Workday Wednesday: American Can Co. Munitions Plant

In 1917, my second cousin twice removed Earl Jerome Hart (the grandson of my 2nd-great-grandmother's brother Elias Erickson) worked as an inspector at American Can Company's munition works in Geneva, New York.

World War I draft registration card, Earl Jerome Hart. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005. Original data: United States, Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, 4,582 rolls. Imaged from Family History Library microfilm. 

The American Can Company had government contracts to produce munitions for World War I.

 Newark Union- Gazette (Newark, NY), 20 April 1918, page 9

In 1917, the men were paid at least 25 cents per hour, and they worked 62 hours per week.

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 9 May 1917, page 5

75 mm and 7-inch shrapnel were produced at American Can Co.'s factories.

United States. Congress. House. Select Committee on Expenditures in the War Department. War Expenditures: Hearings Before Subcommittee No. 5 (Ordnance) of the Select Committee on Expenditures in the War Department, House of Representatives, Sixty-sixth Congress, First session on War Expenditures. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1919. Available from Google Books.

In 1916, the Geneva plant operated continuously, and there were two shifts. They had a half hour lunch break.

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 15 May 1916, page 5

In January 1917, only one shift worked each week due to a shortage of brass. The two shifts alternated weeks. At this time, the men were producing brass shrapnel cases for the Russian government.

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 30 January 1917, page 4

In March 1917, the plant began manufacturing three-inch shrapnel cases after getting another contract. The workers' wages were not cut, but they were not paid time and a half for overtime.

 Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 7 March 1917, page 4

During summer vacations, Hobart College students worked in the munitions plant.

 Hobart Herald, 6 October 1917, page 2

About 650 men worked at the Geneva plant in 1917. A few women worked as inspectors, along with my cousin Earl Jerome Hart.

Thriller Thursday: Couple Attacked By Ex-Employee

On 28 May 1905, my great-great-grandfather's brother Frank A. Shirlander and his wife Jennie (Hart) Shirlander were attacked by John Corning, their former employee. Corning's right leg had been amputated, and he walked with the aid of crutches. He had worked at the Shirlanders' grocery and meat market in Chicago, Illinois, and boarded in a room which adjoined the Shirlanders' residence. He had argued with the couple several weeks before the attack.

Corning entered the couple's home, using a cane to walk instead of his crutches. He entered the couple's bedroom and began striking Jennie Shirlander with the cane. Frank Shirlander woke up when he heard the attack. Frank tried to stop Corning, but Corning shot him three times (in the shoulder, chest, and cheek). Corning then used the gun to commit suicide.

Frank was taken to Provident Hospital. Jennie stayed with her brother, Fred Hart, who lived nearby.

The incident was reported in the 29 May 1905 issue of the Chicago Tribune.

Chicago Tribune, 29 May 1905, page 8

The incident also received coverage in out-of state newspapers, such as the Cortland Standard, a Central New York newspaper.

Cortland Standard, 29 May 1905, page 1

Although this report states that the Shirlanders had taken care of John Corning from babyhood, I could not find any evidence to support this claim. The Chicago Tribune article stated that Corning had worked for the Shirlanders for four years. In 1900, the Shirlanders' household did not include John Corning. Based on his age and profession, I think that the John Corning who attacked the Shirlanders was living with his brother and sister in 1900.