BUTTON INDUSTRY

Button making from clamshells was once one of the largest industries in eastern Iowa.

BUTTON INDUSTRY. From the late 1890s until World War II, the manufacture of buttons from MISSISSIPPI RIVER clamshells was a flourishing enterprise in eastern Iowa. Brought to this region by John BOEPPLE, the industry caused an economic ripple effect into related industries such as housing and merchandising. Population increased in river cities as workers moved to new jobs that provided attractive year-round working conditions. The industry led to the development of a new group of wealthy Iowans who built mansions and invested their profits throughout their communities.

Dubuque had the advantage of being close to the clam beds. The city also had a large source of labor and connections to cities of the eastern United States by RAILROADS. In March 1889, the Standard Pearl Button Company moved its machinery to Dubuque from Charles City. John Boepple visited Dubuque in 1898 and suggested his interest in moving his entire operation north from Muscatine if his moving expenses were reimbursed. This, however, was never done.

The largest button-making company to move to Dubuque was that of Chalmers and Son that established its own blank-cutting plant in the city in 1901. Dubuque officials promised the company, named the Iroquois Pearl Button Company, the plant site for five years and installed the company's power plant for a total cost estimated to be $2,500.

With equipment sufficient to need a workforce of four hundred, the Iroquois Company encouraged employment by offering the unique opportunity for workers to earn money from the first day of employment, although at a reduced rate, while they were being trained. Similar factories paid no wages for the first two weeks. Wages earned by employees varied with their production. Starting pay ranged from nine to ten dollars per week with experienced workers capable of earning up to twenty dollars. The most sought after employees were at least sixteen years of age, with no young boys or women hired.

The slow pace of recruitment led the local press to remind workers that the job offered year-round employment. By 1902 the plant needed to be expanded. Cellars beneath the factory were said to store $45,000 worth of shells for winter processing.

Due to the size of its operation, the Iroquois plant was able to weather the financial collapse of the industry caused by speculation in 1903-1904.

Many factors led to the demise of the pearl button industry. Plastics developed near the time of World War II offered more variety in size, shape, and color than pearl buttons at much less cost. The ability of plastics to withstand detergents in washing has also been suggested. Construction of darns on the Mississippi and poor agricultural practices leading to erosion led to increased silting of the river bottom, a condition that ruined clam beds.