Women & Beekeeping In Langstroth's Time

摘要

Lorenzo Langstroth's moveable frame hive improved social paradigms for nineteenth century women in subtle ways. Langstroth's concept was timely, not just for a world waiting for the manageable hive, but for a country torn apart by war and fluctuatingeconomic swings. With many women widowed or delegated to primary income earner status after the Civil War, they found that commercial beekeeping could be a way to balance family and finances with "no prejudice to encounter; no loss of social standing asmay be the case in some other employments," In the careful words of nineteenth century beekeeper Cyula Linswick.1 When the first Mother's Day celebrations began in 1870, women already had an impressive record as commercial beekeepers, association presidents, and conference attendance.