Antonio Saldaña

Image of the author.

Antonio Saldaña of Green Bay is a former migrant worker. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. He has been employed as a Spanish teacher in Brown County for 29 years and also gives lectures on the issues of race, racism and discrimination.

By This Author:

A small wood frame building with small windows and asphalt siding.

OBJECT HISTORY: Migrant Worker’s Cabin

This cabin, once occupied by a family of migrant workers employed by the Bond Pickle Company, is located at the property of Thomas and Jamie Sobush of Pensaukee, Wisconsin. Cabins like this were home to seasonal migrant workers who came to Wisconsin to harvest cucumbers for the pickle industry.

A ground-level photograph of field hands use hand tools for planting.

Migrant Workers and the Bond Pickle Company

As the Wisconsin pickle industry expanded, it began to rely heavily on migrant labor to harvest the pickle fields. Unlike many of Wisconsin’s other major crops, it is very hard to cultivate or harvest cucumbers by machine. As a consequence, as the pickle industry expanded, cucumber farmers relied more on seasonal migrant labor than any other industrial sector.

A row of small wooden framed buildings with front porches on posts. The buildings are faced with asphalt siding. At the center, three children are standing in front of a building beside a black car looking into the camera. Farther down the road on the left is a shack and a worker standing by a car across from it.

Wisconsin's Migrant Housing Laws

The changing demographics of migrant labor in Wisconsin, from single men to families, drew the attention of state lawmakers. With more children working in the fields, for instance, lawmakers began to pass a series of child labor and school attendance laws. By 1961, the state’s migrant housing code set minimum standards for migrant worker housing in Wisconsin.