Women with wrenches

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Throwback Thursday! The high school girls in the pictures were ahead of their time and were learning the art of automobile mechanics in 1927 at Central High School, Washington D.C. From left to right we see Grace Hurd, Evelyn Harrison and Corinna DiJiulian, with Grace Wagner under the car.

Female mechanic

When was the last time your car has been serviced by a female car mechanic? The chance that you will answer “never” is approximately 99,9%. Even in our modern times, where men and women are equal in most countries. Theoretically, that is. In practice it may be different. There are not that many female mechanics, it still is a men’s job.

Back in those days, in the United States, it was World War I that made space for women in the workforce, amongst other economic and social influences. Due to the rise in demand for production from Europe during the war, more women found themselves working outside the home. These were mostly in factory jobs or as domestic servants, but as WWI came to an end they were able to move on to such jobs as salespeople in department stores as well as clerical, secretarial and other jobs. It was the entry of the United States into World War II that created a serious shortage of engineering talent in that country as men were drafted into the armed forces. During WW II, women worked in the war industries, building ships, aircraft, vehicles, and weaponry. Women also worked in factories, munitions plants and farms, drove trucks, provided logistic support for soldiers, and entered professional areas of work that were previously the preserve of men.

How about you, would you let a female mechanic fix your car? My tongue-in-cheek advice: since women have smaller hands than men when it is about fixing small parts like a fuel tap, let a female mechanic handle it!

Words by Marius Hille Ris Lambers. Pictures US National Photo Company Collection.

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