Boston Symphony Orchestra

As many of you know I was born and raised in Massachusetts, in fact, my family heritage on my father's side always lived in Massachusetts until recent years. So, the Boston Symphony and the Boston Pops were a part of our lives. I've never had the pleasure of attending a Boston Symphony or Pops concert in person but I'd love to one day.

The Boston Symphony Orchestra is the topic of today's tidbit. Their first season was 1881-1882. A series of 20 concerts were played on Saturday evenings and you could purchase season tickets or individual ones. My writer's imagination kicked into high gear picturing my characters attending a concert, meeting at a concert, stumbling into trouble at a concert and on and on my imagination goes. You can read about this historical season At the BSO's website. On their site they also include programs from the season. It's a great resource. I can imagine many cities having similar orchestras.

Let your writer imagination run wild. Post some of your suggestions in the comments section.

Point of Reference: The Boston Symphony was not the first to give concert series in Boston. An example is the Harvard Symphony that started giving concerts in Boston in 1865.

Four dead in Five Seconds

We've all heard about the Gun Fight at the OK corral which happened on Oct. 26, 1881 in Tombstone Arizona. But I stumbled upon this gunfight and thought I'd share a little about it.

In El Paso, Texas on April 14, 1881 the famous "Four Dead in Five Seconds" gun fight occurred. This is one of those cases where the town hired a gun fighter to be the Marshal. You can read more about this gun fight on Wikipedia.

There's a short video of a reenactment of this incident on You Tube.

There was a blurb written in the Old West Gunfights webpage.

Broom Making

Below is the reprint of a blog post from Sept, 2010. Of all my posts this one has brought about a fair amount of attention. However, I want to add to this post with a link to Youtube where Jack Martin shows how they make an 1850 Shaker Style broom.

Brooms have been around for eons, the question I've been trying to answer is when did the first broom factories start in America.

In 1841 in Sussex I find the listing of 65 broom-makers
A list of immigration to Missouri in 1867 listed several boom-makers
I found a disabled soldiers Broom-factory in 1875
1881 I found an expense report that line item a broom factory in a Missouri Penitentiary in 1880
And I found a grocery store owner in 1888 took payment of a broom making machine in exchange for food, then proceeded to have a very successful broom factory in the late 19th century into the 20th century. In fact, the business is still in operations today.

So, as of this moment, I do not know when the first broom factory developed in America. If you have a source with additional information, I'd love to hear it.

Below is a list of Broom & Brush Factory jobs, from the "Classified index of occupations by the United States," © 1921

Binder, broom or brush factory.
Borer, broom or brush factory.
Box maker, broom or brush factory.
Broom or brush maker, broom or brush
factory.
Broom or brush maker (not in factory).
Broom or brush maker (n. s.).
Buffer, broom or brush factory.
Buncher, broom or brush factory.
Comber, broom or brush factory.
Cutter, broom or brush factory.
Drawer, broom or brush factory.

Winners of the League Base-Ball Championship

From Houghtaling's Handbook ©1887

Winners of the League Base-Ball Championship
The following were the winners of the championship of the National Base-Ball League for the years named below:
1886 - Chicago Club. . . Won 90 games, and lost 34 games
1885 - Chicago Club . . . Won 87 games and lost 25 games
1884 - Providence Club . . . Won 84 games and lost 28 games
1883 - Boston Club . . . Won 63 games and lost 35 games
1882 - Chicago Club . . . Won 55 games and lost 29 games
1881 - Chicago Club . . . Won 56 games and lost 28 games
1880 - Chicago Club . . . Won 67 games and lost 17 games
1879 - Providence Club . . . Won 59 games and lost 25 games
1878 - Boston Club . . . Won 41 games and lost 19 games
1877 - Boston Club . . . Won 31 games and lost 17 games
1876 - Chicago Club . . . Won 52 games and lost 14 games
(end quote)

1876 was the first year of the National League of Professional Baseball. It organized with 8 teams. The Boston Red Stockings (also called the Boston Red Caps), Chicago White Stockings, Cincinnati Red Legs (also called the Cincinnati Red Stockings), Hartford Dark Blues, Louisville Grays, Philadelphia Athletics, Brooklyn Mutuals (also called the New York Mutuals) & St. Louis Browns (also called the St. Louis Brown Stockings). There were 70 games for the season starting April 22nd and ending Oct. 21st.

For more information about this first year of professional baseball check out The Baseball Almanac

Broom Factories & Broom Makers

Brooms have been around for eons, the question I've been trying to answer is when did the first broom factories start in America.

