The U.S. Civil War’s Impact on Women’s Work and Political Participation

with Madison Arnsbarger (Weber State University) and Paige Montrose (University of Pittsburgh)

This study examines what role economic factors play in enabling disenfranchised groups to influence policy. To answer this question, we study the aftermath of the U.S. Civil War, which left nearly 350,000 men wounded or disabled, and analyze its effects on the economic and political engagement of women. The most common medicinal solution for pain management at the time was alcohol consumption, resulting in notable increases in domestic violence. The double-burden of having to provide for their families economically, while also enduring domestic abuse incentivized women to participate in the first large-scale, women-led political organization in the U.S., the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. Using linked census data, we show that wives and daughters of disabled veterans were 20% more likely to enter the formal labor force compared to those of uninjured veterans. Instrumental variables regressions, using the assignment of soldiers to the largest battles of the war - which was determined by proximity and military strategy - as instrument for soldiers‘ disability status, we provide evidence that this effect is likely causal. We then show that counties with higher shares of disabled veterans saw increased formation of Women‘s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) chapters in the following decades—an effect driven largely by women‘s heightened labor force participation. Furthermore, we find that congressional districts with more WCTU chapters were significantly more likely to support federal prohibition, culminating in the passage of the 18th Amendment. These findings reveal a crucial mechanism through which women, despite being denied formal political representation, shaped national policy through economic participation and grassroots activism. More broadly, our results highlight the importance of labor force participation in securing political rights for underrepresented groups.