by Kristin Holt | Jul 14, 2016 | Articles
Historic Silver City, Idaho, was once a bustling boom town with 2500 residents. The conjoined cemeteries tell many tales of the families who lived there. Many of the headstones (and footstones) are very legible and show a slice of Victorian American West life. I share images taken on a sunny day in June and provide the inscriptions from many of the markers. Come, walk through this historic cemetery with me and learn a little about the families who lived. #JacquieRogersAdo16
by Kristin Holt | Jun 20, 2016 | Articles
4 STARS for the 1879 title, Wired Love: A Romance of Dots and Dashes. As an amateur historian determined to learn what I could about the telegraph and its impact on American society, how it worked, and the challenges telegraphers faced, this sweet (innocent) love story fit the bill!
by Kristin Holt | May 24, 2016 | Articles
Throughout the 19th century, ladies undergarments remained quite similar. Drawers (or bloomers), yesteryear’s most related item to today’s panties, ranged from knee- to ankle-length, were constructed of various fabrics, and were held up by a button or drawstring, with an open crotch.
Item listings in vintage catalogs and magazines illustrate the standard items available via mail-order throughout the United States Victorian era.
by Kristin Holt | Apr 15, 2016 | Articles
In my recent post about The Proper (and safe) Way to Terminate a Victorian American Courtship because we all know the threat of a suit of Breach of Promise was too great, a quote by the Reverend George W. Hudson in his 1883 book sounded rather scandalous. The good reverend actually said “making love”–and he didn’t mean in a sexual way. It’s essential to note that the term had a very different meaning in the 19th Century and early 20th Century than it does now.
by Kristin Holt | Apr 9, 2016 | Articles
We’ve seen the financial, legal, and emotional costs of a courtship gone wrong and culminating in a suit for breach of promise. In Victorian America, where such a consequence was possible if not common enough (to scare a young swain or two), advice of how to break up an unhealthy courtship–or cancel a planned wedding–must have been given by mothers, fathers, society matrons, and “Dear Abby’s” of the day. Indeed they did! This article includes quotes from 3 era-specific books published during the time period.
