Steve VanderVeen: The many jobs and toils of Jan Vogelzang
Many entrepreneurs struggle working for others. This was true of Jan Vogelzang, who gave us a glimpse of life from the point of view of a factory worker.
Jan and his wife, Clara, arrived in Holland in February 1907. They spent their first night with a family named Oosterbaan, members of Central Avenue Christian Reformed Church. The second night they spent with their relatives in Olive Center, who told Jan they had a relative in Holland who was a contractor.
The next day Jan returned to Holland — on foot — to find work and a place to rent. His first stop was the Osterbaan’s home, to gather information. Then, on 17th Street, he found the contractor, who told Jan to report to work the following Monday.
Next, after talking with the driver of a grocery delivery wagon, Jan found a landlord willing to rent him an upstairs apartment for seven dollars a month. After that, Jan returned to the railway depot, hoping to catch a ride back to Olive Center.
More: Steve VanderVeen: How the Vogelzangs first arrived in Holland
Three days later, on a Friday, their relatives in Olive Center moved Jan and Clara, their meager belongings, a supply of food and some kitchen utensils they purchased at Brower’s Furniture Store on River Avenue to Jan and Clara’s new home.
The following Monday, Jan reported to work hanging doors. He was happy until he learned that his wage of 17.5 cents an hour was less than that of the other carpenters. Thinking he deserved more, he quit. Fortunately, due in part to the influx of immigrants, Holland’s economy was booming, and Jan found another job.
Jan’s new job was working with a group of men building boathouses on Lake Macatawa. Things didn’t go well from the beginning. To get to work, Jan had to commute via the Interurban, which cost him time and money. Then, when Jan asked his boss for someone to help him roof a boathouse, the boss told Jan to keep his mouth shut or he'd throw Jan in the lake, not a warm thought in February.
But instead of complying, Jan told his boss the equivalent of “come up and get me.” Fortunately, he didn’t. Later, however, Jan managed to slip and fall into the water anyway. Then, on a flooring job, Jan discovered his co-worker was earning 30 cents an hour to his 22.5 cents. So, Jan asked for a raise. When his boss denied his request, Jan quit. That was a daring move, for Clara was pregnant with their first child.
Fortunately, Jan quickly found yet another job. This one was with a contractor, who was building Van Raalte School. Not only did this job pay Jan more, it was closer to home, eliminating his irritating and costly commute. But eventually the school project finished, leaving Jan without a job once again. Meanwhile, his family was growing.
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Thankfully, he found work at West Michigan Furniture. At first, Jan liked factory work because he didn't have to climb ladders and could stay indoors, out of the rain and snow. But he was earning less money than before. Then, things got worse. Management cut the work week from five days to four.
Workers were justifiably afraid more cuts were coming. Jan became especially fearful because he felt his foreman was giving him the silent treatment. When Jan questioned him about it, the foreman told Jan that the company didn't hire him to ask questions. Upset and afraid, Jan quit.
Jan found work at the Ottawa Furniture Company, making footboards for beds. In his second year there, management moved Jan to the repair shop. There, the foreman assigned him to fix library tables at a piece rate of 60 cents per item, which doubled Jan’s pay. Jan was happy and Clara was socking the extra money away.
Then management reassigned Jan to repair magazine racks at a piece rate of 8 cents per item, causing his pay to plummet. So, once again, at a time his family was growing larger, Jan quit.
The evening of that same day, Jan went to the home of Walter Lane, president of the Bush and Lane Piano Company. Mr. Lane talked to him, asked Jan a few questions, then hired him. It was 1910. But life would get tougher and Jan would need to call upon the Central Avenue CRC again.
— Community Columnist Steve VanderVeen is a resident of Holland. Contact him through start-upacademeinc.com. He'll be presenting at Herrick District Library at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 11.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland History: The many jobs and toils of Jan Vogelzang
