More bang for the buck?

Author: Sarah Dye | February 2026

The Roanoke Times in 1893 reported that Boston had approximately 185 men teaching in the Boston school system and 1,372 women. Ever wonder how the salaries really differed based on gender? Well, you can see here that men were paid an average of $246.06 per month and women $70.69. So men were paid 348% higher than women just because...they were men?!

Imagine you are a woman in the large city of Boston in 1893. If you were not married (or living a stress free domesticated life) being a teacher was one of the few acceptable (and available) professions for women. So you decide to teach and show up Monday morning to start your new job. You're pretty excited about the salary you will receive and feel like you're doing pretty well for yourself. Your first day goes off without a hitch. The next day you read the paper and find out that the male teacher in the next one-room schoolhouse over makes over 300% more than you because he's a man. What a punch in the face!

Good thing your corset wasn't laced too tightly (like some of your non-working friends) or you'd pass out from loss of oxygen during your moment of outrage. Unfortunately, women were unable to appeal or change the outcome of this unjust inequality. They were fortunate to get a job in the first place, and there were no HR departments to complain to.