Quiz for Thinking Like a Historian:
Women’s Labor

Question

1. Taken together, what do sources 1, 2, and 3 suggest about which of the following characteristics were most valued by American women in the eighteenth century?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is b. All three sources emphasize the value and importance of American women’s hard work and their contributions to the economic function of the household.
Incorrect. The answer is b. All three sources emphasize the value and importance of American women’s hard work and their contributions to the economic function of the household.

Question

2. What factor most likely explains why Eliza Lucas (source 2) and Mary Vial Holyoke (source 3) were able to accomplish such a great deal?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is c. Both women were able to devote considerable time to a variety of tasks because they likely depended on slaves and servants to perform their households’ daily domestic tasks.
Incorrect. The answer is c. Both women were able to devote considerable time to a variety of tasks because they likely depended on slaves and servants to perform their households’ daily domestic tasks.

Question

3. The wife who used the Chew dining room depicted in source 4 would most likely have been responsible for which of the following types of labor?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is b. A woman in a family who occupied a fine house such as this one would almost certainly have spent a considerable amount of time supervising the labor of household servants or slaves.
Incorrect. The answer is b. A woman in a family who occupied a fine house such as this one would almost certainly have spent a considerable amount of time supervising the labor of household servants or slaves.

Question

4. A historian examining the two photographs presented in source 4 would probably reach which of the following conclusions?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is d. A historian examining these two photographs would likely conclude that women’s work in colonial America depended on their class status and geographical location.
Incorrect. The answer is d. A historian examining these two photographs would likely conclude that women’s work in colonial America depended on their class status and geographical location.

Question

5. The advertisement presented in source 5 supports which of the following historical conclusions?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is c. The advertisement supports the conclusion that at least some colonial women without husbands had the skills and the resources to run their own businesses.
Incorrect. The answer is c. The advertisement supports the conclusion that at least some colonial women without husbands had the skills and the resources to run their own businesses.

Question

6. Source 6 provides evidence to support which of the following conclusions?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is c. Source 6 states, “It was necessary, however, that a Man should live with [Moll Placket-Hole], that they might appear to the Publick, as honest Housekeepers. . . .” This suggests that many American colonists probably questioned the reputations of independent businesswomen.
Incorrect. The answer is c. Source 6 states, “It was necessary, however, that a Man should live with [Moll Placket-Hole], that they might appear to the Publick, as honest Housekeepers. . . .” This suggests that many American colonists probably questioned the reputations of independent businesswomen.