The Female Economy : The Millinery and Dressmaking Trades, 1860-1930

University of Illinois Press

The Female EconomyThe Millinery and Dressmaking Trades, 1860-1930\nAuthor(s): Wendy Gamber\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: University of Illinois Press, United States\nImprint: University of Illinois Press\nISBN-13: 9780252066016, 978-0252066016\nSynopsis\nHemmed in by \""women's work\"" much less than has been thought,women in the late 1800s and early 1900s were the primary entrepreneursin the millinery and dressmaking trades. The Female Economy explores that lost world of women's dominance, showing how independent, often ambitious businesswomen and the sometimes imperious consumers they served gradually vanished from the scene as custom production gave way to a largely unskilled modern garment industry controlled by men. Wendy Gamber helps overturn the portrait of wage-earning women as docile souls who would find fulfillment only in marriage and motherhood. She combines labor history, women's history, business history, and the history of technology while exploring topics as wide-rangiw