Did you know the 1876 Centennial Bell and the 1893 Columbian Liberty Bell both weighed thirteen thousand pounds? Do you know why? The Trade Literature Collection at the National Museum of American History Library includes a Meneely Bell Co. catalog which answers that question and more. Continue reading
This post was written by Cathy Rae Smith who had a 2011-2012 Graduate Research Assistantship at the National Museum of American History Library.
“Style, Comfort, Economy” touted the full color exposition pamphlet for Royal Worcester WCC Corsets. The 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago gave attendees an opportunity to see the leading products and advances of the time–including this company’s fully boned, tightly laced corsets described as offering “great FLEXIBILITY, always comfortable.” Continue reading
This post was written by Cathy Rae Smith, who had a 2011-2012 Graduate Research Assistantship at the National Museum of American History Library, and Alexia MacClain, a SIL staff member at the National Museum of American History Library.
“Encumber yourself with as little baggage as possible.” Though this holds true today, it was offered as advice to the traveler joining one of Althouse’s Select Foreign Tours in 1908. Let’s revisit an era of leisurely steamship travel in which the motto boasted, “Even the very best is none too good for our guests.” Continue reading
Today with digital cameras, it has become so easy to take lots of photos and instantly see the pictures. But let’s take a trip back in time to 1897 when cameras were a little different. Continue reading
Kochs' Gold Medal Hydraulic Barbers' Chair, No. 25
Has a red, white, and blue pole near a store ever caught your eye? It’s happened to me. I see the red, white, and blue pole but I don’t need to look at the sign. I know it means there must be a barber shop behind that window.
We might be familiar with how barber shops looked later in the twentieth century. But what were they like in the first decade of the twentieth century? What did barber shop furniture look like over a hundred years ago? This trade catalog by Theo. A. Kochs Co. gives us the chance to go back to 1903 for a glimpse into barber shops of the past. Continue reading