At common law a woman could own both real and personal property.

This has become a given, because women own the terms of debate.

"The biggest success you see here is when women own the business," she said.

While free women might own male slaves, they had no such right.

From 1997 to 2004, the study found, the number of construction companies owned by women increased 30 percent.

Back then, only 4 percent of all small businesses were owned by women.

Unmarried women had even less control, and could not own land at all.

This was a culture in which women owned the land and what it produced.

And it is often a girl's first exposure to the working world, where women own about 10.6 million businesses, according to government data.

The construction business has experienced a major increase in the number of companies owned by women.