One other thing. Lots of women worked for a wage in the industrial revolution. In fact it was not uncommon for the man to be worn out by labor or drink and the women to still be working to support the family and several of the chilren as well. The whole of the weaving industry was staffed by women and children. The situation was very fluid, but it wasn't really until the 1950s that we got a situation where factory workers could support a family with just one paycheck. Before that it was a feature of the upwardly mobile middle class where the husband worked and the wife worked to raise children and present a graceful house.