Women During World War 1
Cleaning, cooking, and taking care of the children used to be the typical duties of many women. With so many men overseas during World War 1, women finally had a chance to show what they were truly capable of by getting a chance to enter the workforce, some jobs of which were once only intended for men. Many women cared for the US soldiers by becoming nurses, women had a chance to enter the workforce, and many women even enlisted into the US military.
During World War 1, many US nurses were needed in order to travel overseas, and care for the injured soldiers. Many of these nurses knew that they were putting themselves in danger by traveling to many dangerous countries.
Six months after America entered the war, nearly 1,100 nurses served overseas in nine base hospitals. These first nurses to arrive were unmarried, between the ages of 25 and 35, Caucasian and graduates of training schools offering solid theoretical and practical medical training. They were part of the largest official mobilization of women in the history of the country. The nurses who served with base hospitals were among the best-trained and most experienced in the field; yet they could not imagine the conditions of war ahead of them or the work they would be called upon to do (http://www.womensmemorial.org/H&C/Exhibits/exhibitshl.html).
More than 10,000 US Army nurses traveled to places such as France, Russia, Italy, China, England, Belgium, Germany, The Philippines, and Puerto Rico to help with their services. 102 nurses died while they were overseas. During the entire time of World War 1, approximately 265 nurses died. Most of these deaths occurred from influenza (http://www.womensmemorial.org/H&C/Exhibits/exhibitshl.html).
Once World War One began, many women became unemployed, especially servants. Between the years 1914 and 1918, about 1.6 million women joined the workforce. Many of the jobs women were taking were in government departments, public...