Database for Study of Women and Accounting from the 18Th to 20Th Century

Accounting Historians Notebook

Volume 26 Number 1 April 2003 Article 6

April 2003

Database for study of women and accounting from the 18th to 20th century

Barbara W. Scofield

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Recommended Citation Scofield, Barbara W. (2003) "Database for study of women and accounting from the 18th to 20th century," Accounting Historians Notebook: Vol. 26 : No. 1 , Article 6. Available at: https://egrove.olemiss.edu/aah_notebook/vol26/iss1/6

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A Database for Study of Women and Accounting from the 18th to 20th Century

Barbara W. Scofield, PhD, CPA The University of Texas of the Permian Basin Abstract member of the Dutch parliament, Dr. Jacobs worked as a women’s rights This article describes The Gerritson crusader and peace activist as well as Collection - Women's History Online physician and gathered material during 1543-1945, an electronic research extensive European travels. Her collection. It includes books, periodicals, and other materials on interests resulted in a collection of women, including women's education works written in fifteen different and employment. The materials languages, published from 1543 to concentrate in the late 1800s and early 1945, and centered on women. This 1900s when Dr. Aletta Jacobs, the historic collection was then further collection's founder, gathered the developed at the Crerar Library in materials in her native Netherlands, Chicago and the University of Kansas throughout Europe, and beyond. The and combined with the Walter Clinton results of keyword searches for Jackson Library at the University of documents relating to accounting and/ North Carolina to include over 2 or bookkeeping is provided. A summary of seven of these accounting-related million page images, 265 periodical documents demonstrates the variety of titles, and 4,471 monographs and resources available. Accounting pamphlets. The scanning of these historians interested in the intersection documents was expected to be of women and accounting will find this a complete in December 2002. useful resource. The Gerritsen Collection - Women's History Online is being transferred to A database of primary sources on women’s history, including women’s electronic access by Chadwyck-Healey employment and education, is now (a subsidiary of ProQuest) using many of the user-friendly features common readily accessible to accounting historians. The Gerritsen Collection – to academic databases. The material Women’s History Online is a recently can be accessed by category digitalized expression of the collection (Education and professional training: 507 books; Women and employment: of books, pamphlets, periodicals, and other material presenting “the evolution 539 books); by subject (bookkeeping: of a feminist consciousness and 1 book; business education: 2 books); women's rights” [The Gerritson by periodical title (Studies in Occupations from the Bureau of Collection, 2002]. The database is created from works collected primarily Vocational Information, New York, by Dr. Aletta Jacobs (1854-1929) 1919-1922; National business woman beginning in the late 1800s. Dr. Jacobs from the National Federation of Business & Professional Women's was the first woman to study at a university and practice medicine in the Clubs, 1919-1974) and by keyword. Netherlands. With her husband Carel This article provides information Victor Gerritsen (1850-1905), a (Continued on page 17)

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(Continued from page 16) to verify that the keyword did refer to derived from keyword searches and the field of accounting / bookkeeping, searches by periodical from those rather than some other use of these identified in the keyword searches. terms. Thus the numbers in Table 1 are Table 1 compiles the number of lower than the database keyword search documents found using the three results themselves. keywords “accounting”, “accountant”, Table 2 compiles a list of the and bookkeeping and restricting thirty-six periodicals in this database coverage to English language materials. that had at least one document with an As expected there was some overlap in accounting-related keyword. These the documents found, but the list of periodicals are primarily published in unique documents is only 8% less than New York and London, but include the number of documents found with publishers in Canada, Australia, and the three keywords individually. Thus, Ireland as well as smaller U.S. cities the use of multiple keywords to find such as Edwardsville, Illinois and Salt documents covering accounting topics Lake City, Utah. While there are in this database is recommended. The relevant books in this database dating results in Table 1 used the word back to 1798, the periodicals are in the accounting and accountant in quotes to period of 1870 to 1974, representing the avoid matching its cognates of account, entire spectrum of feminist views. accounts etc. which rarely refer to the Compare The woman patriot: dedicated field of accounting; however to the defense of womanhood bookkeeping was entered without motherhood the family and the state quotes in order to include bookkeeper, against suffragism, feminism and bookkeepers etc. which typically are socialism to Equal Rights, which has part of the field of accounting. The U.S. Senator Wm. Cabell Bruce of context of the “hits” was then searched (Continued on page 18)

