09/06/2026
**THE WOMEN WHO WENT TO WORK**
This Labor Day weekend, we're remembering some of the women whose work helped build Rupert and Minidoka County.
They taught our children, cared for the sick, worked behind store counters, kept businesses running, and often went home at the end of the day to another kind of work that never appeared on a timecard.
The women pictured here represent just a few of the many who worked in our community through the years.
Ida Larson-Carlson was one of the early teachers at Minidoka and Acequia and later taught in Rupert. Her working life didn't stop at the classroom, she also served as county treasurer and worked as a newspaper correspondent.
Margaret Kraus-Stevens began as a nursing aide at Minidoka Memorial Hospital in Rupert. After two years, she received a full scholarship to nursing school, became a registered nurse, and went on to a long career caring for others.
And in Roper's Department Store, photographed in 1957, we get a wonderful glimpse of everyday working life in downtown Rupert.
But these are only three pieces of a much larger story.
Where did the women in your family work? Did your mother or grandmother teach school, work in a local store, care for patients, work on the farm, or perhaps work at a Rupert business you still remember?
And ladies, what was your first job in Rupert or Minidoka County?
We'd love to hear your stories. ❤️
Happy Labor Day from the Minidoka County Museum!
Their work helped build our community.
