Although matchstick making sounds straightforward, the consequences of working around the materials used to make them were devastating.
Matchsticks were made in factories by women and children who labored for 12 to 16 hours a day and involved dipping the wood matchsticks into a phosphorous solution.
The problem was that too much exposure to phosphorus carried a specific risk: phossy jaw. Essentially, the phossy jaw was a physical ailment that caused the jaw bone to completely rot.
The disease was known to spread to the brain and cause an excruciating death unless the afflicted jaw was completely removed. Even with jaw removal, survival wasn't assured.
