History Day

The General Assembly created the Permanent Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW) in 1973. The Commission was charged to work to eliminate sex discrimination within the state. The Commission’s first task was to review existing statutes to ensure conformity with the 1974 state equal rights amendment. It continues its efforts to ensure equal employment, housing, credit, and educational opportunities for the state’s women. In addition to its legislative efforts, the PCSW assists individuals who believe they have suffered sex discrimination in employment and other areas. The PCSW offers advice on legal rights and assists with filing formal complaints with the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (RG 154). Records include materials created by the Executive Director, Public Information Office, Legislative Coordinator, Office Manager, and Intake Officer. The collection includes administrative files, correspondence, reports, subject files, photographs, newspaper clippings, and financial records.

"The Connecticut League of Women Voters (CLWV) was founded at New Haven, Connecticut on January 18, 1921. The league was formed as the initiative of the Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association (CWSA) came to an end with ratification of the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution giving women the right to vote. The non-partisan league was organized to educate newly enfranchised women voters and in turn use the voting power of members to press for legislative reforms. The league spent its first sixteen years advocating for the rights of women to serve on a jury in Connecticut. The records consist of minutes, administrative records, correspondence, press files, scrapbooks, and notebooks."

The materials consist of meeting minutes, annual reports, financial records, and materials relating to the Club’s activities at Mitchell House and during World War I. Also included are revisions to by-laws published in 1996 and copies of annual programs.

Connecticut History Illustrated (CHI) : "From colonial times and into the twentieth century, significant differences characterized what were considered the appropriate respective roles of men and women. Before the effects of the Industrial Revolution were felt in Connecticut in the early nineteenth century, the primarily agricultural economy encouraged a division of labor that fell along traditional lines. Women managed the household, but were also active contributors to the economic well-being of the family. Depending on their social, educational and economic status, men had access to a range of work and professional opportunities; they retained most legal rights, and had exclusive access to political participation and public office. Over the course of the nineteenth and into the early twentieth centuries, industrialization and a shift from family farms to cultivation of more specialized crops, such as tobacco, drew women of lesser means as well as immigrants to factory and agricultural work. Middle- and upper-class women were generally relegated to the “domestic sphere,” but many pursued careers in education and some became pioneers in other fields. Women were active in social causes such as abolition, temperance, and movements that promoted the advancement of their own political and legal rights, such as suffrage. Attitudes about what were the appropriate roles and activities of men and women, and to what extent to maintain separation of the sexes in certain areas of life, changed over the course of the twentieth century, with two world wars and the civil and women’s rights movements accelerating the process. To find more resources about gender roles as evidenced in Connecticut history, use the topic headings and other keywords within records to extend your searches--terms such as “coeducation,” “masculin*,” “women’s rights,” (enclosing phrases in quotes, and using an * to allow for singular, plural or other forms), and the names of individuals, groups, or organizations. Exploring the collections to which individual items belong can be another way to find more items of interest."

site continued: "There are guides to new bibliographies and reference works, film and video critiques, computer updates, and news of out-of-the-way materials -- pamphlets, reports, rare book dealers' catalogs, microforms, and more. Thoughtful articles by experts explore women's publishing, Internet resources, library organization, archives, and other tools for feminist scholarship. New periodicals and special issues of journals in other disciplines are announced in each issue."

From DocsTeach: "Use this page to find primary sources and document-based teaching activities related to women's rights and changing roles in American history. Many of the documents, photographs, and other sources are also featured in the exhibits Rightfully Hers: American Women and the Vote, at the National Archives Museum in Washington, DC, and One Half of the People: Advancing Equality for Women, traveling the country."

Includes information on UN documents as well as including human rights topics.

Library of Congress (LOC) research guide: "In the early 20th century, interest in aviation led to rising female pilots in recreation and war. This guide provides access to material related to "Early Women in Aviation" in the Chronicling America digital collection of historic newspapers."

Library of Congress (LOC) research guide: "Early 20th century newspapers reported a rise in women engaging in espionage during World War One. This guide provides access to material related to "Female Spies in World War I" in the Chronicling America digital collection of historic newspapers."

Library of Congress (LOC) Site: "Chronicling America provides free access to millions of historic American newspaper pages. Listed here are topics widely covered in the American press of the time. We will be adding more topics on a regular basis"

Site blog: "The set includes historical background information and teaching ideas that support students as they analyze these unique primary sources. The set also gives teachers an opportunity to begin a discussion of the ways in which women have been represented in the historical record and to consider possible causes of those gaps." "The resources in this primary source set are intended for classroom use. If your use will be beyond a single classroom, please review the copyright and fair use guidelines."

Site blog: "The set includes historical background information and teaching ideas that support students as they analyze these unique primary sources. The set also gives teachers an opportunity to begin a discussion of the ways in which women have been represented in the historical record and to consider possible causes of those gaps." "The resources in this primary source set are intended for classroom use. If your use will be beyond a single classroom, please review the copyright and fair use guidelines."