State Historical Society of Iowa

Women Working Bore Presses at Wood Brothers Plant in Des Moines, Iowa, 1955

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Woman in foreground standing with her back to the photographer, operating a very large boring press.
Courtesy of the State Historical Society of Iowa, 1955

Description

#4 Occupation: Manufacturing Operative
During World War I and especially during World War II, many men in the United States left factory jobs to enter the military, and many women took on manufacturing operative jobs in factories. When the war was over, many women continued working in the factories. The Wood Brothers factory made threshing machines and other kinds of farming machines. During World War II, it made equipment for the war effort and then converted back to manufacturing farm machinery. 

Source-Dependent Questions

  • What is the working environment for a manufacturing operative?
  • What skills does this manufacturing operative need in order to be successful at her job?
  • What equipment is this manufacturing operative using to do her job?
  • Compare and contrast this photograph with the Maytag factory in 1949. Use evidence from the photographs to explain what is the same and what is different.