On February 14, 1890, the General Assembly approved "an act to prohibit any person in this Commonwealth from giving, selling, or bartering cigarettes or cigarette material to any child under eighteen years of age or to others for their use or to induce such children to use same, and providing penalties for the violation thereof." The penalty for violation of the act was a fine of up to twenty-five dollars or imprisonment for up to thirty days or both.
B.F. Howell family stripping tobacco, Bowling Green. Photograph by Lewis Hine, 1916. Hine, famous for his documentation of child labor conditions, showed Kentucky children working in tobacco. His caption notes, "The 8- and 10-year old boys and 14-year old girl (not in photo but they lose a good deal of schooling for work) are regular strippers. Photo taken during school hours." This print was from Hine's own working set of prints, Kentucky Historical Society Collections.