Table 1 Documents with Accounting-Related Keywords in The Gerritson Collection: Women’s History Online, 1543-1945

Documents with Documents with Documents with Unique Documents “Accounting” “Accountant” Bookkeeping (at least one key word)

Books Periodicals Books Periodicals Books Periodicals Books Periodicals 1543-1599 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1600-1699 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1700-1799 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1800-1849 0 0 2 0 1 0 3 0 1850-1899 1 4 18 82 10 86 28 172 1900-1945 20 116 32 103 37 147 82 344 1946-1974 0 81 0 47 0 24 0 116 Total 21 201 53 232 48 257 112 632

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(Continued from page 17) children’s having the management Maryland writing in its initial issue of money. [p. 703] “Apart from their [women's] inferiority From this common starting point, to men in mere brute force which unfits however, advice for young women and them for some manual employments young men diverge. Advice for young and political positions of which men women includes only domestic must necessarily have a applications of money management. monopoly” [Bruce, 1923, p. 1 ] to Young women should be Woman's Journal, “Official Organ of accustomed to keep the family the National Women's Suffrage accounts, and their arithmetic Association,” which captions its cover should not be merely a speculative political cartoon, “Uncle Sam, Take the science; they should learn the price Mock out of Democracy” [Front of all necessaries, and of all Cover, 1917, p. 1]. Identifying luxuries; they should learn what periodicals that concentrate on luxuries are suited to their fortune coverage of women in accounting and and rank, what degree of expence business allows browsing for in dress is essential to a regularly accounting-related items that may be neat appearance, and what be the difficult to uncover by keyword alone. increased expence and temptations To provide a sense of the variety of of fashion in different situations; materials available in The Gerritsen they should not be suffered to Collection - Women's History Online, a imagine that they can resist these sample from the books and periodicals temptations more than others, if from each time period in Table 1 are they get into company above their summarized below. These samples rank, or should they have any were chosen on an ad hoc basis as the indistinct idea, that by some author browsed the collection and may wonderfully economical operations not be representative of the collection they can make a given sum of as a whole. However, even these few money go farther than others can works provide insight into the do. The steadiness of calculation historical intersection of the field of will prevent all these vain notions; accounting and women's lives and and young women, when they see careers. in stubborn figures what must be Edgeworth, Maria, and Richard the consequence of getting into Lovell Edgeworth. (1798), Practical situations where they must be Education (London: J. Johnson). tempted to exceed their means, will

This manual on child rearing includes probably begin by avoiding, twenty-five chapters on subjects from instead of braving, the danger. [pp. temper to grammar and from sensibility 704-705] to chemistry. The chapter “On On the other hand, parents are to Prudence and Economy” sets up a educate young men through business classic gender division in financial applications: ducation. The discussion of money Before a young man goes into the begins as follows: world, it will be a great advantage We have said, that economy to him to have some share in the cannot be exercised without management of his father's affairs;

