8.8.3

Describe the role of pioneer women and the new status that western women achieved (e.g., biographies, journals, diaries and other original documents on Laura Ingalls Wilder, Annie Bidwell, slave women gaining freedom in the West, Wyoming granting suffrage to women in 1869).
             Respect is probably the biggest thing pioneer women gained out on the frontier. Men have always been more dominant than women, especially in the time before the expansion west. Women had very little rights and were often treated cruelly by men. With the help of the wilderness continuously forcing them to toughen up, the women were able to achieve a whole new status that was never thought possible. Not just regular women either, but even slave women gained more rights. Among all these women that raised the bar of how women were to be respected people such as Jesse James (an infamous cowgirl), Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Annie Oakley. They, in their own unique ways, made impacts on the stereotyping of many women in the 1800’s.
             What was the role of women in the world of pioneers? You could say that all women did was care for the children and do housework. They did do those things but in the 1800s, pioneer women began to take on more responsibility. Pioneer women worked just as hard as their husbands doing the farm work, tending the sick, making candles, and even more vigorous tasks. It seemed that a woman could do any man’s job. Yet, even while doing the same amount of work as the men, the women still were not considered equal.
             Concerning the ways women went about gaining respect and new status, many had to show the world that they could be just as capable as the men. Annie Oakley was one of them. She used her skills and smarts to become a world-renowned sharpshooter. Jesse James became an infamous cowgirl who attacked trains and stagecoaches. These two examples showed the men that the women were not to be stereotyped and sometimes even to be feared. In Wyoming though, the women were more capable and respected than any other woman on the frontier. Wyoming was actually the first state to support women’s movements throughout the 1800s. These women, coming from the second least populated state, were a very large factor in the road to equality for women. In fact, Wyoming was the first state to give women suffrage in 1869.


More Information:

   1.    http://search.eb.com/women/nineteenth01.html
          This site provides a timeline of 19th century events concerning women. Each page contains around 6 or 7 facts organized by year.

   2.    http://www.powells.com/subsection/AmericanaFrontierWomen.html
          This site contains many books relating to the various important women of the 18th century.

   3.    http://www.vvv.com/~jenslegg/
          Some sort of fan/biographical site with information regarding Laura Ingalls Wilder and her books.

   4.    http://www.over-land.com/westpers2.html
          This is a big page full of links. Links lead you to many different sites with biographical information on many pioneer women.

   5.    http://www.malakoff.com/tcnpfaw.htm
          This page contains information on the bravery and courage of women who faced the frontier to take part in the gold mining, etc.

   6.    http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/Content/1998/12/08/edits/paulhackwell.html
          This page contains a large essay showing the strength of Wyoming women.