Women in the Old West (A True Book)

by Marti Dumas

Overview

Many women of different backgrounds lived together in the American West.

Former enslaved women left the racism of the Southern states to find a new life. White settlers traveled alone or with their families seeking their fortune as farmers, teachers, or gold miners. They met Mexican and Native American women who already lived in the territory. They were later joined by Japanese and Chinese immigrant women. All these women faced hardship and an unfamiliar life as they fought for their rights, their freedom, and their land in the American West. This book tells their story.Women are sometimes called the silent protagonists of history. But since before the founding of our nation until now, women have organized, marched, and inspired. They forced change and created opportunity. With engaging text, fun facts, photography, infographics, and art, this new set of books examines how individual women of differing races and socioeconomic status took a stand, and how groups of women lived and fought throughout the history of this country. It looks at how they celebrated victories that included the right to vote, the right to serve their country, and the right to equal employment. The aim of this much-needed set of five books is to bring herstory to young readers!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780531133392
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	09/01/2020
Series:	A True Book (Relaunch)
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	7.13(w) x 8.38(h) x (d)
Age Range:	8 - 10 Years

About the Author

Marti Dumas has a bachelor’s degree in women’s and gender studies from Amherst College and master’s degree in curriculum design and teaching practices from Columbia University Teachers College. Certified to teach Pre-K–12 in Florida and Louisiana, Marti was a classroom teacher for 10 years and functioned as a literacy specialist and lead teacher in both states. She is also the author of several books for children, including Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest and the Seeds of Magic series.

Table of Contents

Introduction: A Crossing of Cultures 6

1 Heading West: How did settlers move to the Old West? 12

2 Women's Work: What kind of work did women do in the Old West? 20

Destroying Indigenous Peoples' Ways of Life: How did the arrival of settlers affect Indigenous Peoples living in the Old West? 30

3 Power in the Law: What freedoms did women have in the Old West? 32

4 Women and the Myth of the Old West: How did women help create the myth of the "Wild West"? 38

Women Writers of the West 42

True Statistics 44

Resources 45

Glossary 46

Index 47

About the Author 48

Editorial Reviews

11/01/2020

Gr 3–5—These titles examine women's contributions to American history. Readers learn about Phillis Wheatley, who was the first Black female published poet in America, and Martha Washington, who visited army encampments to tend to the sick and host foreign dignitaries. The important roles women have played throughout America's development as a country are clearly explained, but the text doesn't try to sugarcoat history. Imprisoned suffragists were beaten, put into solitary confinement, and force-fed when they engaged in a hunger strike. Women and the Right to Vote also reveals the racism within the suffrage movement. Back matter includes a time line, statistics, a glossary, and further reading. This series spotlights women's history and celebrates women's accomplishments, but it does not present a sanitized version of events. VERDICT This riveting series is sure to engage the imaginations of budding historians and revolutionaries.

School Library Journal