by Juliana Szucs
Every year in March the world observes Women’s History Month (WHM), and this year’s theme is Moving Forward Together! Women Educating and Inspiring Generations. Like the stories of our all of our ancestors, the women who came before us can inspire us to greater heights as we ponder their accomplishments. With limited rights historically, their achievements, and in some cases, their very survival, tell stories that are all the more remarkable.
While they represent half of our biological heritage, women are underrepresented in records. They are often hidden behind the cover of the men in their lives, like their father, husband, or a guardian. In fact, the term feme covert, which refers to a married woman, translates literally to “covered woman.”
Don’t overlook the single ladies in your tree either. Those spinster aunts or cousins often have an interesting story to tell. Because they likely didn’t have descendants, their records may also reference siblings and extended family as next of kin.
Yes, researching women presents unique challenges. Conversely, it can make discovering their stories all the more rewarding. Let’s talk about how we can use the details we have gathered through records and expand on them to uncover women’s stories so they can be preserved and shared.
Create a Timeline
Gather all the details about the woman you are researching and organize them chronologically. Where you don’t have dates, estimate them based on what you know from other records and events. (e.g., Estimating a marriage date, based on the birth of a first child, etc.)
And don’t just look at the dates. Putting her life in the context of how old she was at the time of an event can be incredibly compelling. How old was she when she got married? When she had her first child? When she lost her parents? Did she work outside the house or perhaps work as a seamstress at home? At what age did she begin working?
Compare and contrast what changed between census years. The loss of other family members or the employment status of breadwinners may have interrupted a young girl’s education and/or required her to go to work, sometimes at a young age, to help supplement the family income.
All the Single Ladies
Look particularly for young single women. Censuses, directories, and other records can include clues that the women in your tree were engaged in an occupation beyond “housekeeping.”
Did they have to work to earn their own way? Were they dependent on family to survive? Or perhaps the family was dependent on them to care for family elders or orphaned children in the family?
Some women may have found work in the garment industry or as a household servant. Social histories, like Erin’s Daughters in America: Irish Immigrant Women in the Nineteenth Century, and Sewn in Coal Country: An Oral History of the Ladies’ Garment Industry in Northeastern Pennsylvania, 1945-1995 provide insights into the industries and occupations where women found work and what life was like for them.
Education Levels
Part of this year’s WHM theme is “women educating,” but at certain times, women themselves were denied education. Again, learning about the schooling opportunities that were afforded her can be insightful. Back in October 2024, we discussed Census Records and Your Ancestor’s Education, and that free article can give you insights into the details about education that can be gleaned in various census years.
Beyond the education they received, women were often tasked with education at home and in schools. With a little digging, you can uncover some of the educational opportunities in the area. The Social Statistics schedules of certain US censuses, where available, can also provide insights into the number and types of schools in the location where your family lived. Local histories and historical newspapers may be able to add insights. Check the social pages in particular for women who figured prominently there.
Know the Laws
Knowing the laws as they pertained to women during the lifetime of your research adds to details from the records to provide context. Could she own or inherit property? Vote? Sign a contract? While women’s rights in colonial and early US history were based on English Common Law, statutes varied from state to state. Knowing how these laws evolved can add depth to the raw details.
Hear From Her Counterparts
Even if the women in your family aren’t noted in the history books or in personal correspondence, you can gain valuable insights into their lives by reading surviving diaries and correspondence of her contemporaries in the times and places in which they lived, or in the stories of women who traveled the same migration path they did. Browsing historical newspapers from the times and places your family lived can also provide interesting details.
Share Their Stories
Once you’ve gathered the details, consider writing a brief biographical sketch about them that can be shared with family. That small piece can later be incorporated into something larger, but for now, that small short story about her may be just what you need to educate and inspire everyone in your family to learn more about her and appreciate her contributions, making her a feme covert no more.
Additional Resources
Library of Congress, Female Ancestors: Finding Women in Local History and Genealogy,
Boston Public Library, Researching Your Female Ancestors.
Diner, Hasia R. Erin’s Daughters in America: Irish Immigrant Women in the Nineteenth Century (Johns Hopkins University, 1983).
FamilySearch Wiki, Introduction to Tracing Women.
Lawthers, Ann G. Finding the Elusive Maiden Name, NGS Magazine free archive, Oct/Dec 2023, vol 49, no. 4.
Wolensky, Robert P. Sewn in Coal Country: An Oral History of the Ladies’ Garment Industry in Northeastern Pennsylvania, 1945-1995, (Penn State University, 2020).
Image credit: Women performing textile work, bet. 1910-1935, Library of Congress, Photos, Prints, and Drawings