In 1841 in Sussex I find the listing of 65 broom-makers
A list of immigration to Missouri in 1867 listed several boom-makers
I found a disabled soldiers Broom-factory in 1875
1881 I found an expense report that line item a broom factory in a Missouri Penitentiary in 1880
And I found a grocery store owner in 1888 took payment of a broom making machine in exchange for food, then proceeded to have a very successful broom factory in the late 19th century into the 20th century. In fact, the business is still in operations today.

So, as of this moment, I do not know when the first broom factory developed in America. If you have a source with additional information, I'd love to hear it.

Below is a list of Broom & Brush Factory jobs, from the "Classified index of occupations by the United States," © 1921

Binder, broom or brush factory.
Borer, broom or brush factory.
Box maker, broom or brush factory.
Broom or brush maker, broom or brush
factory.
Broom or brush maker (not in factory).
Broom or brush maker (n. s.).
Buffer, broom or brush factory.
Buncher, broom or brush factory.
Comber, broom or brush factory.
Cutter, broom or brush factory.
Drawer, broom or brush factory.

Clara Barton & The Red Cross

As many of you know that the American Red Cross was primarily founded by the efforts of Clara Barton. She worked tirelessly on humanitarian efforts during the Civil War, trying to locate the missing men. In 1869 her doctor's recommend she go to Europe to recoup and ended up working for the International Red Cross. She determined to bring the organization to the US and did starting in 1873 by 1881 she'd become the president of the organization and brought it to Washington. She formed the first American National Red Cross on Aug. 22, 1821 expanding the work to include helping others in disasters. A month later "The Great Thumb Fire" occurred in Michigan. 5000 were homeless over 2 mil in damages and 282 people lost their lives.

There are two books at google that you might be interested in reading. The first is "The Story of My Childhood" by Clara Barton ©1907

The second is The Life of Clara Barton ©1915 by Percy Epler

Mark Twain

One of the famous authors from the 19th century and also continued work in the 20th was Mark Twain. Below is a list of the novels/books he published during the 19th century. Many of these books can be downloaded at various internet sites, my favorite is Gutenburg's.

The Innocents Abroad 1869
Curious Republic of Gondour 1870
A Burlesque Autobiography 1871
Roughing It 1872
The Gilded Age 1873
Sketches New and Old 1875
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer 1876
Carnival of Crime in CT 1877
A Tramp Abroad 1880
1601 1880
The Prince and the Pauper 1881
The Stolen White Elephant 1882
Life on the Mississippi 1883
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 1885
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court 1889
The American Claimant 1892
Tom Sawyer Abroad 1894
The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson 1894
Tom Sawyer, Detective 1896
Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc Vol 1 1896
Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc Vol 2 1896
How to Tell a Story and Others 1897
Following the Equator 1897

19th Century Bedroom Furnishings Part 2

The first tidbit comes from a lecture given in England in 1880 by Edward Edis. The second comes from Ward & Lock's Home Book. In the book he continues on for an entire chapter so I've given a link.

The blinds of a bedroom should be of some soft toned colour, and not the vivid staring white and yellow to which we are so accustomed. I need not dwell further on this portion of my subject, as the cheerfulness and comfort of a bedroom is quite as much dependent upon the graceful taste of arrangement of the ladies of the house, as upon the upholstery and fittings with which it is furnished. There are innumerable small items of furniture which all tend to make up the general requirements of a bedroom, which with care and thought can be provided at comparatively small cost, in the way of hanging-glasses, jewel boxes, boot racks, bonnet cases, cases for medicine bottles, without lumbering up the generally small floor surface of the room, provided that they be thought of and arranged for, before any set or so-called ‘suite' of bedroom furniture is bought; for a few pounds all these necessary arrangements can be provided in suitable and useful form, in place of the usually extravagant, and ofttimes comparatively useless, articles of furniture which are generally considered necessary in the bedrooms of the house : chests of drawers should be so arranged that the lower portion may be adapted for clothes, while small flanking cup. boards may be provided on each side for the hundred and one small articles which are necessary in an ordinary family household, and which all help to make up the harmonious whole of a well-furnished house. In a small room the chest of drawers may be so fitted up that it shall do duty for a dressing-table with lookingglass complete, or the recesses formed by the chimney breast may be fitted with shelves and drawers, bonnet boxes and boot racks, all combined, with hanging spaces for clothes, at a much smaller expense than that of the elaborate and heavy articles which are sold as ‘wardrobes, and which all take up too much of the wall and floor space, in the usually cramped area, of an ordinary bedroom. The mantel-pieces may be fitted up with cupboards, shelves, and glasses, so as to add materially to the artistic character, as well as the general comfort of the room; and at a small expense a plain writing shelf or table may be attached to any of these pieces of furniture, and made to fold up or slide in, when not absolutely required for use. Often a bedroom is made to do duty as a private sitting-room as well, and too much care cannot therefore be taken to design the general furniture so that it may combine the necessary requirements for general use, as well as for the storage of clothes and linen, and so that the greatest amount of accommodation may be obtained in the smallest amount of space. Hanging book-shelves with cupboards on each side for medicine bottles are invaluable in a bedroom. I cannot too strongly advocate the desirability of all furniture being designed, in the general rooms of a town house, so that it may afford accommodation for the numerous requirements to which it has to be put, and cannot too strongly protest against the generally inconsistent and in great part useless articles, which are provided nowadays by ordinary upholsterers in the so-called ‘suite' of bedroom furniture. In my next and last lecture I shall endeavour to treat generally of the every-day articles of domestic USe. In decoration and furniture, it is above all desirable to avoid all eccentricity and seeming quaintness in design, with no particular use or object, to take care that everything in furniture shall be strong, serviceable, and fitting for its particular use, and to remember that elaboration and expense are really as unnecessary elements in the furnishing of a house as in dress and decorative.
Source: Decoration & Furniture of Town Houses ©1881

