Remembering the Women of Lambton
Many history books describe the achievements of men and remain silent about women, whose roles are often forgotten. This slowly started changing in the 1960s and 1970s when a new way of thinking about history developed. Social historians began looking beyond the upper classes, politicians, and heroes to study how so-called "ordinary people" lived. This contrasts sharply with historians who focused on royalty without looking at peasants, and generals without looking at soldiers. Since many women did not have opportunities to establish themselves as power politicians or businesspeople, this new perspective that looked beyond the "big names" of history began to include women.
It's important to remember that women in Lambton County in the 1800s lived in a society that had very different perspectives on the opportunities available for women. These roles of women should be considered in the wider context of what society expected from women, and what women were taught they could give back to society.
Women have traditionally been left out of discussions about work because the concept of work ignores a lot of the unpaid work that women do (housework, childcare, care of the elderly or sick, community service). Thinking more broadly about the concept of work, we can better understand the contributions women in the past made to society. Women in rural settings contributed to their households not only through tending children, cooking and cleaning, but also by managing the household budget and often assisting in physical tasks around the farm.
Learn more about the women of Lambton from the Lambton Heritage Museum's Virtual Exhibit!
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