Hawthorne Works

Hawthorne Works is an industrial history museum in Cicero, Illinois, housed in part of a former factory complex near Cicero Avenue and Cermak Road. The exhibits feature telephone equipment, Bell Laboratories inventions, and personal stories from the workers who spent their careers at this sprawling manufacturing site.

Western Electric opened the factory in 1905 to supply the growing telephone network across North America with equipment and components. Production continued for nearly eight decades until closure in 1983, with tens of thousands of workers assembling devices that connected homes and businesses.

The management research carried out here between 1927 and 1932 introduced fresh ways to think about how people perform tasks and relate to one another on the factory floor. These findings shaped leadership approaches in businesses worldwide and helped managers see workers as more than just parts in a system.

Morton College oversees the site, and visitors can explore displays of equipment, documents, and photographs spread through the remaining buildings. The museum focuses on the role this place played in telephone history and the daily routines of factory employees.

The factory ran its own power plant, hospital, fire brigade, laundry, greenhouses, and railway system entirely within the grounds. This miniature city let the company control every aspect of production and worker support without relying on outside services.