Female entrepreneurship in nineteenth-century England : engagement in the urban economy / Jennifer Aston.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Aston, Jennifer, author.

Series:

Palgrave studies in economic history

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Women-owned business enterprises--England--History--19th century.

Women-owned business enterprises.

Businesswomen--England--History--19th century.

Businesswomen.

Economic conditions.

History.

Great Britain--Economic conditions--History--19th century.

Great Britain.

England.

Physical Description:

xvii, 257 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm.

Place of Publication:

Switzerland : Palgrave Macmillan, [2016]

Summary:

"Aston challenges and reshapes the on-going debate concerning social status, economic opportunity, and gender roles in nineteenth-century society. Sources include trade directories, census returns, probate records, newspapers, advertisements, and photographs are analysed and linked to demonstrate conclusively that women in nineteenth-century England were far more prevalent in business than has previously been acknowledged. Moreover, women were able to establish and expand their businesses far beyond the scope of intergenerational caretakers in sectors of the economy traditionally viewed as unfeminine, and acquire the assets and possessions that were necessary to secure middle-class status. These women serve as a powerful reminder that the middle-class women's retreat from economic activity during the nineteenth-century, so often accepted as axiomatic, was not the case. In fact, women continued to act as autonomous and independent entrepreneurs, and used business ownership as a platform to participate in the economic, philanthropic, and political public sphere."-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction

Locating female business owners in the historiography

Women and their businesses

Who was the Victorian businesswoman?

The social network

Life after death

Conclusion.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 231-247) and index.

ISBN:

9783319308791

3319308793

OCLC:

939531804