100 years ago today in Spokane: ‘Domestic help’ scarce as Spokane women find other work

“Domestic help” was nearly impossible to obtain in postwar Spokane – and, shockingly, “wealthy housewives” were being forced to do “much of their own housework for several months,” said the Spokane Daily Chronicle.

The head of the city’s Domestic Guild said her agency could barely fill 1 out of 20 requests for domestic help.

“The reason, I believe … is that girls have plenty of chances in other lines where they do not have to work more than eight hours and have their evenings off.”

A woman in the city’s employment office said flatly that girls “won’t do that kind of work any more, that’s all.”

Prospective employers were countering with more enticing offers, with fewer hours and more freedom.

“One man offers the use of his automobile and will make no objection to all the ‘beaus’ the girl wishes to entertain,” said the city employment agent.

From the movie beat: William H. “Lone Star” Dietz, Washington State College’s former football coach and occasional movie actor, was signed to appear in a new Spokane-filmed movie.

Catherine Curtiss, who had taken over the movie studio at Minnehaha Park, said she had just signed a contract with Dietz.

“He is now out engaging a large number of Indians, probably a couple of hundred, who will appear with him,” she said.

There was some irony in this, because Dietz was just coming off a draft evasion trial in which the government had contended that he was not an Indian at all. The trial resulted in a hung jury.