In July 1912, the New York Sun, a successful, conservative-leaning rag, lauded the rising class of "bachelor maids." It was a surprising move.
A few weeks before, Rev. E. F. Huffer, pastor of First Christian Church in Grand Junction, Colorado, hadn't minced words when he talked about these broads. "Old maids should be exiled to a barren island as waste humanity so they could not hinder the progress of civilization," he preached. Harsh.
The paper leapt to the defense of crones, arguing--shocker!--that childless, husbandless society ladies were often deeply invested in charitable works. Case in point: Miss Anne Morgan, daughter of the super-high-rolling financier, who advocated to improve working conditions in factories, and opened up a free lunch joint in the Brooklyn Navy Yard (much to the chagrin of local saloon owners). The Sun made one thing clear: an empty uterus isn't the worst thing in the world.
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