Progressive Era: 1890–1920s: Allensworth, Black Pride & Pursuit of Civil Rights

This group of Black girls posed for their portrait in Sacramento in 1910. At that time, middle-class Black women who were supported by their husbands and did not have to work were generally very socially and politically active, whether fighting for Blacks' civil rights or organizing to keep the Black community together. Employment opportunities for Black women in 1910 were generally limited to domestic work, whether in a private home or in an institutional capacity. The one notable exception was when Black women with higher-level educations or from middle-class backgrounds had the opportunity to attend college and study to become teachers.