By the late 19th century, summer vacations were a routine part of the lives of many people in the upper and middle classes. Time in the country, at the seashore, or at a resort was viewed as a healthful and restorative experience. However, extended vacations were out of reach of most people in the working … Continue reading Solving the Girl Problem with Wholesome Vacations
Dragons are everywhere in 21st-century popular culture: books, movies, novels, games, and decorative arts. Dragons are also historical, roaming in cultures throughout the world since ancient times. They fly, slither, and swim in the folklore and myths of past cultures in the Americas, Africa, the Near and Far East, India, and Europe. However, when it comes … Continue reading The Evil, Medieval Ancestors of Modern Dragons
Cemetery and tombstone symbols have been reused and reinterpreted for thousands of years. The ancient Egyptians used pyramids, obelisks, sphinxes, and various symbols for monuments, temples, and tombs. Everything Egyptian became stylish again in the 19th century. During this Egyptian Revival, the designers of rural or garden cemeteries and families choosing tombstones and monuments adapted … Continue reading Egyptomania: Reviving Ancient Symbols in 19th Century Cemeteries
Almanacs were a popular and handy reference for information and entertainment centuries before internet search engines, calendar apps, YouTube, blogs, and Google Maps. And like the internet, almanacs also informed us about new products and services through advertising and promotional articles. Select the images for a larger view and more information. At the heart of … Continue reading Almanacs: Information before the Internet
Labor Day commemorates the American worker. But one group of American workers is often overlooked – the domestic worker. Households and families have required work since the dawn of time. Daily chores such as cooking, cleaning, and caring for children and the elderly are usually performed by women. These women – mothers, daughters, female relatives, … Continue reading Consider Domestic Laborers this Labor Day
The word “camping” often inspires nostalgic summer memories in the outdoors or dreams of future escapes to nature. However, camping as a fun and relaxing activity is a new concept in the long history of human experience. Camping isn’t always a vacation for everyone. Originally, a camp was the place where military troops were located, … Continue reading Camping: A Night Under the Stars is Not Always a Vacation
Old recipe books tell the story of the daily routine of average women in the past. Lettice Pierce Bryan (1805-1877), the author of The Kentucky Housewife, was one of those women. Her collection of “receipts” for food and more illustrate key lessons about running a household in the pre-industrial era. A quick history of cookbooks … Continue reading Mrs. Bryan’s “Kentucky Housewife”: Managing a Household in the 1830s
Old picture postcards are primary source records of places. Postcards document the natural landscape as well as the built environment- buildings, gardens, parks, cemeteries, and tourist sites. Postcards also commemorate major events, popular humor, and many other aspects of daily life – transportation, entertainment, sports, work, religion, or advertising. Collectors and all types of historians … Continue reading Old Postcards: Messages about the Past
To move up in society in the 19th century, men and women needed personalized calling or visiting cards. These small cards, about the size of a modern-day business card, usually featured the name of the owner, and sometimes an address. Calling cards were left at homes, sent to individuals, or exchanged in person for various … Continue reading What has replaced 19th Century Parlors and Calling Cards?
In the 1320s, a Franciscan friar left Ireland to go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Friar Simon Fitzsimons journeyed from Ireland, through London, Canterbury, Paris, to Venice, where he and his companions took a ship to Alexandria, Egypt. They toured the sites around Cairo, and then traveled overland through the desert to Jerusalem. … Continue reading What Amazing Egyptian Chicken Hatcheries Can Tell Us about Perceptions of Other Places
What’s a shoat? Before the Civil War, cookbooks included dozens of recipes for shoat. Today, this word for pork only appears glossaries for journalists covering agriculture. A shoat (also spelled shote) is a young pig under one year old. Antique words and old recipes, like antique tools or technology, illustrate changes in daily life. Weird old … Continue reading What’s a shoat?
Clothing patterns from the past century reflect changing fashion – from long, ruffled hemlines to mini-skirts, corseted waists to pant suits, pinafores to prom dresses. Vintage clothing patterns also tell the story of changing technology, communication, and transportation. Dress making before the 1850s Before the mid 19th century, average American women sewed their own clothing by hand. The … Continue reading Dress Patterns: A Fashion Revolution
My refrigerator died . . . in July! I’ve had to re-think how I buy, store, and prepare food. During this household drama, I wondered – how did people survive for millennia without refrigeration? Before the refrigerator . . . Until the invention of refrigeration in the late 19th century, average working people ate less fresh … Continue reading How did humans survive without refrigerators?
Should government regulate the food industry? How do these regulations impact our individual food choices? These essential questions help students connect their individual experiences and opinions of school lunches to issues behind government regulation today and in past civilizations. Food has always been connected to politics. Rulers and leaders from ancient, medieval, and early modern cultures … Continue reading From Medieval Bread to School Lunches: Government Regulation of Food
Words come and go and meanings change over time. Exploring the story behind a word can illustrate changes daily life, social behavior, and technology over time. Introduce a word that has fallen out of daily use and ask students to guess the meaning. For example, words related to food and cooking change as technology and … Continue reading Saleratus, Pudding and a Gill: How Old Words Reflect a Changing World
Hot trends in home decorating in the late 19th century were parlor organs and hall stands. These objects are rarely seen in 21st century homes. But both symbolize something that modern home buyers on popular television shows declare is a “must have.” Home buyers, then and now, demonstrated their social status with a dedicated “space … Continue reading Hall Stands and Parlor Organs: Status Symbols in the 19th Century Home
Scrapbooks are stories created from re-purposed media and ephemera of the era. Historical scrapbooks are also primary sources for the classroom. Students analyze texts and images to more about daily life in the past and compare them to modern digital scrapbooking on social media (Facebook, Pinterest, or blogs) A short history of scrapbooks “Our life … Continue reading Scrapbooks: Comparing 19th century primary sources to 21st social media
Cookies can illustrate the relationship between food and politics in the classroom. A good cookie must have fat – but should the cook use oleo/margarine or butter? Butter, the fat from milk, has been used in baking for centuries. On the other hand, margarine was just invented about 150 years ago and was one of … Continue reading Cookies and how government regulation affects daily life
Images of home decor from the past are primary sources for daily life and culture of the era. But the viewer must distinguish between idealized depictions and reality. The printmaking firm of Currier and Ives provided prints to decorate the walls of American homes from the 1830s to the early 20th century. The firm produced … Continue reading What can historical home decorations tell us about the past?
How do historians recreate the daily lives of average people in the past? What primary sources exist to tell us how regular people worked, cooked, slept, or played? Historical estate or probate inventories provide many clues to answers these questions. Estate inventories are lists of the belongings of a person made after his or her … Continue reading Estate Inventories: Primary Sources for Daily Life in the Past