As hand-tinted maps and prints became an essential element of middle-class home décor in the middle of the nineteenth century, new opportunities for women workers emerged. While new ideals of family life restricted middle class women to the domestic sphere, working women began turning out hand-tinted prints that became a symbol of middle class sophistication. This 1845 New York Daily Tribune article describes the work, workers, and pay rates for map and print tinting, noting that as demand for such prints increased, the pay, working conditions, and quality of work often decreased.