Women in the Frontier

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Women that took the trip west with their families were used to doing things by hand. They spun thread and made clothing, did the cooking and the cleaning but most importantly they did the child rearing. These women were always busy and sometimes they spun thread much into the evening. "I remember a neighbor lady who picked up her knitting and knitted a few rounds at her own husbands funeral, she was so used to keeping busy." ("Associated Content by Yahoo") These women kept their values and duties with them on the trip west. Women did most of the things they did back home during the journey. They cooked every meal and gathered food, took care of the children and also collected wood and buffalo chips as fuel for fire. Women learned how to cook things like biscuits and beans over an open fire, in order to adapt to always traveling. The weather made many things difficult there was dust, rain, and hail; because of this goods often got wet and sometimes they didn't have time to put up a tent to cook under. "In the morning our first domestic annoyance occurred. The women cook refused point blank to go any further...Here was a dilemma!...Having been reared in a slave state culinary education had been neglected and I had yet to make my first cup of coffee." ("Associated Content by Yahoo") This quote shows that women had to adapt but no where in the quotation was a complaint. It was common for women to do some of the men's work at times. "Albert is not well today, so I drove. I was very sleepy while driving, went to sleep a multitude of times, to awaken with a start fancying we were running into gullies." ("Associated Content by Yahoo") Some women had to endure the journey while with child, many women gave birth along the trai... ... middle of paper ... ...Dec. 2009. Web. 4 Mar 2011. . Morre, Denise. "Women of the West Invisible to History." Suite 101. N.p., 06. Jan. 2010. Web. 4 Mar 2011. . Morre, Denise. "The Western Frontier and its Impact on Women: The Western Frontier and its Impact on Women: 19th Century Women Go West http://www.suite101.com/content/the-western-frontier-and-its-impact-on-women-a185192#ixzz1FfAZwiav." Suite 101. N.p., 03. Jan. 2010. Web. 4 Mar 2011. . "How Women Survived on the Frontier." Associated Content by Yahoo. N.p., 13, Mar, 2008. Web. 03/04/2010. .

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