Lesson 5: Women's Lives Before the Civil War

Introduction

Anti-slavery poster form the 1850s

Credit: Courtesy of American Memory

Students interested in researching the lives of women before the Civil War might enjoy looking at the items in the following list. Have students describe any documents they choose and decide what aspects of the lives of women are reflected. How were the lives of women changing in the 1850s?

Guiding Questions

What was life like for women in the first half of the 19th century in America?
What influence did women have in shaping the attitudes towards slavery? Towards women's suffrage?

Learning Objectives

Have a better understanding of the lives of and roles of women in pre-Civil War America.

Preparation Instructions

The Civil War erupted after a long history of compromises and sectional debates over representation, federalism, tariffs and territories. Though many of the political differences are beyond the scope of the intermediate curriculum, students can use their analysis of archival documents to begin to appreciate the differences between the North and South and the changes afoot in the United States that contributed to the developing conflict.

Before you begin to teach this lesson, review the suggested activities and familiarize yourself with the websites involved. Select, download and duplicate, as necessary, any documents you want the class to use.

Lesson Activities

Activity 1. Women's Lives Before the Civil War

Activity 1. Women's Lives Before the Civil War

Students interested in researching the lives of women before the Civil War might enjoy looking at the items in the following list. Have students describe any documents they choose and decide what aspects of the lives of women are reflected. How were the lives of women changing in the 1850s?

1848	Seneca Falls Convention: In 1840, Elizabeth Cady Stanton traveled to London to attend the World Anti-Slavery Convention. After the delegates voted to exclude women, Stanton joined with Lucretia Mott to organize the first women's rights convention in the United States. She also continued working to abolish slavery.
1849	Harriet Tubman escapes slavery Background information on Tubman's youth Background information on the Underground Railroad
1850	Jenny Lind becomes a pop star in the United States
1851	Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony begin working together
1851	Elizabeth Blackwell returns to the United States having finished her medical education
1851	Letter, Elizabeth Blackwell to Baroness Anne Isabella Milbanke Byron concerning women's rights and the education of women physicians (March 4, 1851). For background information, search American Memory for "Letter, Elizabeth Blackwell to Baroness."
1851	Unidentified woman, half-length portrait, facing front, holding a copy of the book "Sons of Temperance Offering" (March 4, 1851). For background information, search American Memory. Women were prominent in the temperance movement.
1851-1852	Publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe Photograph of Stowe Background information on Uncle Tom's Cabin
1853 (c.)	Woman working at a sewing machine Background information
1856	Elizabeth Cady Stanton and her daughter, Harriot, from a daguerreotype, 1856
1858	Julia Archibald Holmes Reaches Pike's Peak, August 5, 1858 Holmes became the first woman on record to reach the summit of Pike's Peak -- and she wore bloomers (pants) while doing it.

Students interested in finding out what popular attitudes about both women and slavery were in the 1850s might be interested in the documents in the following list:

Music: Song sheets were the CDs of the day. Middle class families aspired to have a piano in the parlor. For entertainment, evenings would be spent around the piano, singing the latest hits. What songs do your students listen to? What subjects do they cover? Can students identify contemporary songs with themes similar the following?

(Note: Unless otherwise indicated, the following song sheets are available through the EDSITEment resource American Memory in the collection America Singing: Nineteenth Century Song Sheets. To find individual song sheets, use the search or browse functions to locate them by title. In many cases, the cover of the song sheet will be sufficient for communicating its theme.)
Images of Women:
- Theme: The ideal woman
  I Dream of Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair (Stephen Foster, 1854), available through the EDSITEment-reviewed website U.S. Women's History Workshop. The complete text of the song is available by choosing "Electronic Classrooms" on the home page and then clicking on the image link to "Popular Music."
- Theme: A light-hearted look at bloomers, the first version of pants for women
  The Bloomer's Complaint (1851)
  U.S. Women's History Workshop features a brief history of bloomers, as told by Elizabeth Smith Miller, who brought them to the attention of Amelia Bloomers, after whom they were named. Choose "Electronic Classrooms" on the home page and then "Fashion and Dress Reform."
Love: (all from American Memory)
- Theme: We loved each other, but now she's dead
  "Ah! Yes, I remember. An answer to 'Ben Bolt' Original"
- Theme: I love you, but I don't know if you love me
  "Do you ever think of me?" (H. De Marsan, c.1860)
- Theme: I love her, but she loves someone else
  "The girl I loved best of all" (H. De Marsan, c. 1860)
Anti-slavery
- "Slavery is a Hard Foe to Battle" (1855). Cover and lyrics available through the Historic American Sheet Music collection in American Memory.
- Theme: John Brown's Rebellion
  "The fright of old Virginia. Being a condensed account of the Harper's Ferry Insurrection" (1859)

Quilting:
- Sampler album friendship quilt from the Patrick and Massie family and friends
  This remarkable quilt top is unusual in its overall size, the large blue sashing that divides the piece into 64 small squares, and the variety of delicate and graceful patterns. It is inspired by the Baltimore album-type quilt of the period, but is a local and very personal interpretation. Several of the quilt blocks were signed; you can view the signatures on the quilt.
Toys:
- Marbles
- Doll's crutch

Assessment

To culminate this lesson, ask students to demonstrate their knowledge of the lives of women before the Civil War, with an emphasis on differences between the North and South (including the fact that African-American women were mostly slaves). Here are some examples of activities that students may wish to undertake to express what they have learned through this lesson (specific project ideas should always be pre-approved by the teacher):

Set up a timeline display of the meaningful documents studied in the lesson, with appropriate captions.
Create a piece of historical fiction set in the 1850s. For example, students could write letters or journal entries in the voices of women living during the period before the Civil War, describing key elements of their lifestyle.
Write and perform skits based on some of the documents studied. A good example would be a skit showing the social interactions between men and women of the period.