“Wages of Females Shall Be Equal”: Early Feminism in the Lowell Mills

Discussion of early feminism focused on economic equality

9 Dec 2024 — 2 min read

An 1860 engraving of the women who worked in the Lowell mills. Source: National Park Service.

From page 99 of the AP World History Course and Exam Description

Many world history teachers use a standard set of examples when teaching about the early development of feminism and women’s rights. Most teachers will be familiar with Olympe de Gouge, Mary Wollstonecraft, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. These women were critical to the development of feminism, but was all feminism about gaining equal civil rights or the right to vote?