Who Says Girls Can’t Repair Cars? Check Out These Amazing Photographs Of Women Auto Mechanics From The Early 20th Century – Design You Trust — Design Daily Since 2007

Who Says Girls Can’t Repair Cars? Check Out These Amazing Photographs Of Women Auto Mechanics From The Early 20th Century

Women began finding work when World War I began in 1914; they had to take the jobs of men who had gone to war. A wide range of jobs needed filling. Automotive machines were in large production around this time to supply the United States and other countries with vehicles for war. This was the start of women playing important roles in the automotive industry.


Not all women on the front lines were part of the military though; many were volunteers offering their help to medical services such as the Red Cross. This woman served as an ambulance driver with the Voluntary Aid Detachment, an offshoot of the Red Cross. Unlike most ambulance drivers, though, those who operated the vehicles on the front lines had to know how to repair and service their cars, as you see this woman doing in this image by Ernest Brooks shot in 1916.

h/t: vintag.es


British ambulance drivers near the Front in France, 1916.


Margaret Whittemore and Margery Rose changing a tire on their car in 1916 during a tour for suffrage. They drove 10,000 miles with stops in New Orleans, LA, San Francisco, Seattle, Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, and small towns along the way.


A female mechanic reclines under a car while performing repairs to the vehicle, 1917.


A member of the Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) starts up the engine of her ambulance at Etaples, France, on 27 June 1917.


VAD’s of the Motor Convoy cleaning cars at bade in Etaples. The ambulances were donated by the Canadian Red Cross. January 1918.


A female driver lies on the ground as she works on a wheel with a spanner during WWI.


Driver of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry cranking up an ambulance during WWI.


Women’s suffrage gained support during World War I. Due to shortage of manpower domestically, women worked in nontraditional jobs and demonstrated willingness and ability to move beyond prescribed gender roles. Under Carrie Chapman Catt’s leadership, NAWSA secured President Wilson’s backing in 1916, which he gave partly in recognition of women’s war efforts.


Kitty Brunell works on a Singer Junior 848 cc at the Monte Carlo Rally, January 1928.


Flapper under a car, ca. 1920s.


A photo of Rosalie Jones as an auto salesman, ca. 1920s. Brave enough to do what she wanted at a time when it would have been very difficult.


Kitty Brunell tunes up her AC Ace Sports engine, 1932. Kitty was known as a rally driver and would be the only woman ever to win the British RAC Rally, in 1933. She never raced competitively at any track, but did use Brooklands for tuning and circuit testing her car.


Mom fixes the family car, ca. 1940s.


A ‘Wren’ – a woman from the Women’s Royal Naval Service – works as a mechanic, c. 1939 – 1945. Her hat appears to read ‘H.M.S. Daedalus’.


A motor transport driver from the Women’s Royal Navy Service (WREN’s), repairing the engine of her car. 28th January 1943.


Women garage attendants at the Atlantic Refining Company. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 1943.


Princess – later Queen – Elizabeth was a truck mechanic in the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service, March 1945.


An ATS girl smoking a Woodbine while working on a Humber during WWII.


Paris, 1954.


The Throttle Queens prepare for a drag race in 1956.


Girls fixing their car, ca. 1950s.

If you want more awesome content, subscribe to 'Design You Trust Facebook page. You won't be disappointed.

More Inspiring Stories

Vintage Photos Of Soviet People Took Posing With Their First TV Sets
"The Control Panel Archive": The Tactile Beauty Of Buttons, Meters, Knobs And Dials
"Bad Bitch Vibes": The Superb Badass Digital Concept Artworks of KidEight
Everyday Objects Turned Into Delightful Alternative Reality By Illustrator Tineke Meirink
Stunning Interior Views Of The Central Social Institution In Prague, Czechoslovakia, 1937
Colorful, Playful And Dreamlike Photo Manipulations By Jose Navarro
Artist Andrew Myers Creates Amazing Portraits Built From Screws
Fabulous Photographs From the “Bubble” Series by Melvin Sokolsky in 1963
Beautiful Vintage Posters Illustrated by Walter Schnackenberg in the Early 20th Century
Beautiful Pictures of Female Surfers as They Plunge Beneath the Ocean Waves
Teens In Britain Are Taking Driving Lessons In BMW Supercars
Artist Makes Caricatures That Capture Dogs’ Most Prominent Features
Treebeard: Portraits Of My Friends With Plants Growing From Their Heads
"Something Wicked This Way Comes": Superb Illustrations By Jon Foster
Until We Meet Again: Dreamy And Surreal Paintings Of Robert Dowling Jr
Victorian Christmas Cards That Are As Creepy As Those Times Themselves
"The Horror, The Horror!": Dark And Disturbing Paintings Of Death And Disease By Richard Tennant Cooper
Beautiful Children Book Illustrations By Emilia Dziubak
Marvelous Female Portrait Photography By Tatiana Mertsalova
'Game Of Thrones' Characters From The 80s And 90s
German Artist Takes Street Art To Another Level With His 34 ‘Sliced’ Animal
An Artist Created Stunning Looks For Halloween Inspired By Creepy Movie Characters
When Mustaches Make A Difference
Malaysian Artist Perfectly Creates Fluffy Cats Using Just Ink