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"Field & Factory: A Look at Tobacco’s Laborers” at Duke Homestead

“Sometimes I worked sixteen hours a day. You could if you had to. I’d go to Liggett & Meyers and make eight hours and then go to American and make eight more and get off at two a.m. in the night.” Viola Bond, Liggett & Myers employee. Collected from “Working in Tobacco: An Oral History of Durham’s Tobacco Factory Workers,” edited by Beverley Jones and Claudia Egelhoff.
As a part of the upcoming Black History month, we highlight the voice of Viola Bond, who worked for Liggett & Myers and American Tobacco Company, alongside thousands of other individuals who made up tobacco’s grueling workforce.

To learn a fuller story of the people who worked in tobacco, join Duke Homestead staff on site for a special property walk, “Field & Factory: A Look at Tobacco’s Laborers.” Walks will highlight the contributions that each group of people working in tobacco made to North Carolina’s culture and powerful economy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, while addressing the inequalities in tobacco’s labor forces.

Lecture begins in the visitor’s center lobby at 11:15 and 2:15. Admission is free. There will be a limited amount of space, so please call the site at (919) 627-6990 to reserve a spot.

Upcoming Dates For This Event:

  • Saturday, February 22
  • 2828 Duke Homestead Rd
  • Durham, North Carolina 27705
  • Time: 11:15 AM to 4:00 PM
  • Location:
    Duke Homestead State Historic Site
  • Admission:
    FREE with preregistration
  • Contact:
    Duke Homestead
  • duke@dncr.nc.gov
  • 919-627-6990
  • Website
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