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by laying out money for another The first, is, that care be taken to person he will acquire habits of know the amount of income and of care, which will be useful to him current expenses, so that the proper afterwards in his own affairs. A relative proportion be preserved, father, who is building, or and the expenditures never exceed improving grounds, who is carrying the means. Few women can do this, on works of any sort, can easily thoroughly, without keeping regular allot some portion of the business to accounts. [p. 186] his son; as an exercise for this The principles of economy of expenses judgment and prudence. He should are illustrated with four examples, two hear and see the estimates of from independent businesswomen and workmen, and he should, as soon as two from wives managing households. he has collected the necessary facts, These four women tally profits, budget form estimates of his own, before he for current expenditures, and forecast hears the calculation of others: this expenditures based on last year's power of estimating will be of great accounts. The examples provide advantage to gentlemen, it will summaries of basic cost accounting circumscribe their wishes, and it skills and principles for a female will protect against the low frauds audience. While men were developing of designing workmen. [p. 707] cost accounting in businesses and The advice to prevent young women manufacturing plants [Garner 1954], from overspending on frivolities and to women were applying these principles prevent young men from overspending in proprietorships and households. on business expenses manifests a Of women as clerks and commonly applicable principle in bookkeepers, and of the advantages stereotypically different contexts. of thus employing them. (1876 or Accounting researchers are beginning 1877), (London: Publisher unknown). to look at household accounting more rigorously - an area of accounting that This document is an open letter from women have dominated for centuries Gertrude J. King, Secretary of the [Kirkham and Loft 2001; Walker and Society for Promoting the Employment Llewellyn 2000]. of Women, asking employers to consider hiring its women bookkeeping Beecher, Catherine Esther. (1846), A students. The letter describes the high treatise on domestic economy: for the quality of its students’ use of young ladies at home and at accomplishments based on the school (New York: Harper). organization’s 18 years experience in This thirty-six chapter instructional training and offers testimonials from book teaches young women a home satisfied employers. It also meets economics curriculum that includes common criticisms of women both personal care and household bookkeepers by explaining the management. In the chapter “On following: Economy of Time and Expenses” the ...a sedentary occupation being author explains that economy in suitable to them, they can perfectly expenditures must be learned and well work for long hours when begins with keeping accounts. (Continued on page 20) The Accounting Historians Notebook, April 2003 19

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(Continued from page 19) accountant] in this way she will necessary. The employment of men find that she has a means of and women in the same livelihood upon which she can establishment is found to improve depend to the end of her days. [pp. the moral tone of both: mutual 51-52] respect is engendered, and the work This letter is included in Work and does not suffer. [p. 1 ] leisure to chide women who look for The letter targets “the offices of secretarial work unprepared for the Accountants, Warehousemen, Bankers, breadth of skills required in the best Merchants, or Insurance Companies” jobs in the field. At a time before [p. 1] with a moral appeal as well. licensure for accountants existed in the It is unnecessary to point out here United States, this letter provides the advantages which would accrue evidence that the quality signal of to the community if more of our certification was already valued in surplus women became bread- Britain. As certification standards for winners instead of mere consumers, accountants and the reputation of [p. 1 ] certified public accountants change, The combination of an appeal based on women weigh the cost and benefits of the social responsibility and excellent this additional step in preparation for skills suggests that an appeal based on employment, a matter of historical and current interest. women's skills alone was considered unlikely to be effective. Research on Wallace, Eugenia. (1927), “Banking gender and accounting employment has Careers” National business woman. a historical context to consider. Vol. 6, No. 11 (November): 14-16.

“Secretary work for women.” (1885), This unflaggingly cheery article Work and leisure: a magazine trumpets the accomplishments of devoted to the interests of women, women in banking -the founding of the Vol. 10, No. 2 (February): 51-52. Association of Bank Women [1921],

This article passes on to the readership the admission of women into American an employer's letter identifying the Institute of Banking courses, and the qualifications required for employment hundreds of women bank officers in as a secretary. place in 1927. In addition to having a good Without a doubt, bank women are education, and being able to write a learning all about the business, for, grammatical and well-expressed slowly but surely, recognition is letter, she ought to be able, if her being won and prejudice overcome. [p. 16] services are to be of value, to say that she is either a good shorthand Salaries will rise, however, as more writer or a good accountant and women are trained for their work book-keeper. I should think that the and enter on the higher levels. [p. possession of either of these two 16] qualifications would probably This optimism is supported by double the salary that she would descriptions of successful women get .... If she takes the trouble to working in many different aspects of qualify herself [as a certificated banking from operations to

