Making a Living

Immigrants from Plonsk, Poland, Harris and Jennie Levine lived and ran their dressmaking shop at 97 Orchard Street from 1892 to 1904. It was one of more than 100 workshops in business along the eight blocks of Orchard Street.

Harris’s workshop, with four workers, was less crowded than most. In such a small shop, Harris probably operated the sewing machine. There would also be a presser, a baster, and a finisher.

Harris’ shop made dresses, a complicated, labor- intensive task requiring great skill from all workers involved. A dress consisted of a bodice and a separate skirt out of the same material. The bodice had at least eight shaped pieces, plus sleeves and collar.

The large puffed sleeves in particular were very difficult to attach - volumes of fabric had to be gathered, and the fullness evenly eased into the sleeve hole. Every dress had two or three layers of inner lining, and all the seams had to be overcast by hand.

Harris Levine’s shop operated the legal limit of 60 hours during a six-day week, but during peak season it’s likely they toiled 15 hours a day. Workers ate, slept, and sewed in the same space - bundles of clothing were often used to sleep on and for blankets.

While her husband sewed and supervised, Jennie Levine cooked for her family and the workers, cleaned the tiny, crowded apartment, and cared for 5-year-old Pauline and 2-year-old Hyman.

What’s more, she had to battle with the presser, who claimed space on the stove for his irons, and workers who threw scraps of cloth on the floor all day long. Over the next ten years, Jennie had three more children born at home - a boy and two girls. The Levines eventually were able to move from Orchard Street and settled in the suburbs.

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Making a Living