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Womenin Colonial North America The statusof women in colonial North America has been well studied and described and canbe briefly summarized. Throughout the colonial period there was a markedshortage of women, which varied with the regions and was always greatest in thefrontier areas. This favorable ratio enhanced womens status and position andallowed them to pursue different careers. The Puritans, the religious sect that dominated theearly british colonies in North America, regarded idleness as a sin, andbelieved that life in an underdeveloped country made it absolutely necessarythat each member of the community perform an economic function. Thus workfor women, married or single, was not only approved, it wasregarded as a civic duty. Puritan town councils expectedwidows and unattached women to be self supporting and for a long time provided needy spinsters with parcels of land. There was no socialsanction against married women working; on the contrary, wives were expected to help their husbandsin their trade and won social approval for doing extra work in or out of thehome. Needy children, girls as well as boys, were indentured or apprenticed andwere expected to work for their keep. The vast majority of women worked withintheir homes, where their labor produced most articles needed for the family.The entire colonial production of cloth and clothing andpartially that of shoes was in the hands of women. In addition to these occupations, women were found in many different kinds of employment. Theywere butchers, silversmiths, gunsmiths and upholsterers. They ran mills, plantations, tanyards, shipyards, and every kind of shop, tavern, and boardinghouse. Theywere gatekeepers, jail keepers, sextons, journalists, printers, apothecaries,midwives, nurses, and teachers. | 
