ABSTRACT
A Study of Institutional Structure and Change, John S. Ellsworth, Jr., a sociologist at Yale University, attempts to apply certain concepts developed by anthropology and sociology in an analysis of a small factory in New England. It is an historical study of the evolution of one particular factory from a partnership founded in the early nineteenth century to a modern corporation employing approximately 400 persons in 1950. After this excellent history of the firm, certain principles of social science are applied to the plant situation. The introduction of this management chart tends to symbolize the final stage in the trend toward an impersonal, scientifically managed social system within the factory. Mr. Ellsworth has told an interesting and detailed story of one small factory in New England. The chapter contains many insights into the history of American industry as a whole as it has parallelled this New England factory’s tale in so many respects.
