The data clearly shows there were more stay-at-home moms in the past. I disagree about the reasons. It wasn’t because it was easier to raise a family on one income in the past, it was because of two factors:
- The average family was larger, increasing the at-home workload.
- Absent microwaves, washers and dryers, central vac, packaged meals and other labor-saving technology, maintaining a home was a full-time job, especiallynif you had three or four kids, and most especially if you weren’t well off.
What actually hapoened is that technology and falling birthrates made stay-at-home wives less necessary. They in turn went to work and raised family incomes, which translated into bigger homes, more travel, more eating out, more toys, and in general higher-cost living.
Now you need both incomes to maintain that lifestyle. But if you want to live like people did in the 50’s and 60’s, it’s perfectly possible to do so on one reasonable middle class income. Just move to a smaller town, have one used car, and live in a 1,000 sq ft midcentury bungalow. Cook your own food from scatch, mend your clothes instead of replacing them, vacation by driving to camping spots or visiting relatives, eating out is a few-times-per year luxury, etc.
It’s just that no one wants to live like that anymore.
Anecdotally, my mom worked her entire life. Her sister worked until she was probably 40 when they moved to a farm. Another sister worked stints of full time work, separated by a few years of staying home. Everyone else I knew lived on farms, and the women worked as hard or harder than the men.