Mrs. Gunn's Diary: Jan. 5, 1942

She tries to find a maid; it's hard to get 'good help' during a war

“Spent most of the day at the phone trying to locate a maid but was not successful,” Mrs. Gunn wrote. Judging from the help wanted ads in the Washington Evening Star, just about everyone else in Washington was trying to find a maid too. The specificity of the ads is shocking; Washington was a segregated city and many specified that only a white or only a “colored” person need to apply, though the last ad on the left above specificed “white or light colored.” The going rate of payment was $10 a week, about $194 in today’s money. Some were expected to live with the family, which would translate into a 24/7 job, though some specified Sundays were off.

Note that one of the ads mentions there is a Bendix washing machine in the home. I wonder if that was Mrs. Gunn’s ad? She was proud of that Bendix washer!

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The ad above was clipped from the classified section of the Jan. 5 Evening Star via newspapers.com.