-1924
Earnings per hour, customary hours of labor, and actual hours and earnings in one pay period in 1924 are presented in this report for wage earners in ten departments of the iron and steel industry in the United States. Summary figures for preceding years are also shown for each department.
Iron and steel industry -- Wages and hours, 1912
Wages and hours of labor for workers in the steel industry, broken up by location and occupation. Source: U. S. Congressional Serial Set Vol. No. 6096.
Lumber, millwork, and furniture industries, 1890 to 1912
Wages and hours of labor in lumber manufacturing for the years 1907 to 1912, including information from 1890 to 1912. Source: U.S. BLS Bulletin no. 129.
Lumber, millwork, and furniture industry wages - 1907 to 1913
Includes breakouts by state and occupation, including machine feeders for the planing mill, sawyers, edgers, trimmers, carriage men, etc.
Manufacturing
See box below for manufacturing wages by industry.

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Includes links to general sources and sources specific to the following industries: clothing and textiles.
Military pay for enlisted men
Many military job titles are listed separately such as electrician, band leader, sergeant major, etc. Pay tables extend from pages 775-782. Source: Soldiers' adjusted compensation: hearings ... Published 1920.
Nurses salaries - 1909
This 1909 New York Charities Committee publication contains a directory of organizations that employ visiting nurses, including the salaries paid. Use the table of contents then jump to the page number of a state of interest.

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Source: Visiting nursing in the United States; containing a directory of the organizations employing trained visiting nurses by Yssabella Waters (1909).
Railway employee wages, 1896-1907
Lists average daily compensation for station agents, conductors, telegraph operators, enginemen, firemen, track men, switch tenders, crossing tenders, machinists, carpenters and more; as shown in the 1908 Statistical Abstract (source). For further detail on RR wages around the year 1900, see this additional congressional report.
Railroad cars, building and repair - 1890 to 1912
Shows wages per hour and hours of work per week for the years 1907 to 1912, with breakouts by state. Includes a comparison from 1890 to 1912. Source: U.S. BLS Bulletin no. 137
Railroad cars, building and repair -- Wages, 1907 to 1913
Covers the rates of wages per hour in each year for the major occupations involved in the building and repairing of steam railroad cars. It also includes tables broken down by state.
Street Railways - Employee wages by town, 1905
Shows wages in cents per hour, the number of hours that employees would work in a day, and policies for sick leave and disability benefits. Source: 1905 Yearbook of the Amalgamated Association of Street and Electric Railway Employees of America, pages 7-23.
Teacher wages, monthly average, by state and gender - 1894-1902
Taken from the U.S. Commissioner of Education Report for 1902. Starting on page LXXXI, the average monthly wages of teachers in 1902 are listed.

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MU affiliates may access a clearer copy at U. S. Congressional Serial Set database

Manufacturing Wages, 1900-1909

WAGES in MANUFACTURING, 1900s -- General sources

See tabs above for specific industries

Wages for hundreds of different jobs in manufacturing industries, ca. 1900
The link above leads to the back-of-the-book index. Find the page number in the index, then scroll to that page. Source: Employees and Wages, 1900 Census of the United States Special Report, published 1903.
Census of Manufactures: 1905 Earnings of Wage-Earners
A statement of the total amount paid in wages during the year and an estimate of the average number of wage-earners during the year.
Manufacturing industries - Wages and hours, 1890-1904
Source: Bulletin of the U. S. Bureau of Labor, no. 59, Volume XI. Published July 1905.
Manufacturing industries - Wages and hours, 1890-1905
Bulletin of the U. S. Bureau of Labor, No. 65, Volume XIII. Published July 1906.
Manufacturing industries - Wages and hours, 1890-1906
Bulletin of the U. S. Bureau of Labor, No. 71, Volume XV. Published July 1907.
Manufacturing industries - Wages and hours, 1890-1907
Bulletin of the U. S. Bureau of Labor, No. 77, Volume XVII. Published July 1908.

WAGES in CLOTHING MANUFACTURING, 1900s

See tabs above for additional industries

Clothing (men's) manufacturing - Wages, 1911 to 1924
Tells wages for the years 1911 to 1914, 1919, and 1922. The wage data for this bulletin are from establishments engaged in making men’s outer garments—coats, pants, vests, and over-coats—for the trade, or what is commonly known as men’s ready-made clothing. Special-order and merchant-tailor establishments are not included.

WAGES in TEXTILE MANUFACTURING, 1900s

See tabs above for additional industries

Wages in cotton, woolen, and silk industries, 1890-1912
These workers engaged in spinning, weaving, printing, dyeing and otherwise performing tasks for the manufacture of fabrics. Shows hourly wages and typical hours per week.
Cotton textile industry - Child labor wages by sex, 1907-1908
Source: Report on condition of woman and child wage earners in the United States, vol. 1.