"Superfluous" Women and the Typewriter (ep. 15.5)

Historically, women carred an awful lot of water. It was so commonplace that it rarely gets mentioned in the historical record, so the details are scarce. But the search for water sparked invention 10500 years ago when the oldest wells were dug and has continued to inspire countless inventions ever since. Visit the ⁠⁠website⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my ⁠⁠⁠Patreon page⁠⁠⁠ (⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/user?u=83998235⁠⁠⁠) for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on ⁠⁠⁠Buy Me a Coffee⁠⁠⁠. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join ⁠⁠Into History⁠⁠ for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit ⁠⁠Evergreen Podcasts⁠⁠ to listen to more great shows. Follow me on ⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠ as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Until the very recent past, your chances of surviving childhood were iffy. Your chances of losing one or more of your own children were high. The invention of vaccines dramatically improved children's health, but getting there was a challenge for both scientists and policy makers. Vaccine hesitancy is nothing new. The fact that so many of us have never experienced any of the major diseases ranks among the top human achievements of all time. Visit the ⁠website⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my ⁠⁠Patreon page⁠⁠ (⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/user?u=83998235⁠⁠) for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on ⁠⁠Buy Me a Coffee⁠⁠. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join ⁠Into History⁠ for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit ⁠Evergreen Podcasts⁠ to listen to more great shows. Follow me on ⁠Threads⁠ as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the 19th century, a larger middle-class and better educational opportunities meant that many women had the necessary skills to work in an office. But somehow they never got the job. Instead, they were told they were "superfluous" and "redundant" if they did not get married. The typewriter was the machine that got women in the office door. Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my ⁠Patreon page⁠ (⁠https://www.patreon.com/user?u=83998235⁠) for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on ⁠Buy Me a Coffee⁠. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The four biggest natural fibers are wool, cotton, flax, and silk, but none of them naturally come long, continuous, or strong. To make any textile at all, the fibers have to be twisted into thread or yarn by a process called spinning. Historical women all over the world had this as their primary assignment, and it was unbelievably time consuming. Right up until machines could do it better. Then the spinners all lost their jobs. Visit the ⁠website⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my ⁠Patreon page⁠ for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on ⁠Buy Me a Coffee⁠. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join ⁠Into History⁠ for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit ⁠Evergreen Podcasts⁠ to listen to more great shows. Follow me on ⁠Threads⁠ as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For centuries, one of the biggest causes of maternal death was puerperal fever or postpartum infection. Doctors proposed many theories and many remedies, but they were totally unprepared to accept the truth: doctors were spreading the infection themselves. And all they needed to do was some solid hand washing between each patient. The feature image is by Rasheedhrasheed, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my Patreon page for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on Buy Me a Coffee. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Susan B Anthony was in her seventies by the time the bicycle was widely available to women, but she admired it all the same and said “a girl never looks so independent, so much as if she felt as good as a boy, as on her wheel." She was, in Susan’s words, “the picture of free, untrammeled womanhood.” Anthony meant that quite literally because until the 1890s, most women did not have the freedom to go beyond walking distance of their own homes. The bicycle changed everything. Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my Patreon page for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on Buy Me a Coffee. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I'm starting this new series on Inventions that Changed Women's Lives at the very beginning—so early that it predates written history. In this episode, I dive into the origins of agriculture and ask the (possibly) surprising question: Was it actually a bad idea? For many women, life as a hunter-gatherer may have been easier, freer, and more equal than what came after. But it's true that sources are sketchy, hindsight is 20/20, and even women in patriarchal societies tend to like things like public infrastructure, writing, monumental architecture, and food surpluses, all of which come after agriculture. Civilization as we know it is a mixed bag. Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my Patreon page for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on Buy Me a Coffee. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The United States is gearing up for the Fourth of July, Independence Day. But in 1776, it was by no means certain that anyone would celebrate this day, or who would celebrate, or which day they would celebrate. John Adams wrote the news of the day to his wife Abigail Adams, and he was very dispirited about Canada. Also, he was dead wrong about which day we would celebrate. I am currently on research break preparing Series 15. Enjoy the bonus episode! Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my Patreon page for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on Buy Me a Coffee. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The polls are closed! In this episode, I'm giving you the results of the Women Podcasters Awards and the topic of my next series to start later in the summer. (Hint, it's all good news!) Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my Patreon page for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on Buy Me a Coffee. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the United States, Martin Luther King, Jr., gets a holiday partly because he challenged Americans to live up to their own ideals and extend freedom and equality to people of all races. Partly because he delivered this challenge peacefully, with no violence. Partly because he paid for this cause with his life. And partly because he had a great wife, who stood by him. Coretta Scott King was also an activist, also risked danger, also spoke, protested, and lobbied. And America changed. Racism is not dead, sadly, but African Americans have far more opportunities than Coretta had in her youth, in part due to her efforts. Visit the website (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my Patreon page for ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and polls. Or make a one-time donation on Buy Me a Coffee. Your support helps me keep bring the stories of past women into the present. Join Into History for a community of ad-free history podcasts, plus bonus content. Visit Evergreen Podcasts to listen to more great shows. Follow me on Threads as Her Half of History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices