Bachelor maids were a cadre of single women in the late 19th, early 20th century. Not to be confused with “old maids” (or “spinsters”), these women opted to be independent of men, live on their own and manage their own business affairs. Young, unmarried women’s social groups, known as Bachelor Maids’ Clubs, began in cities such as New York and Washington, DC. Soon thereafter, smaller clubs began forming in cities and towns around the country. Read more about it!
The information and sample article links below provide access to a sampling of articles from historic newspapers that can be found in the Chronicling America: American Historic Newspapers digital collection (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/). Use the Suggested Search Terms and Dates to explore this topic further in Chronicling America.
Jump to: Sample Articles
Important Dates:
- 1894 Constance Cary Harrison publishes the book, “A Bachelor Maid.”
- 1907: The Washington Herald newspaper begins publishing the popular column, “Bachelor Girl Chat.” Articles and stories written for Bachelor Girls begin appearing in Women’s Pages in newspapers across the country.
Suggested Search Strategies:
- [Try the following terms in combination, proximity, or as
phrases using Search
Pages in Chronicling America.] Bachelor maids, (or bachelor maidens, bachelor women, bachelor girls), Batch girls, bohemians, The B.G, b-girls.
- It is important to use a specific date range if looking for articles for a particular event in order to narrow your results. The range 1890 through 1914 will yield the best results.
Sample Articles from Chronicling America:
- "The Woman Bachelor,"
Evening Dispatch (Provo City, UT),
December 27, 1894, Image 2, col. 3.
- "Bachelor Maids of Monterey,"
San Francisco Call (San Francisco, CA),
May 10, 1896, Page 17, Image 17, col. 1-7.
- "Club for Bachelor Girls," Evening Times (Washington, DC),
June 5, 1896, Page 5, Image 5, col. 5.
- "Some Plain and Fanciful Types of the New Woman,"
San Francisco Call (San Francisco, CA),
October 11, 1896, Page 17, Image 17, col. 1-7.
- "The Bachelor Maids' Club Tackles the Marriage Question," Omaha Daily Bee (Omaha, NE),
January 12, 1898, Page 10, Image 10.
- "Girls' Bachelor Clubs," San Francisco Call (San Francisco, CA),
January 16, 1898, Page 29, Image 29, col. 1-7.
- "Benefits of Women's Clubs," Omaha Daily Bee (Omaha, NE),
February 27, 1898, Page 13, Image 13, col. 1-4.
- "The Bachelor Young Women of California,"
The San Francisco Call (San Francisco, CA),
September 10, 1899, Image 23, col. 1-2.
- "New York Girls Organize Club," St. Louis Republic (St. Louis, MO),
June 22, 1902, Part 1, Page 6, Image 6, col. 7.
- "Bachelor Maid's Courtship,"
Perrysburg Journal (Perryburg, OH),
August 28, 1903, Page 7, Image 6, col. 1-2.
- "Rules of Decorum for the Bachelor Girl,"
The Intermountain Catholic (Salt Lake City, UT) ,
August 29, 1903, Page 7, Image 7, col. 1.
- "The Etiquette of the Bachelor Girl ,"
The San Francisco Call (San Francisco, CA),
September 13, 1903, Page 9, Image 9, col. 1-4.
- "The Bachelor Girl is Growing in Popularity,"
Hilo Tribune (Hilo, HI) ,
January 22, 1904, Image 6, col. 4.
- "Bachelor Girls in Society,"
Los Angeles Herald (Los Angeles, CA),
July 30, 1905, Image 33, col. 1-7.
- "Bachelor Maid a Bride,"
New York Tribune (New York, NY),
September 20, 1905, Page 5, Image 5, col. 1.
- "Bachelor Maid's Buttons ,"
Hopkinsville Kentuckian (Hopkinsville, KY),
July 14, 1906 Image 2, col. 2.
- "Bachelors vs. Bachelor Maids,"
Virginia Citizen (Irvington, VA),
May 31, 1907, Image 1, col. 6.
- "Heiress Chooses to be Bachelor Maid,"
Farmville Herald (Farmville, VA),
June 7, 1907, Image 1, col. Col. 5.
- "Bachelor Girl Chat (Washington Herald column),"
Washington Herald (Washington, DC),
December 15, 1907, Second Part, Image 22, col. 1-2.
- "A Bachelor Girl Confesses ,"
New York Tribune (New York, NY),
April 4, 1909, Image 26, col. 1-3
- "Bachelor Girls Find Defender,"
Washington Herald (Washington, DC),
July 26, 1912, Page 5, Image 5, col. 4.
- "Miss Helen Gould Enters Defense of Bachelor Maids,"
Lexington Herald (Lexington, VA),
July 31, 1912, Image 1, col. 1.
- "Bachelor Girl vs. Old Maid,"
Evening Public Ledger (Philadelphia, PA),
November 12, 1914, Night Extra, Page 10, Image 12, col.1.
- "The Modern Bachelor Girl,"
Evening Public Ledger (Philadelphia, PA),
January 26, 1915, Night extra, Page 10, Image 10, col. 1-2.
- "Today's Topic: What's the Difference Between an Old Maid and a Bachelor Girl?,"
The Washington Times (Washington, DC),
September 19, 1918, FINAL EDITION, Image 18.well
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