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investments. The stories of success in worker. The position has higher pay banking, however, appear ironic 75 than clerical workers as a whole, but years later. lower pay than office managers and The other woman took over a piece secretaries. One interviewee, a woman of “man's work” that had always who became a self-employed given trouble and built up a accountant, describes her promotion to department so large and so bookkeeper as follows: successful that others, eager for It [bookkeeping] gave her responsi- promotion, turned hungry eyes bility and authority and allowed her upon it. Finally, the usual thing to make individual decisions. [p. 87] happened. A young hopeful was to However, only 6 of 74 clerical women be appointed “supervisor,” make interviewed were self-employed, and the contacts with higher officials, clerical positions were generally and, incidentally, carry the title, the inferior in salary to production and honors, and the real salary. Our exchange positions. This book provides diplomat raised no objection when tabular information both from a survey she discovered what was brewing, of 1,375 clerical workers and the but she managed to make it clear interviews with 74 clerical workers on that the supervisor must take res- salary, education, age at time of survey, ponsibility - entire responsibility - age at first employment, number of for managing the staff of girls and employers, and length of employment for getting the work out on time and that may be valuable for comparison to as unfailingly right as it had always current labor statistics. been. The plan fell through. [p. 14] Campbell, Dorcas. (1950), Unfortunately, the article does not "Financially - are you a first-grade report whether the successful woman citizen?" National business woman. banker in this example ever received Vol. 29, No. 4 (April): 101-102. “the title, the honors, and the real salary.” The examples in this article This article makes a case for women suggest hypotheses for empirical study learning to manage their own money, of banking, gender, and labor It is even more important to women economics. than to men to know how to manage their money efficiently. Morrison, Anne Hendry. (1934), Women and their careers: a study of Most of those who work for a 306 women in business and the living earn less than men; therefore they need to make the most of what professions (New York: National they do earn. The little woman in Federation of Business and the home is the purchasing agent Professional Women's Clubs). for the home and, as such, is This book provides the results of a large obliged to stretch every dollar to its questionnaire and a smaller sample of utmost capacity. Mostly, women interviews of women in all fields of live longer than men and, as business and the professions. inheritors of wealth, need to know Accountants and bookkeepers are how to hold onto it and to add to it. included in the chapter “Clerical Work.” [p. 101 ] Bookkeeper is reported as a promotional position for the clerical (Continued on page 22)

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(Continued from page 21) accepted, but the author, an “assistant suggests a means to do so, vice president of the East River Savings Women today have now only to ask Bank of New York” [p. 101 ] clearly for education in finance, and banks considers herself a role model for what and brokers, insurance counselors every woman can achieve. Now fifty and investment experts, clubs and years later these attitudes seem schools will gladly endeavor to give consistent with naiveté or a source of them exactly what they want. [p. shareholder activism. 102] These seven examples of the content of The Gerritsen Collection - Women's and prophesies amazing results. History Online provide vignettes that If we developed an interest in illustrate the social, economic, and finance, if we applied ourselves to cultural context in which women and the study of the elements of accounting have co-existed. Its strength finance, and developed our of as a reference tool is its coverage of potentialities in personal money the era 1870-1930 through documents management, we could effect that are not widely cataloged and are changes in the ownership and largely unavailable outside of this management of industry. We could collection. Accounting historians can wield an influence in the use this source to explore the role of appointment of women in executive women in accounting / bookkeeping positions in business. We could over the last 150 years from the support the demand for equal pay materials of women in education, for equal work. [p. 102] government, professional There is no victim mentality in this organizations, and employment article. Women may be called the services recorded and collected during “little woman,” and lower pay may be this time period.

Table 2 Periodicals with Accounting-related Documents The Gerritson Collection: Women’s History Online, 1543-1945

Dates Number of Title Publisher, According Location Available in Articles to the Collection Collection with Keywords* Annual announcement of Unknown Chicago 1892-1921 2 the Chicago Woman's Club

Chicago Sunday press and Unknown Chicago 1918-1919 3 the women's press

Equal rights National Woman's Washington, D.C. 1923-1954 37 Party Equal rights: independent Equal Rights, Inc. Baltimore 1935-1936 2 feminist weekly

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Table 2 (continued)

Dates Number of Title Publisher, According Location Available in Articles to the Collection Collection with Keywords*

International women's International Alliance of London 1909-1976 25 news Women Looking east: the Unknown London 1881-1952 1 journal of the Church of England Zenana Missionary Society National business National Federation of Washington, D.C. 1919-1974 241 woman Business & Professional Women's Clubs News-bulletin Unknown New York 1922-1923 1

