Scientific American & the Harlem River… 1890…

February 11, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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Growing up less than 50 miles from NYC, it was a regular occurrence for “us kids” to reach as far forward in the car as we could to be the first of the family to pass the paint mark on the Lincoln Tunnel walls delineating the New York/New Jersey boundary.  Along with the iconic skyline and the Statue of Liberty, tunnels and bridges defined the vista of any excursion to Manhattan.

Today’s jaunt into the Scientific American reminded me of those childhood outings and had me scouring old maps to discern the changes wrought in the waterway systems for the development of metropolitan New York.  This publication, filled with inventions and botanical discoveries, also chronicles the many arenas of civil engineering foresight and ingenuity.  Those examples of “aging infrastructure” so hotly debated in the political arena of today, were the marvels of yesterday.  Without computer models, before construction vehicles, absent the communication methods of today, great changes were made to the natural landscape in order to accommodate the iconic center of commerce.

An article in the March 22, 1890, Supplement to Scientific American describes “The Harlem River Improvement and Ship Canal” — a project that lasted thirteen years and cost over $200,000.  Many political, geological, and legal difficulties are described, along with evaluation of decisions made, as well as alternate proposed solutions.  The detail is fascinating, even to someone who has no understanding of the impact rivers and railroads have on commerce and industry.  In fact, it never occurred to me that rivers are moved, straightened or even deepened in order to make them more useful.  And I wonder what today’s civil engineers think of the building strictures from over one hundred years ago.

The laws of May 20, 1879, provides that all bridges hereafter to be constructed over this channel shall be at right angles to its courses, and that the bridges at the draws shall not be less than 24 feet above high water of spring tide, and that no tunnel shall be constructed under it which will not permit the excavation of a 20-foot channel.

 

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Sometimes We Miss It – Isidor Louis… 1870’s San Diego…

February 7, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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After 47 years as both a collector and reseller of “Rare & Early” newspapers, you can imagine we have unearthed a ton of historical content. However, Every now and then we are reminded that, “Sometimes we miss it”. Today a customer called after purchasing an issue of The San Diego Union to let us know he found a fascinating ad on the front page of his issue. For those who love 19th century California history, there was an early citizen of Jewish descent who had an enormous entrepreneur’s spirit. Isidor Louis had many irons in the fire and was advertising one of his first ventures on the frontpage of the newspaper. Interestingly, his son later became the city editor for the San Diego Sun. Have we piqued your interest? Do a little investigating of Isidor for yourself. Are you wondering how we had an image of the ad after we had already sold the paper? Perhaps we have uncovered others. As a lesson learned, it always pays to read the fine print … in case we missed it.

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Snapshot 1927 – An unexpected, dystopian gem…

February 3, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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What are the top ten most influential movies of all time? Depending upon the criteria used to define “most influential”, the lists could look quite different, but my guess is 1927’s Metropolis would fly under the radar of most people’s thinking. Yet, Wikipedia has the following to say about this (hidden?) gem: “Metropolis is now widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential films ever made, ranking 35th in Sight & Sound’s 2012 critics’ poll. In 2001, the film was inscribed on UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register, the first film thus distinguished.” Not bad.

We recently discovered an advertisement and review of this masterpiece in a New York Times dated March 6, 1927. At the time of this post it was listed on eBay, however, if it is no longer available for viewing through its eBay listing, you can read more about it on Wikipedia or our website.

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Snapshot 1879 – A former slave’s trek from bondage to bounty…

January 24, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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As I was reading interesting articles regarding Mormons, Frederick Douglass, and other news of the day in a January 19, 1879 issue of The New York Times, a somewhat nondescript heading caught my attention: “A COLORED MAN’S HISTORY”. Knowing (second-hand at best) a bit about the struggles of being Black during this post-Slavery era of American history, I was quite surprised by what I read. His trek was certainly not the norm, and it in no way negates the horrors experienced by far too many who had once been in bondage, however, I could not help but be inspired by the brief account of his life. Please enjoy.

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A Hero Lost. . . Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr…

January 20, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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At times, even with original documents in hand, history can be a bit perplexing or a bit cloudy. Hindsight is often not as 20/20 as one might think.  However, some are heroes in nearly everyone’s book. Celebrated by the historical record itself, their earthly departure leaves a hole which will likely never be filled. The April 5, 1968 ARIZONA REPUBLIC heralded such a loss. May our honoring of his life keep his dream alive.