ROOMS USED BY NIGHT.
Bedroom Furniture—Necessary Articles—Bedsteads-Mattresses and BeddingBed Furniture-Bedclothes-The Washstand—Toilet Tables—The Toilet Glass —The Cheval Glass—Chests of Drawers^The Linen Press—The Lady s Wardrobe—The Gentleman's Wardrobe—Nfinor Articles—Invalid Furniture—lne Dressing Room—An Objectionable Habit—The Home Hospital.
268. BEDROOM FURNITURE. In treating of rooms used by day, it was necessary to regard each kind of reception room, and the furniture it contains, according to the use to which it is put. There will, however, be no occasion to do this in the present chapter, for the bedroom is the only kind of room used by night, and although bedrooms differ greatly from one another, according to the manner in which they are furnished, yet there is but one set of articles common to all, more or less of which articles are used. We will, therefore, glance briefly at the furniture that may be found in any well-appointed bedroom and its adjunct, the dressing-room.
260. DRESSING-ROOMS AND BEDROOMS. It is desirable that a dressing-room and bedroom should be immediately contiguous, and that there should be access to the dressing-room from the bedroom without having to go from the bedroom on to a landing to reach the dressing-room. In case of a married couple, for whom a dressingroom is far more necessary than for single persons, the dressing-room should be furnished with a view to the husband's use, and the bedroom for the special requirements of the wife. When the dressing-room is large enough, it should contain a bedstead at least 6 feet long by 2 feet 6 inches wide, which will prove of service on many occasions.

NECESSARY ARTICLES. In speaking of the furniture of the bedroom, we must notice the following articles:
1. The Bedstead, and its Palliasse, Mattresses, Bed, Bolster, and
Pillows.
2. The Bedclothes, consisting of Pillow and Bolster-cases, Sheets,
Blankets, Quilts, or Counterpanes.
3. The Washstand and its fittings, including Toilet-service, Toilet
pail, Can and Foot-bath, Water-bottle and Tumbler, Willow splash screen, frc.
4. The Toilet-table, with Toilet-glass, Toilet-cover, and Toilet-tailt
set.
5. The Cheval Glass.
6. Chest of Drawers.
7. Lady's Wardrobe.
8. Bed-steps and Pedestal.
9. Towel Horse.
10. Bed Table.
In speaking of the furniture of the dressing-room, we need not notice more than —
1. The Gentleman's Wardrobe.
2. The Boot and Shoe Horse. All other articles that would find a place there having been mentioned with reference to the bedroom, we must then proceed to say a few words on— ,
Appliances for Hanging Clothes.
Source: Ward and Lock's Home Book ©18
The chapter continues, here's a link Chapter 14

Chicken Recipes

I found this new cookbook, okay not really new but new to me, anyway, this cookbook Old Doctor Carlin's Recipes ©1881 has a variety of chicken recipes. I know more than one of you has served chicken in your books from time to time. Enjoy!

