Starting in the mid 1800s, women began forming groups or clubs. They would meet up at local churches, parlors, and other meetinghouses. Women in these clubs would mainly be involved in them for self-improvement and cultural activities. The number of women's clubs grew rapidly. In Portland, Maine, there were around 50 clubs in just that one city at some time. Private libraries were formed in result to clubs. A large majority of the groups came together to form the General Federation of Women's Clubs (GFWC). The GFWC included many different forms of groups. Examples of the groups would be reform clubs, alumnae clubs, health associations, mother’s clubs, and household economics groups. During this time, there were also other forms of groups similar to the GFWC.Most middle class white women still did not work outside of their home. Many of the women were still house wives and did work around the house all day while the men of the family went out and worked. Women were usually not in relationships. They were either single, divorced, or widowed. Before the Progressive Era, there were not many jobs available. The majority of women continued to work with agriculture, in factories, and as domestic servants. New jobs were coming up. Department stores became a major place for women to find jobs during the Progressive Era. Middle-class women were starting to have jobs as clerical workers. Examples of clerical workers are typists, clerks, and telephone operators. More and more women were starting to actually graduate highschool and move on to getting a college degree. The number of women lawyers, doctors, and journalist were slowly rising as women began to graduate with college degrees. One in every ten females over the age of ten were working. Over a million of these women worked in factories. By the year of 1920, the numbers increased to one in every four females were working. Seventy five percent of the women were either born in a foreign country or have parents that were.
The Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution stated that women were not allowed to vote. This amendment also restricted African-Americans from voting. When the Civil War was ended, Susan B. Anthony demanded that this law be changed. In the year of 1919, the Nineteenth Amendment was passed. The Nineteenth Amendment made it possible for women to vote.
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