Studies in occupations Unknown New York 1919-1922 12 The A.W.A. bulletin American Woman's New York 1930-1941 32 Association The American magazine Mary F. Seymour, etc. New York 1889-1896 8 The Australian Unknown Melbourne 1900-1905 7 Woman's Sphere The club woman: Unknown New York 1897-1903 1 woman's world The club worker National League of New York 1899-1921 7 Girls' Clubs, etc. The Englishwoman Grant Richards, etc. London 1909-1921 3 The Englishwoman's Williams & Norgate London 1866-1910 6 review of social and industrial questions The Illinois bulletin Unknown Edwardsville IL, etc. 1930-1955 11

The Lady Maccabee Unknown Ann Arbor MI 1897-1899 1

The Suffragist National Woman's Party Washington, D.C. 1913-1919 4

The woman patriot: Woman Patriot Washington, D.C. 1918-1932 5 dedicated to the defense Publishing Co. of womanhood, motherhood, the family and the state, against suffraism, feminism, and socialism The woman's column Unknown Boston, etc. 1889-1904 1

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(Continued from page 23) Table 2 (continued)

Publisher, Dates Number of Title According Location Available in Articles to the Collection Collection with Keywords* The Woman’s herald Unknown London 188-1901 27

The woman’s journal Unknown Boston, etc. 1870-1896 12

The Woman’s srandard Unknown Wa=terloo Iowa 1886-1911 4

The Woman’s tribune C.B. Colby, etc. Portlkand Oregon 1883-1909 63

The Young woman's General Board Salt Lake City, etc. 1889-1929 10 journal Today's woman: a weekly Unknown Dublin 1894-1896 5 home and fashion journal

Womanhood: the magazine Unknown London 1886-1907 7 of woman's progress and interests, political, legal, social, and intellectual, and of health and beau culture Woman's exponent Unknown Salt Lake City, etc. 1872-1910 1

Woman's journal Women Citizen New York 1917-1931 60 Corp.

Woman's life George Newnes London 1888-1905 12

Woman's signal: a weekly Marshall & Son London 1894-1899 12 record and review devoted to the interests of women in the home and in the wider world Woman's work Woman’s Board of New York 1886-1923 1 Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. Work and leisure: a F. Kirby London 1875-1894 27 magazine devoted to the interests of women Yearbook The Federation Albany, etc. 1896-1907 1

Yearbook of the National Unknown Ottawa, etc. 1894-1922 1 Council of Women of Canada *Keywords used were “accounting,” accountant,” and bookkeeping

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References 2002). Kirkham, L. M. and A. Loft. † accessed on http:// (2001),”The Lady and the gerritsen.chadwyck.com/ (June 18, Accounts: Missing from 2002) Accounting History?”, The Accounting Historians Journal, †Beecher,C.E.(1846), A treatise on Vol. 28, No. 1 (June): 67-90. domestic economy: for the use of †Morrison, A. H. (1934), Women and young ladies at home and at school their careers: a study of 306 (New York: Harper). women in business and the †Bruce,W.C. 1923),“Greetings from professions (New York: National Wm. Cabell Bruce,” Equal rights, Federation of Business and Vol.1, No.1(February 17): 1. Professional Women's Clubs). † Campbell, D. (1950), †Of women as clerks and “Financially - are you a first-grade bookkeepers, and of the citizen?” National business advantages of thus employing woman, Vol. 29 No. 4 (April): them. (1876 or 1877) (London: 101-102. Publisher unknown). †Edgeworth, M. and R. L. Edgeworth. † “Secretary work for (1798), Practical Education women,” (1885), Work and (London: J. Johnson). leisure: a magazine devoted to the Garner, S. P. (1954), Evolution of interests of women, Vol. 10 No. 2 Cost Accounting to 1925 (February): 51-52. (University of Alabama Press Walker, S. P. and Llewellyn, S. Tuscaloosa, AL). http:// (2000), “Accounting at Home: weatherhead.cwru.edu/Accounting/ Some Interdisciplinary old/pub/garner/ (June 19, 2002). Perspectives,” Accounting, The Gerritson Collection: Women's Auditing, and Accountability History Online, 1543-1945. (2002) Journal, Vol. 13, No. 4: 425449. (Ann Arbor, Michigan: †Wallace, E. (1927), “Banking Chadwyck-Healey). http:// Careers,” National business gerritsen.chadwyck.com (June 17, woman, Vol. 6, No. 11

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