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The Traveler… we’ve come a long way baby…
October 17, 2011 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
This week I traveled to The Woman’s Journal of October 14, 1911. This issue was celebrating after waiting two days for the outcome of the California election on the 
suffrage vote… “reading first with despair, then with growing hope and finally with jubilation the conflicting reports that came over the wires… Praise God. Victory ours. Four thousand majority.” The front page contains a photo of the Statue of Liberty with six stars surrounding her. These represented the states which have passed the “equal suffrage” — Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Washington and now adding California.
The 1848 Seneca Falls Convention is traditionally viewed as the beginning of the Women’s Rights Movement. It was not until June 4, 1919 that Congress sent the proposal for the 19th Amendment, the woman’s right to vote, and then it was not until August 18, 1920 that the final ratification was passed, by the vote from Tennessee. It was a long road, but “we’ve come a long way baby” since then!
~The Traveler
How Sitting Bull got his name…
October 8, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
This interesting tidbit appeared in the “Pittsfield Sun“, Massachusetts, March 16, 1881 issue:
The Traveler… the dam burst… the judge “solomonizes” it…
October 3, 2011 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
In the travels of The New York Tribune dated October 3, 1911, I found several reports on the destruction of the town of Austin, Pennsylvania. This occurred just a few days prior and was the result of the breaking of a fifty foot high and thirty foot wide concrete dam which then flooded this small town, destroying everything in its path.
In contrast to the above tragedy… A bit of an amusing story is included of a court case which involved the owners of two cows, each of which became the mother to a calf. They wanted to have the court decide which rightfully owned the calf. The magistrate literally took to the fields (the pasture) and “solomonized” his decision by the conduct of the cows and the calf. See image for details.
~The Traveler
Newspaper publisher shows his bias…
October 1, 2011 by TimHughes · 1 Comment
This curious item appeared in “The Weekly Crescent City” newspaper from New Orleans, August 15, 1841. He goes to some length to show the value in paying for a subscription…
Few things change in politics…
September 24, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
It’s interesting how, in some aspects of life, few things change over hundreds of years. Complaints about politicians not focusing on substantive issues was a problem back in 1790, in just the second year of the American federal government, as this article from the July 3, 1790 “Pennsylvania Packet“ of Philadelphia, clearly shows…
The Traveler… sighting of the comet… bank roberry… kill your dogs?…
September 19, 2011 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
In today’s travels, the Middlesex Gazette of September 19, 1811 had people looking skyward. The front page contained an article “The Comet” which “passed into the left hind leg of the Great Bear…” and “…The tail appears to separate into two branches, and is very distinguishable…”.
Inside the issue is the reporting of a bank robbery in Charleston in which the authorities were pretty certain they knew who had committed the crime. After questioning the person and not being able to obtain a confession, they then spoke to his fellow servant, a suspected aid. When told his owner was arrested — he told everything and showed them where the money was hidden as well as the items used to rob the bank!
The last page contained an advertisement that I have never seen in any other newspapers before, a real attention grabber… “Kill your Dogs”. You need to read this one!
~The Traveler
Where is Polypotamia today?
September 12, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
The “Maryland Gazette” of April 30, 1784 includes a small yet fascinating report from Congress that ten new states cut out of the Western Territory had bee created, but none of the states are as we know them today.
Through the information provided by QalaBist.com we learn that the state of Sylvania was proposed to include much of present-day Minnesota, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and some of northern Wisconsin. The State of Michigania was proposed to include most of Wisconsin, but nothing of Michigan. The State of Chersonesus (the Greek word for peninsula) was proposed to include most of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. The State of Assenispia (named after the Assenisipi River, also known as the Rock River.) was proposed to include the northern part of modern-day Indiana. The State of Metropotamia was proposed to include southern Michigan and parts of northern Ohio and Illinois. The State of Illinoia was proposed to include most of Illinois. The State of Saratoga was proposed to include most of Indiana. The State of Washington was proposed to include most of Ohio. The State of Polypotamia was proposed to include most of western Kentucky. The State of Pelisipia was proposed to include most of eastern Kentucky.
A fascinating piece of American history not known by most.
Actual headlines…
September 10, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
We offer thanks to fellow collector Morris Brill for some of the following headlines which appeared in recent newspapers:
“Iraqi Head Seeks Arms”
“Cold Wave Linked To Temperatures”
“Man Struck By Lightning Faces Battery Charge”
“Many Antiques At Senior Citizens’ Sale”
“Lack of Brains Hinders Research””
“Prisoners Escape After Execution”
“No Cause of Death Determined Fro Beheading Victim”
“Teacher Dies; Board Accepts His Resignation”
“Experts Are Sure The Dow Will Either Rise Or Decline”
“Lucky Man Sees Friend Die”
“Voluntary Workers Strike For Higher Pay”
Escape from the zoo…
September 5, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
The “New York Herald” of Nov. 9, 1874 had a very lengthy article reporting an “Awful Calamity” “The Wild Animals Broken Loose from the Central Park” with many other one column headlines. This full page article–with considerable detail–reports that all the animals had escaped their cages & were roaming free in the park, leaving dozens of people “…mutilated, trampled, and injured…” not to mention killed.
The problem was it never happened. At the very end the writer admits it’s a completely made up version of what might happen if conditions in the zoo aren’t improved. But how many people read all the way to the end of this very lengthy article? Apparently not many considering the panic which gripped New Yorkers that day. The entire city fell into a frenzy before finding out that it was all a hoax. (credit “Ephemeral New York”)
This much abbreviated report in this post was taken from the “New York World” issue of Jan. 13, 1888. See the hyperlink for the lengthier, original report found in the “Herald” of 1874.
A fascinating hoax issue which resulted in real-life panic:
Another cure for baldness…
September 3, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
This advertisement for “Graham’s Glass Vacuum Cap” appeared in the Oct. 7, 1905 issue of “Scientific American“. It proclaims: “See Your Hair Grow”. The instructions say that: “…when you have caused a good, healthy, red glow in the scalp…” it will cause hair to grow. I would think a red, glowing scalp would be a sign of other problems…