A little background: The King County Commissioners was the legislative body of the county government prior to the establishment of the King County Home Charter and the swearing in of the first King County Council in 1969. The Commissioners were three elected officials who functioned much like the County Council does today. Their records can be found at the King County Archives and accessed on microfilm in the self-service microfilm area.
In 1931 and 1933, the King County Commissioners introduced resolutions for King County to no longer employ women. Instead, they would fill open positions with married men, or women when they were heads of families. These resolutions were introduced to stem the economic hardships of the Great Depression’s mass unemployment. The second of these resolutions calls for King County staff to investigate whether they are employing any married women and replace them if their husbands are “able to support them.” That is to say, to fire married women for being married women.
