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Farmers -

Farming was seen as a family business and women did everything, from menial tasks to keeping the finances in order. They also handled seasonal jobs like slaughter work and pickling foods. 

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Stenographers and typists -

Stenographers used shorthand to take down dictation, and typists wrote it up. These skills were important if one wanted to become a secretary. 

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Servants -

In line with traditional gender roles, women had options to become domestic servants, such as housekeepers and housemaids. 

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Teachers -

Teaching was considered an acceptable job for women, but the wages and conditions were terrible. Teachers could lose their jobs for incompatible teaching methods, wearing the wrong clothing, being over 40, or for getting married.

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Launderers and laundresses -

Launderers and laundresses worked in other people's homes. The job involved sorting, washing, starching, ironing, and folding. 

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In-store clerks -

The growth of large-scale retailing at the start of the 20th century provided job opportunities to women as in-store clerks. These women worked long hours in poor conditions for low pay. 

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Bookkeepers, cashiers, and accountants -

These type of jobs were seen as an improvement over factory work, and by the 1920s public schools were holding teaching classes for girls learning office skills.

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Saleswomen in stores -

The rise of department stores provided jobs for urban working-class women. However, saleswomen were paid half as much as men.

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Cooks -

In the early 20th century women enrolled in home economics education at colleges and universities and were being trained in nutrition, quantity cooking, and large-scale dining management. This helped them find work in the restaurant and hospitality sectors. 

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Telephone operators -

Women were hired as telephone operators for their more soothing voices. They often took diction and elocution classes to improve their speech. 

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Barbers, hairdressers, and manicurists -

Opportunities for hairdressers and manicurists grew as the salon business expanded. Women enjoyed working with innovations such as electric hair dryers, and techniques like permanent wave and hair color options. 

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Trained nurses -

At the turn of the 20th century most nurses worked for individual patients in their homes. That all changed with the onset of World War I, when 23,000 American nurses served in the military. After returning home they used their training gained in hospitals to provide more sophisticated care.

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Housekeepers and stewards -

Housekeepers were the heads of female staff, managing cooks, nannies, housemaids, kitchen maids, and laundry maids.

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Dressmakers and seamstresses -

Seamstress and dressmaking jobs were open to women, although they were low-paying, seasonal, and demanding.

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Waitresses -

In the '20s, cheap and moderate-priced restaurants like cafeterias grew popular. In these less formal places, women instead of men were hired as serving staff. 

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Cotton mills workers -

Mill jobs involved guiding fibers into machines to clean and smooth cotton before spinning. 

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Midwives and nurses (not trained) -

Jobs as midwives were disappearing as the medical profession realized that a birth required the assistance of trained professional doctors in hospital settings. However, midwifery saw an increase in isolated regions and among poor communities. 

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Boarding and lodging housekeepers -

Demand for board and lodging grew as workers moved away from home in increasing numbers to seek employment. 

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Shoe factory workers -

Men operated heavy machinery while women carried out lighter work such as cutting, pasting, finishing, stitching, and packing.

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Musicians and music teachers -

These jobs were subject to close supervision by administrators. Music education was typically taught by elementary school teachers, who were mostly women. 

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Cigar and tobacco factory workers -

This was tedious and repetitious labor. Women would inspect tobacco leaves, roll cigars, pack boxes, or apply labels, while men undertook more physical tasks.

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Milliners and millinery dealers -

Jobs in millinery were on the decline in the early 1900s as the demand for ready-to-wear accessories grew. However, women still worked in this trade. 

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Candy factory workers -

A century ago commercial candy production flourished, and women were right there helping this popular industry expand.  

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Printing, publishing, and engraving workers -

Printing and publishing jobs were available as the industry advanced technologically.

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Suit, coat, and overall factory workers -

The garment industry grew with the demand for cheaper clothes, and by increased mail-order catalog and department store sales. It was mostly women who created these garments. 

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Silk mill workers -

Silk mills were lucrative, but labor-intensive. The silkworms had to be well-protected, and the silk itself cleaned, separated into skeins, wound onto bobbins, twisted into yarn, and put on looms for weaving. 

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Dressmakers -

Dressmakers would often work for upper-class women who didn't want to sew or mend their own clothes.

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Telegraph and radio operators -

These early telecommunications jobs created a demand for skilled operators, and women were hired in part because of smaller hands, which were deemed to be suitable for the quick and detailed work. Plus, they could be paid less than men. 

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Woolen and worsted mill workers -

Women found work in mills after their male counterparts were called up to fight in World War I.

Sources: (Stacker) (Grunge) 

See also: Ancient beliefs about women's bodies

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