Kimberly Steele

So much of the historical "knowledge" about women's work is just class-based perceptions. Sure, lots of middle class women were homemakers around mid-century before taking office jobs, but my grandmas both worked all throughout the 1950s and after (one was a teacher; the other at a bakery, lingerie store, and other shops). And my GREAT-grandmas were also employed in the 1920s-1940s (one cleaned houses and hung wallpaper; the other was a postmaster and telephone operator--they were both homemakers, cooks, and did work on their farms at the same time). One of my great-grandmas was the sole breadwinner for the family for about 10 years while her husband farmed and took care of the kids since he was laid off during the Depression.