Victorian Americans loved their celebrations, holidays, and reasons to party. Mardi Gras, in North America, has been around since pre-American Revolutionary War. I share tidbits about the background of Mardi Gras, how it was celebrated during the staid and usually straight-laced Victorian era, and some of the challenges present to law enforcement in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Wow! I can only imagine!
LABOR DAY was born of the circumstances within our Victorian-era United States Industrial Revolution. Unions wanted safer working conditions and 12- to 16-hour work days shortened to 8- or 9-hours. Strikes and protests lead to reform, and from the first Labor Day parade in 1882 peaceful Labor’s Holidays began to take root state by state until in 1894, Labor Day was declared by the President of the United States as a Federal Holiday. This article contains newspaper accounts from era papers, vintage photographs, and a dash of American history surrounding summer’s last hurrah.
July 24th is Pioneer Day in the state of Utah, commemorating the arrival of the Mormon pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley (the first permanent Euro-American settlers) in 1847. This state-wide celebration includes everything from parades to rodeos, fireworks to pageants, Pioneer/Frontier clothing to Native American Inter-Tribal Pow-Wows, to covered wagon reenactments and picnics. Pioneer Day is inherent to Utah’s Victorian-Era, Old West history.
Victorian Americans celebrated Independence Day much like we do today…with some notable differences. Many historic occasions coincided with Independence Day (intentionally, I imagine), and patriotism swelled from small western towns to historic cities like Philadelphia. This review of Victorian-era Fourths of July may spark your patriotism while it enlightens your view of America’s past.
Nineteenth Century American Easter Celebrations are very much like those we experience now. This article covers a wide range of Victorian American observances from church services to Easter eggs (to the giving of eggs), ladies Easter Bonnets and new clothing for men. Easter parades, donation plates, and historical menus from newspapers of the era.
