Women in Nova Scotia During Two World Wars
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Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6” x 9” black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. u m T Bell & Howell Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 Hidden Costs, Hidden Labours Women in Nova Scotia During Two World Wars Copyright by Sharon M. H. MacDonald, 1999 A thesis submitted by Sharon M. H. MacDonald in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts Degree in Atlantic Canada Studies at Saint Mary's University March, 1999 THESIS APPROVED BY: Dr. Colin D. Howell (Supervisor) Dr. M m G<Reid (Reader) Dr. Frances H. Early (Reader) National Library Bibliothèque nationale 1^1 of Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographic Services sen/ices bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395. rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada Canada Yourtkt vom raltranca Our Die Noirt mlêranc» The author has granted a non L’auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibhothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfrche/frlm, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L’auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d’auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts from it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author’s ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. 0-612-40353-X Canada Table of Contents Abstract.................................................................................................................. i Acknowledgements .............................................................................................. ii Preamble................................................................................................................. üi Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1 - Overview of Women's Organizational History in Nova Scotia ...................... 12 Chapter 2 - Alternative Voices - Peace as aFeminist Issue ........................................................ 37 Chapter 3 - Patriotism and Propaganda in their Gendered Dimensions .................................. 59 Chapter 4 - Women's Unpaid Labour ....................................................................................... 110 Chapter 5 - Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 148 Afterword ...............................................................................................................157 Appendix 1 ...............................................................................................................158 Appendix 2 ...............................................................................................................160 Appendix 3 ...............................................................................................................162 Bibliography .............................................................................................................164 Abstract Hidden Costs, Hidden Labours Women in Nova Scotia During Two World Wars Sharon M. H. MacDonald, 1999 War provides a striking example of gender differentiation, yet, because of the unusual demands in times of war, breakdowns in traditional divisions of labour occur. Historians debate how and whether war has been a springboard for women's greater emancipation. However, less critical attention has been paid to women's traditional roles during wartime. This thesis will explore the territory of women's wartime volunteer participation in Nova Scotia in a qualitative and quantitative way and question the assumption that all women shared the same motivations for doing this work. In order to understand the immensity and diversity of the labour carried out, the thesis will look at women's organizational strength and the documentary evidence of their work. Because women's traditional work has been interpreted as an expression of patriotism, the thesis will also examine the gendered aspects of wartime patriotism and propaganda and look at the alternative voices to the patriotic rhetoric. 11 Acknowledgements I wish to thank Colin Howell and John Reid for their patient support and stimulating discussion and direction over the years. More than once, thoughts of their initial and ongoing faith in my work has kept me going. As well, I wish to thank Frances Early, the third member of my committee, for her keen perception, encouragement, and friendship. I am grateful for the opportunity I had to share classes and discussions with colleagues Jackie Logan, Kimberly Berry, Carolyn Thomas, David States and Jonathan Dembling. My thanks, as always, to the staff of the Public Archives of Nova Scotia and the various denominational archives in the province. Without the exceptional cooperation of Sandra Hamm, Interlibrary Loans Librarian at Saint Mary's Library, I would not have been able to carry out key parts of my research. Staff at the national and provincial Canadian Red Cross Society and at the Women's Institute office in Truro have allowed me generous access to their records and I wish to thank all the Women's Institute members, as well as women from church and synagogue groups who took the time to respond to my questionnaire and share their wartime volunteer experiences. Thanks to Professor Marc Choko for permission to use the poster images included. More personal thanks go to my husband. Bill Plaskett, and my children, Joel and Anna, for seeing me through my academic pursuits. My father, Robert MacDonald, died just after I completed the coursework for this program. A special thank you to him and my mother, Katherine, for their unending love and support. Finally, a toast to all the family and friends who have cheered me on. I dedicate this thesis to the countless women who carry out so much hidden labour during times of war and peace. I ll Preamble It will not take long for a reader to recognize where my sympathies lie on questions of women and war. I admit to a biased and less than balanced interpretation of women's conflicted position in war. If, at times, "the lady protests too much, me thinkes"^ it is in order to make a point about a lack of dynamic discussion concerning women in Canada who maintained their traditional, gendered roles during wartime. Their voices and opinions have always been muted, and with time, it becomes even more challenging to uncover the truth of their varied lives. This thesis attempts to peer through the gauze that enshrouds women's wartime work and offer possible alternative interpretations. It is not the whole story; rather it is an attempt at suggesting new avenues of inquiry. ^With apologies to Shakespeare for appropriating the 'me thinkes' for my own personal 'I'. Introduction In the Report of the 1908 Convention of Nova Scotia Women's Christian Temperance Union, Mary Russell Chesley, long-standing Superintendent of the Department of Franchise and an active suffragist who had been regularly petitioning the Provincial Legislature since the 1890s, wrote: At our Convention last year it was decided to take up again the work of the Peace and Arbitration Department, and I was appointed Superintendent. I accepted the appointment with some misgiving, but with the hope that a younger and abler woman would be willing to take charge of the Franchise work.^ Now I find myself in a similar position to that of a young lady who is undecided between two suitors, and who finds herself compromised, and almost captivated with number two before she is by any means free from number one, the earliest and first love. I trust some solution of this rather difficult position may be found during this present Convention.^ Chesley's difficulty in choosing between the two suitors' was never fully resolved, for she continued working on both causes until Nova Scotian women were finally granted