Civil War
Women in War
During World War I and II the face of the military and civilian workforces shifted. Women enlistees of diverse backgrounds served in the armed forces as clerks, nurses, and in a variety of other capacities. The military careers of Connecticut women, as well as men, is documented in State Library records beginning in 1919. On the civilian front, women began to replace men in the traditionally male professions. Also the booming wartime economies provided many new job opportunities. Although women were not directly in battle, they worked hard overseas and on the homefront, on military bases, in medical facilities, in factories and with food production.
Military service record,
Ida Selesnitzky
Probably New London, ca. 1919
* This photograph of Ida Selesnitzky of New London (later Ida S. Stone) is part of her military service record, completed in 1919. The daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants, she enlisted the Naval Reserve in 1918, and by the time she left the service in 1919, had been promoted to the rank of Yeoman Second Class.
Civilian Women’s Land Army Trainees
Tolland County, 1944
* The Civilian Women’s Land Army of America was formed in 1943 because in the presence of a wartime economy many of the agricultural laborers were moving to higher paying factory jobs. The Land Army had over a million female workers whom the organization paid minimal wages of 25-40 cents an hour to farm and cultivate land for the war effort.
women in farms
In a time where modern conveniences were few, a woman’s work on a farm was a full time job that began when the instant she woke up and continued until she fell asleep at night. Women did more than clean, cook, and make and wash clothing, they also helped with farm business and the education of the children. Catharine Beecher, a Hartford native, often spoke of and took pride in the power women held within the home or the “domestic sphere”and claimed the control women exercised over education and religion made them powerful influence on society.
Women in Cornfield
Meriden, ca. 1900
* One of the positive aspects of farm life was the availability of food. Although this women would not be primarily responsible for harvesting the corn, she would have the daily chore of picking fresh vegetables and preparing dinner.
Exercing the Washboards
Columbia, 1894
* Very few families around the turn of the century had the luxury of maids to do laundry. In middle and lower class families the mothers and wives did th laundry for the family. Because families were usually large and washing was
done by hand laundry was a time and energy consuming chore.
Woman Standing at Spinning Wheel
Mystic, 1900’s
*This woman is spinning yarn on a spinning wheel. By the 1900’s women did not have to spin wool at home but earlier in the 19th century many women spun wool both for their family and to supplement the family’s income. Some women did piece work, a small scale method of production used by manufacturing
companies. It allowed women to work for a wage while remaining at home to care for the house and children.
Mrs.Kelly Delivering Milk near a Railroad CrossingHartford, c.1890
* Some women performed jobs that were essential to the family business. Mrs. Kelly was an Irishwoman who drove a milk delivery truck, possibly for a husbands or fathers farm. This is an interesting example of a chore that moved a woman outside of the home.
Women in the Civil War
During the Civil War, women especially faced a host of new duties and responsibilities. For the most part, these new roles applied the ideals of Victorian domesticity to “useful and patriotic ends.” However, these wartime contributions did help expand many women’s ideas about what their “proper place” should be.Visting this link you can see some more video of role women in the War
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe(June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American abolitionist and author. Her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852) was a depiction of life for African-Americans under slavery; it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the United States and United Kingdom. It energized anti-slavery forces in the American North, while provoking widespread anger in the South. She wrote more than 20 books, including novels, three travel memoirs, and collections of articles and letters. She was influential both for her writings and her public stands on social issues of the day.
The Winter Home in Mandarin Florida
After the Civil War, the Stowes purchased a house and property in Mandarin, FL, on the St. John's River, and began to travel south each winter.
There were multiple reasons for their decision. The Beechers and the Stowes knew that racial equality required more than legislation; it also required education. Stowe's brother Charles Beecher (1815-1900) opened a Florida school to teach emancipated people, and he urged Calvin and Harriet Stowe to join him.
Newly expanded railroads also made shipping citrus fruits north a potentially lucrative business, and Stowe purchased an orange grove which she hoped her son Frederick would manage. The relatively mild winters of northern Florida were a welcome respite from Hartford winters and the high costs of winter fuel.
Harriet Beecher Stowe loved Florida, comparing its soft climate to Italy, and she published Palmetto Leaves, describing the beauties and advantages of the state.
Stowe and her family wintered in Mandarin for over 15 years before Calvin's health prohibited long travel.
Here you can see some videos about Harriet Stowe:
April brings the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War, so the history magazine Connecticut Connecticut
Here you can see more information about Civil war in Connecticut:
Here you can see some more musik
Women in War
During World War I and II the face of the military and civilian workforces shifted. Women enlistees of diverse backgrounds served in the armed forces as clerks, nurses, and in a variety of other capacities. The military careers of Connecticut women, as well as men, is documented in State Library records beginning in 1919. On the civilian front, women began to replace men in the traditionally male professions. Also the booming wartime economies provided many new job opportunities. Although women were not directly in battle, they worked hard overseas and on the homefront, on military bases, in medical facilities, in factories and with food production.
