Power, Distinction, Display: Excavating Elites

Elite Women in 1900: 

Segregated but Pioneers Moving to the Center of the Social Space 

In 1900 the presence of women has clearly and dramatically increased. Most of these women were located in the upper-left of the social space, a fact that was also clear in the contous of the social neighborhoods in 1900.

Among married women, Mrs. Caroline K. Sherman and Mrs. W. A. S. Graham, as well as single women such as Ella C. Sullivan, gained their leading position in social capital by combining memberships in the widely connected Board of Education and the Colored Women's Clubs Federation of Illinois. Another typical example could be Miss Gertrude Beeks, who combined membership in the Chicago Women's Club, the Women's Bowling Association, and the Civic Federation of Chicago. 

Also important were growing numbers of activist women such as Jane Addams, who was a member of seven organizations including Consumers League of IL, the Association for the Advancement of Science, Art, and Education Committee, the Political Equality League, Relied Donations, the Society for the Correction of Housing Evils, the Chicago Women's Club, and the Women's Club Meeting. 

Comparison of Social Capital Metrics

Whereas in 1860, the twenty men with the most social capital captured 12% of the the total social capital, by 1900 the distribution of social capital had become even more concentrated. In 1900, these men now captured 17% of the total social capital in the network. Married women and single women, despite being a sizeable presence, accumulated only a fragment in comparison. The top twenty married women captured only 0.3% of the social capital, and the top twenty single women controlled on 0.1% of the social capital.