Secretaries, typists and stenographers

Secretaries, typists and stenographers

A range of professions were involved in the production of typed documents upon which conferences, in this case the 1933 World Monetary and Economic Conference, depended. However, the prestige was far from evenly shared, and it is telling that we only know the name of one of the figures in these photographs: the Secretary to the United Kingdom Delegation at the 1933 World Monetary and Economic Conference, Rupert B. Howorth, seen here dictating letters to a stenographer. Stenographers themselves were distinguished by their ability to write shorthand, which set them apart from ordinary typists. Both roles were seen as feminine employment.