Week 8: Why were the birthrates declining among middle and upper-class women?

On page 303 it states that birthrates among the middle and upper class women were declining. Between 1850 and 1890, the average number of live births for white, native-born women fell from 5.42 to 3.87. African American birthrates were not recorded in the federal consensus until several decades later, but based on impressionistic evidence they declined even more dramatically. I am curious about what has caused the decline of birthrates. Is it because they don’t need a number of children anymore out in the field working in agriculture? Is it because women were starting to control when and how many children they wanted to have?

Week 8: What lead to such big increase in women in the labor force by the end of the 1800’s?

In previous centuries we have seen men are typically the breadwinners. Women would usually stay at home with children and do house duties. However, taking a look at the chart on pg 295, the percentage of women in the labor force went from 4.6% to 21.2% by the end of the century. What are some possible reasons that lead to this sharp increase in female labor throughout the century.