Tag: women
Teen Girl Arrested After Saying “Damn” to Atlantic City Beach Censor
In 1923, Atlantic City’s beaches were watched by more than lifeguards. Beach censors patrolled the sand, enforcing rules of modesty and proper conduct, right down…
South Dakota Woman Reportedly Driven Insane by Sliver Under Fingernail
A sliver beneath a fingernail is a small injury, painful but ordinary. In this 1915 account from South Dakota, however, that tiny wound was said…
Doctor Claims Jazz Life Is Breaking Women
In 1924, jazz was more than music. To its critics, it was a symbol of everything fast, restless, and dangerous about modern life. The dances…
The Rat Lady Who Helped Win the War
At a small white cottage in Granby, Massachusetts, Miss Abbite Lathrop tended to one of the strangest wartime households in America: a family of roughly…
What Women Wore to Clean: The Surprising Dress Code Behind 1910 Housekeeping
In 1910, even a routine sweep of the parlor came with a dress code. Housekeeping guides of the era didn’t just tell women how to…
Husbands Call On Police to Stop Wives From Gambling at Hairdressers
An amusing news report published in 1912 tells us that a group of husbands had to ask the police to stop their wives from gambling…
Corrupt and Immoral Teenage Girl Arrested for Wearing Short Skirts, Drinking Wine, and Dancing
In 1909, the Hammond Chief of Police took it upon himself to begin arresting “immoral” and “corrupt” 16-year-old girls. Below is the story of one…
The Hidden History of Chastity Belts in the 19th Century: What You Didn’t Know!
In the 19th century, when corsets and top hats were all the rage, another curious accessory was quietly making its mark: the chastity belt. While…
Kentucky Woman is First Female River Pilot in the State
In 1919 it was announced that Mrs. Eicher in Kentucky became the first woman to gain a river pilot license. It happened after her husband…
Young woman upset after discovering her boyfriend is actually another young woman
From 1921, we find yet another article about a woman presenting as a man and courting another woman. In this case, as in many others,…
