As was mentioned in a post last week, Americans will be marking the 150th anniversaries of the great events of the Civil War over the next four years. Many of the battles, commanders and regiments of that conflict have become legends, and the narrative of a nation split apart, brother fighting against brother, remains compelling. [...]
The New Pretty Village. Church Set. New York: McLoughlin Bros., 1897. The McLoughlin Brothers dominated both the picture book and game markets in late 19th-century America, and The New Pretty Village is a wonderful example of McLoughlin’s halcyon era. This segment of the ideal suburban village includes cardboard models of a church, a stately house, [...]
Here is a roundup of a few blogs that have recently mentioned Past is Present. One of our recent posts — “City Living” was referenced a couple of times. Two Nerdy History Girls had a post “Big Bad City Tempts Young Men, 1849” in which Susan provides a wonderful set-up to introduce our earlier post: [...]
As AAS gears up for the most momentous occasion of its bicentennial in 2012, I thought it would be fitting to take a look back in the AAS archives to see how we celebrated the first 100 years. In 1912, the Society had just moved into its new (and now current) home at 185 Salisbury [...]
There has been much interest in the Civil War of late. The increased coverage makes sense given that next few years mark 150 years since the conflict that divided our United States. Here at Past is Present, we would like to highlight another side of the war years. Rather than focusing on the battles or [...]
No rose without a thorn. New York: Nathaniel Currier, [1838-1856] Shown with “My Master’s Wife” When he started his business on Nassau Street in New York City, Nathaniel Currier offered for sale lithographs of news events, historic images, local views, and pretty women. He also occasionally produced narrative genre scenes such as this curious depiction [...]
Ever wonder what people were reading in the 19th century? A great way to see what the most popular books were at a particular time is to look at account books from publishing firms and booksellers. Now, even more interestingly, ever wonder what people were reading on ships in the 19th century? How about looking [...]
David Whitesell, curator of books, reports on a recent acquisition: Die Wahre Brandtewein-Brennerey, oder Brandtewein- Gin- und Cordialmacher-Kunst: wie auch die ächte Färbe-Kunst, Blau, Roth, Gelb und Grün zu färben, auf Baumwalle, Leinen, und Wolle … [Reading, PA?: Gottlob Jungmann and Carl Andreas Bruckmann?], 1802. Very rare third of four recorded editions of what might [...]
With wedding season upon us, and love and relationships at the forefront of many minds this time of the year, it’s fun to wonder what courting, love, and relationships were like, and how they’ve evolved over the past couple hundred years. We all have ideas in our minds, probably placed there through novels and films. [...]
It must have been personal interest that drew my eye to this one item on the shelf, “The Temptations of City Life: A Voice to Young Men Seeking a Home and Fortune, in Large Towns and Cities,” Tracts for the Cities — No. 3 (New York, 1849) [AAS online catalog record]. While I am not [...]
In February of 1859, a scandalous event shook Washington D.C., involving two prominent politicians, betrayal and murder most foul. How intriguing! Hon. Daniel E. Sickles, Congressman from New York, shot and killed Philip Barton Key, U.S. District Attorney (and also, interestingly enough, son of famed composer Francis Scott Key), after discovering an affair between Key [...]
Purely physical love for a book can sometimes be a book’s worst enemy. By fingering the books, prints, manuscripts, and newspapers in AAS collections, each reader and researcher contributes to the slow death of our materials. In his novel In the Name of the Rose, Umberto Eco writes that the saliva and dust left behind [...]
Schoolmarm, 1870
