What is “women’s work?” How have broad trends in American economic, legal, and political history encouraged women to take certain jobs and restricted them from “men’s work?” How have race, ethnicity, social class, legal status, sexual orientation, and gender presentation impacted these distinctions? The exhibition showcased approximately 45 objects from New-York Historical’s own Museum and Library collections to demonstrate how “women’s work” defies categorization. The items ranged from a 19th-century mahogany cradle to a 20th-century doctor’s dissection kit to a pinback button with the message “Shirley Chisholm for President.” The exhibition sought to demonstrate that women’s work has been essential to American society and is inherently political: Women’s work is everywhere.

Revisiting Women's Work on Labor Day

The Stylish Shirtwaist

Image: Glen Castellano, The New York Historical