Mr Schwan’ morning coffee is to be served. Photo: Mattias Ek.

City of Commerce and City of Industry

Svenska

The city is filthy and overcrowded. But you can always go to the theatre!

City of Commerce 1720–1860, floor 2

Merchants become wealthy while ordinary people struggle through short and difficult lives. Wealthy merchant Mr. Schwan can look from his home at Skeppsbron as goods are loaded onto and unloaded from ships.

Take your place on stage

The theatre is a popular form of entertainment and one of the few places where people of different social classes can meet.

Here, people from the countryside become factory workers, beer delivery workers, street pavers, or deaconesses. Photo: Mattias Ek.

City of Industry 1860–1921, floor 2

The city is crowded with people from the countryside. Once here, there are jobs in industry, as clerks, or shop assistants.

Think of the children

Many poor children live on the streets. If you’re wealthy, you can help pay for children’s hospitals and schools for children with disabilities. Or make sure babies born to poor families in Stockholm are weighed and given clean milk.

Explore behind the scenes at Münchenbryggeriet (Munich Brewery) to see the challenging work of the brewery employees. But watch your fingers! Broken bottles and life-threatening machines are part of the job. Photo: Mattias Ek.

Stand up for your rights

As a worker, you join unions to protest against long hours and poor working conditions. Workers speak out against unfair treatment based on social class and gender. The demand for voting rights grows stronger.

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