Another Reminder That Women Weren't Allowed To Do Much Long Ago

Another Reminder That Women Weren't Allowed To Do Much Long Ago

I was looking for some scholarly work on the Statute of Labourers (1351), which was the English government's response to the scandalous rise of peasant wages after the Black Death. I found what is sometimes called "posthole history"--the very detailed, very comprehensive study of documents that might seem terribly narrow, but provides the research information for broader histories. In this case, the book is The Enforcement of the Statutes of Labourers During the First Decade After Black Death, 1349-1359. The book is by Bertha Haven Putnam, Ph.D., who taught at Mount Holyoke College. Any guesses before you click the link as when this book was published? 1908.

There are a lot more women doing "men's jobs" back in the day than many feminist polemicists would want you to believe.