Military service record,Ida Selesnitzky
Probably New London, ca. 1919
* This photograph of Ida Selesnitzky of New London (later Ida S. Stone) is part of her military service record, completed in 1919. The daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants, she enlisted the Naval Reserve in 1918, and by the time she left the service in 1919, had been promoted to the rank of Yeoman Second Class.
Civilian Women’s Land Army TraineesTolland County, 1944
* The Civilian Women’s Land Army of America was formed in 1943 because in the presence of a wartime economy many of the agricultural laborers were moving to higher paying factory jobs. The Land Army had over a million female workers whom the organization paid minimal wages of 25-40 cents an hour to farm and cultivate land for the war effort.
women in farms
In a time where modern conveniences were few, a woman’s work on a farm was a full time job that began when the instant she woke up and continued until she fell asleep at night. Women did more than clean, cook, and make and wash clothing, they also helped with farm business and the education of the children. Catharine Beecher, a Hartford native, often spoke of and took pride in the power women held within the home or the “domestic sphere”and claimed the control women exercised over education and religion made them powerful influence on society.
Women in CornfieldMeriden, ca. 1900
* One of the positive aspects of farm life was the availability of food. Although this women would not be primarily responsible for harvesting the corn, she would have the daily chore of picking fresh vegetables and preparing dinner.
Columbia, 1894
* Very few families around the turn of the century had the luxury of maids to do laundry. In middle and lower class families the mothers and wives did th laundry for the family. Because families were usually large and washing was
done by hand laundry was a time and energy consuming chore.
Woman Standing at Spinning WheelMystic, 1900’s
*This woman is spinning yarn on a spinning wheel. By the 1900’s women did not have to spin wool at home but earlier in the 19th century many women spun wool both for their family and to supplement the family’s income. Some women did piece work, a small scale method of production used by manufacturing
companies. It allowed women to work for a wage while remaining at home to care for the house and children.
Mrs.Kelly Delivering Milk near a Railroad CrossingHartford, c.1890* Some women performed jobs that were essential to the family business. Mrs. Kelly was an Irishwoman who drove a milk delivery truck, possibly for a husbands or fathers farm. This is an interesting example of a chore that moved a woman outside of the home.
Women in the Civil War
In the years before the Civil War, the lives of American women were shaped by a set of ideals that historians call “the Cult of True Womanhood.” As men’s work moved away from the home and into shops, offices and factories, the household became a new kind of place: a private, feminized domestic sphere, a “haven in a heartless world.” “True women” devoted their lives to creating a clean, comfortable, nurturing home for their husbands and children.
During the Civil War, however, American women turned their attention to the world outside the home. Thousands of women in the North and South joined volunteer brigades and signed up to work as nurses. It was the first time in American history that women played a significant role in a war effort. By the end of the war, these experiences had expanded many Americans’ definitions of “true womanhood.”
During the Civil War, however, American women turned their attention to the world outside the home. Thousands of women in the North and South joined volunteer brigades and signed up to work as nurses. It was the first time in American history that women played a significant role in a war effort. By the end of the war, these experiences had expanded many Americans’ definitions of “true womanhood.”
During the Civil War, women especially faced a host of new duties and responsibilities. For the most part, these new roles applied the ideals of Victorian domesticity to “useful and patriotic ends.” However, these wartime contributions did help expand many women’s ideas about what their “proper place” should be.
After the Civil War, women who were involved in the Sanitary Commission, Soldier's Aid Societies, or employed by the government as clerks used their work experiences to find jobs that were previously closed to them. Some, however, expected more opportunities for women based on their wartime achievements, but were disappointed; many later became activists for women's rights. In 1867, Frances Ellen Burr brought a petition for women's suffrage before the Connecticut House of Representatives. The bill was defeated 111 to 93, but the margin of 18 votes indicated that there was strong support for women's suffrage in Connecticut Greenwich
Harriet Beecher Stowe
The Winter Home in Mandarin Florida
After the Civil War, the Stowes purchased a house and property in Mandarin, FL, on the St. John's River, and began to travel south each winter.
There were multiple reasons for their decision. The Beechers and the Stowes knew that racial equality required more than legislation; it also required education. Stowe's brother Charles Beecher (1815-1900) opened a Florida school to teach emancipated people, and he urged Calvin and Harriet Stowe to join him.
Newly expanded railroads also made shipping citrus fruits north a potentially lucrative business, and Stowe purchased an orange grove which she hoped her son Frederick would manage. The relatively mild winters of northern Florida were a welcome respite from Hartford winters and the high costs of winter fuel.
Harriet Beecher Stowe loved Florida, comparing its soft climate to Italy, and she published Palmetto Leaves, describing the beauties and advantages of the state.
Stowe and her family wintered in Mandarin for over 15 years before Calvin's health prohibited long travel.
Here you can see some videos about Harriet Stowe:
