March is Women’s History month.  What’s interesting is that most teenagers today do not realize the challenges and battles that women have encountered through the years.  Your children may think that women have always worked outside the home, obtained college degrees and have always had the same abundant opportunities they have today.  It’s Women’s History Month so let’s take a look at a timeline of women’s progress from the 1800s through current times.  Kathleen Burns Kingsbury, of KBK Wealth Connection, lays this out best in her March 6th blog titled The History of Women and Wealth (full post located at http://www.kbkwealthconnection.com/women-and-money/history-women-wealth/).  Here is the timeline excerpt from her blog:

1839: Women received the right to own property in America.

Before this right was granted, the primary method for women to gain access to any level of economic power was through marriage. That’s why a young woman’s sole purpose was to fall in love, start a family and be taken care of financially by a man for the rest of her life.

While women were granted the right to own property in American in 1839, the legislative process was not completed nationally until the early twentieth century.

1880: Female investors entered the stock market.

But they were seen as “too impulsive and impressionable” to be on Wall Street. The mindset at the time was that women should turn the management of their funds over to male advisors.

1920s: Women entered the business world.

This was the same time that women won the right to vote in the United States. Women who entered the business world were anomalies and often seen as renegades in a time when the feminine ideal was to marry, stay at home, and raise a family.

1930: 24% of women were employed outside the home.

But they were primarily employed in very traditional female occupations, such as teaching, nursing, and housekeeping.

1940s: 35% of women were employed outside the home.

The number jumped due to World War II and the need for more “manpower” to replace the men who had enlisted to fight the war.

1970: Women’s Rights Movement started the real shift in women becoming wealth creators.

This was the first time women received access to credit and were entering the workforce in significantly larger numbers. Women were becoming millionaires in their own right.

1990: Commonplace for women to have careers.

Pay inequity resulted in women earning less than men and accumulating assets at a slower pace. Women were still viewed as those who supplemented the household income, not as the creators of wealth.

2010: 50% of the personal wealth in the USA was controlled by women.

While women still struggled to earn equal pay, more and more were starting businesses, accumulating assets, and investing in the market with the purpose of building wealth.

Isn’t it amazing to see how women have progressed to the point that 50% of the personal wealth in the US is controlled by women?  That’s an incredible number and chances are it will continue to rise as women become the inheritors of their husband’s wealth and their parents’ wealth and continue to experience growth in their careers and as business owners.  Managing household finances and family wealth may come with challenges new to women if they have not previously managed day-to-day finances, investment accounts, or long-term plans.  Contact Us if you are a woman looking for guidance in these areas of if you know someone that would welcome the opportunity to gain confidence in their decisions.

What experiences have you had with the changing role of women in your family and workplace?