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Under the Radar (June, 1921 Edition) – “Abe, The Newsboy”…

January 10, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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Who in the world is “Abe, New Newsboy”?

While reading an original issue of The Day, New London, CT, for June 4, 1921, I came across an interesting article about someone I did not recognize: Abraham Hollandersky, who had just received a letter from Teddy Roosevelt – the text of which was included in the issue. Rather than spoil the fun, you can read more about this interesting individual here. Enjoy.

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They put it in print – an 1877 opinion of The Press…

January 6, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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Sometimes a picture says it all. The illustration below was printed in a Harper’s Weekly dated June 2, 1877, but left undated some might think it is a recent print. Do these “1000 words” from the 19th century, in fact, have staying power? You decide.

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Fascinating Conspiracies (Episode 3)… Coup d’état

January 3, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 
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The following may feel a bit 3rd-Worldish, however, we have had our own attempted coup d’état right here in the USA … and not so long ago – as reported in the Omaha Bee, November 21, 1934.

“The Business Plot (also called the Wall Street Putsch and The White House Putsch) was a political conspiracy in 1933 in the United States to overthrow the government of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and install a dictator. Retired Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler asserted that wealthy businessmen were plotting to create a fascist veterans’ organization with Butler as its leader and use it in a coup d’état to overthrow Roosevelt. In 1934, Butler testified under oath before the United States House of Representatives Special Committee on Un-American Activities (the “McCormack–Dickstein Committee”) on these revelations. Although no one was prosecuted, the Congressional committee final report said, “there is no question that these attempts were discussed, were planned, and might have been placed in execution when and if the financial backers deemed it expedient.”

Early in the committee’s gathering of testimony most major news media dismissed the plot, with a New York Times editorial falsely characterizing it as a “gigantic hoax”. Reporting changed when the final report was issued.

While historians have questioned whether or not a coup was actually close to execution, most agree that some sort of “wild scheme” was contemplated and discussed” (Wiki)

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Announcing: Catalog #314 (for January, 2022) is now available…

December 31, 2021 by · Leave a Comment 
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http://images.rarenewspapers.com.s3.amazonaws.com/ebayimgs/Webs/Catalog-Rare-Newspapers.jpg

Catalog 314 (for January) is now available. This latest offering of authentic newspapers is comprised of more than 325 new items, a selection which includes: a dramatic broadside on Lincoln’s assassination, the first of the Lincoln-Douglas debates, the Gettysburg Address (in a military newspaper), a graphic issue on the sinking of the Titanic, the capture of Ethan Allen, a front-page portrait of John Wilkes Booth, and more.

 

The following links are designed to help you explore this latest edition of our catalog:

 

Don’t forget about this month’s DISCOUNTED ISSUES.

The links above will redirect to the latest catalog in approx. 30 days,

upon which time it will update to the most recent catalog.

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Thankful for today, but dreaming of a better tomorrow…

December 28, 2021 by · Leave a Comment 
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Christmas in the rearview mirror… New Year’s Eve just a stone’s throw away…

The week between these two holidays is prime for a healthy blend of contemplation, nostalgia, and anticipation. Was 2021 a banner year? Will it go down in the annals of history as one of the best years ever? Probably not, however, I am thankful for each and every day. Why? I was blessed with the breath of life, the love of God and family, a mix of both warm sunshine and nourishing rain, and the God-given ability to appreciate the (albeit) flawed present while looking forward to an even better tomorrow. The capacity to dream of a day when COVID, masks, and the inability to see the smiles of my “red and yellow, black and white” brothers and sisters are a thing of the past… when these very same “created in the image of God” siblings can engage in respectful dialogue even while holding opposing deep-rooted views tightly… when people trump politics, is no small gift.

Sometimes dreamers get criticized and dismissed as being naïve for having their heads in the clouds – for being unrealistic and perhaps a bit insane. These accusations may be true for some, but please don’t tell those who thought a band of ill-equipped, untrained, and often uncouth colonists could defeat the world’s greatest superpower of the day, that slaves could one day be free, that humans could fly and perhaps (as ridiculous as it sounds) travel to the moon… and back, that women could be given the right to vote, that a group of people who were treated by many as inferior simply due to the color of their skin would one day be viewed as equals, etc., were crazy. After all, they had a dream, and their dreams are now our reality.

So, today I choose to appreciate the fruit of yesterday’s dreamers while I dream of an even better tomorrow. Are you a dreamer? I hope so.

Please enjoy the last few says of 2021, AND although a bit early, Happy 2022! I can’t wait for what comes next.

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