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I need to do some brainstorming. If a woman were stranded in the "Wild West" in the 1930's and she wasn't a teacher, and she wasn't married, what type of profession could she have? It must be all the bad western movies that I've seen, but all I can think of is that she would be mistaken for a prostitute and that she really wouldn't have too many other options.

I'd love any or all suggestions.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Irene

WOOHOO!!!! You're thinking about fic again, Irene!!

Umm. Don't know a lot about the West in the 1930s, though I do know the kind of occupations women had in the early 20th century. So... if she's not a teacher, how about a nurse? Women were also just beginning to enter clerical occupations, so is this settlement/town big enough for her to get a job as a clerk/secretary/typist? Anyone wealthy enough to employ a cook or some sort of servant? Or is there a hotel where she could work?

Just throwing out some ideas...


Wendy (also offering BRing services... I'm just saying... )

Not sure how "wild" the west was by the 1930s (that was more late 19th century than early 20th), Irene, but, depending on your timeframe, you'll either have a wide variety of options or few at all.

The early 30's was the Great Depression for the US. The stock market crashed and the economy was in a shambles. Very few men had jobs, and I think even fewer women.

That's the period when books like "The Grapes of Wrath" and "Cannary Row" take place, among plenty of others.

Farming was not an uncommon trade for that place and time, but all the farms were in debt and being sold off cheaply.

There was also quite a lot of mining going on out that way. The miners were men, of course, but the women worked in the mining towns, doing laundry and odd jobs. In a typical mining town, just about everything was owned by the mining company, so they were able to arrange things so that the workers were always in debt (by making sure that cost of living was higher than salary). That kept the workers bound to the companies, but it also meant that the women and sometimes children were out and about doing whatever decent work they could get.

Actually, there was so much mining going on in the west at that time that (along with drought, winds, and poorly suited farming techniques) it helped kicked up the Dust Bowl, a cloud of dust and dust storms so big that it impacted farmers several states away. (That's actually what sets the plot in motion in "The Grapes of Wrath.")

Factories were also becoming more common at the time, and while some factory jobs were reserved for men, women and children in and around cities did work in some types of factories (clothing, shoes, etc).

In the late 30's, however, WWII got the economy going again. "Rosie the Riveter" was introduced in the early 40's, I believe, to help recruit more women to take over the factory jobs left empty by men who had gone off to the army.

Wendy's suggestion of clerical work is also a good one, assuming, as she said, that you're dealing with a time and place prosperous enough to merit it.

Waitress is another possibility, although, depending on where she was waitressing, that could get into the problem of being mistaken for a prostitute.

There was also travelling entertainment. Vaudville, circuses and carnivals, etc.

Not sure what else to suggest. Women did sometimes work at general stores and such, but that was usually as part of the family business (husband or father owned the store).

Any of that work at all?

Paul, wondering what happened to a certain other story which did not, as best he recalls, involve the west or the 1930s...

Perhaps you should specify how far 'west' you're talking about, Irene...


Wendy

There are a number of jobs done back then by women, such as seamstress or midwife or innkeeper. Then there's always the classic barmaid, housekeeper, or nanny.

Thanks for the great suggestions! Yes, I know that the west wasn't that wild in the 1930's, but it was definitely rough in the area that I'm thinking of.

I can think of a number of different ways to make this work.

Thanks!

Irene
Oh, and Paul, I haven't forgotten about that other unfinished story that's not set in the '30's, but my muse is starting to jump up and down and argue with me, and that's the first time in a few years that I've really heard from her, so I better not ignore her, if you know what I mean! (Talk about a run-on sentence!)

Glad to see that you're thinking about writing again, Irene. I've missed your wonderfully crafted stories.

Is this a prequel you once talked to me about? If so, can't wait to read it. I"m offering beta help now. If it isn't, can't wait to read it and once again, I'm offering beta help.

gerry

Here is a very interesting document: Careers for Women published in 1920.

Check out the section called "The Reporter" starting on page 355 sequence 370.

Hope you find an occupation that works.

AmyN

HOWdy Pardner.
Y'all are talking to a gen-u-ine western gal. While I wasn't borned here in Cal-e-for-ni-a, I growed up here since I was smaller than a stalk of grass.

It seriously depends on which part of the west you are talking about.
Let's see - L.A. in the 1930's - the burgeoning cradle of the movie industry. Talkies are in. Gals are scriptreaders and writers, some even famous. Gold was found in 1849 at Sutter's Mill and the state zoomed to almost international stature. We're currently the 8th largest economy in the world, not just the nation.
Ever see "The Big Valley" TV show? That was the central valley in the late 1800's to the beginning of the 1900's.
Sad to say, I'm afraid the "wild west" was dead by 1930 except for some isolated pockets. Civilization had crept in. And yes, indeed, there were female reporters and not just the society column.
Without details, I think your date is a little late for the wild west. Now if you want to make Lois and Clark making a western movie there might be something there.

Artemis

I was actually thinking about Las Vegas and environs which boomed with the Hoover Dam project. It's not actually 'wild west' but it had the same feel.

Thanks for all the great suggestions, and Amy, that guide for Woman and Careers is awesome!

Thanks for all the help!!

Irene

Hmm, that's an interesting thought. I'd never thought of a story there. Here's one of many interesting sites:
http://www.usbr.gov/lc/hooverdam/History/articles/chrono.html

Artemis

Thanks, Artemis! The timeline is very valuable.

I appreciate the help.

Irene

Irene, put me down as one of those who is delighted to hear that the Muse is biting again. I'll eagerly await the results. And I'm hoping too that you'll persuade her to finish that other story too! I was thoroughly enjoying it - one of the best I've read.

LabRat

In my family a lot of the gals were nurses then.

Mine were teachers. Another thought to throw forward was that because of the scarcity of people in the arid west, women were given the opportunity to jobs they couldn't back east. I've heard of many women publishers of small hometown papers. Also because of the vast distances and few roads, airplanes were an instant hit in the west and many women were pilots. "The 99s" association of women pilots was founded in 1929. Here's their site:
http://www.ninety-nines.org/

Artemis