Broiled Chicken.
Split the chicken down the back, and wipe perfectly dry. Place on a buttered gridiron, inside downward. Cover with tin pan or plate and broil till tender and brown, turning several times. This will require from 4 to # of an hr. Put into a dish and butter well.
Chicken a la Creme.
Cut the chicken up, stew in a pan of water until done; then make a thickening of cream or rich milk and flour, seasoning with butter, pepper and salt. Have ready baked a pair of shortcakes, made as for piecrust, but rolled thin and cut in small squares. Lay the crusts on a dish and pour over them the chicken and gravy while all are hot. This is a delicious substitute for chicken pie.
Fried Chicken.
Joint the chickens, wipe them dry, and dust on flour, pepper and salt. Fry in a mixture of hot butter and lard, and when brown on both sides, add 1 teaspoonful of powdered mace, 3 tablespoonfuls of sweet cream or milk. If milk is used add a little butter and flour to the gravy; pour over the chicken at the moment of serving.
Fricasseed Chicken.
Wash, joint, and lay in a stewpan, with#" and salt, and stew till tender. To thicken the gravy dust in flour; add 1 cupful of thick cream and 4 a cupful of butter; if you have no cream, 1 cupful of butter. Adding pieces of salt pork is an improvement. Pour the chicken Over some thin Slices of toast in a hot dish.
Southern Gumbo.
Fry 1 chicken brown, and 2 slices of bacon. Pour on them 3 qts of boiling water; add 1 onion and some sweet herbs tied in a rag. Simmer this gently 34 hrs. Strain off the liquor, take off the fat, then put the ham and chicken, cut in small pieces, into the liquor. Add + teacupful of okra cut up, and just before serving add a glass of wine and a doz. oysters with their juice. Chicken Pie.
Joint the chickens and boil in salted water just enough to cover them, and simmer slowly for 3 an hr. Line a £ with crust; then, when cold, put the chicken in layers, with thin slices of broiled pork, and butter the size of an egg, cut in small pieces. Put in enough liquor, in which the fowls were boiled, to reach the surface; salt and pepper each layer; dredge in a little flour, and cover all with a light, thick crust. Make a small slit in the center of the crust. Bake about 1 hr. in a hot OVen.
Chicken Pot-Pie.
Cover jointed chickens with water, and boil them, if tender, 3 hr. before putting in the crust. Skim thoroughly. Add 1 tablespoonful of flour, stirred into 1 of butter, and season with pepper and salt. A few bits of pork cut thin is an improvement. Make the crust like baking powder biscuit, with the addition of a little butter. Cut in pieces and drop in. If a potato crust is preferred, boil and mash 6 £ potatos, add 1 egg, 1 teacupful of milk, 1 tablespoonful of butter, 1 teaspoonful of salt, and flour enough to make it roll out easily. Keep the kettle closed to prevent the crust from becoming heavy. A better way is to # the crust in the steamer and steam it. It is then sure to be light.
en the chicken and gravy can be poured over it.
Chickens Pulled.
Remove the skin carefully from a cold chicken, then pull the flesh from the bones, £ it as whole as you can. Flour them well, fry them a nice brown in fresh, butter; draw them, and stew in good gravy well seasoned; thicken a short time before serving with flour and butter, and add the juice of 3 a lemon.
Roast Chicken.
Wash the chickens out well in 2 or 3 waters, and add a little soda to the last water but one, to remove any doubtful odor. Fill the bodies and crops of the chickens with a stuffing of bread crumbs, butter, pepper and salt; sew them up, and roast an hr. or more, according to the size. Baste 2 or 3 times with butter and water, afterward with their own gravy. Put a little water into the dripping-pan at first to prevent burning. Stew the giblets and neck in water enough to cover them, and after removing the fowls to a hot dish, pour this into the drippings ; boil up once; add the giblets chopped fine; thicken with browned flour; boil again, and send to the table in a gravy boat.
Miss Corson's Saute.
After jointing the chicken, place it in a sauce-pan, with just enough Olive oil on £ of the pan to keep it from burning. Olive oil is considered purer and the most wholesome of any kind of fat. After the chicken is thoroughly browned cover it with boiling water, stir it, and cook slowly for 1 hr.; season with salt and pepper, then add 1 tablespoonful of flour and put into it either small Ónions or mushrooms. Add the flour dry; by stirring avoid any lumps in the broth. If the chicken weighs 3 lbs., use 12 small onions, being careful not to cut the little ends of each as is usually done when they are served alone.
Source: Old Doctor Carlin's Recipes ©1881

1881 Brass work designs for Furniture

These are fancy English Brass work Designs for Cabinets.

CABINET BRASSWORK.
One cannot but be struck with the manner in which ornamental metal-work was displayed in old German and Flemish coffers, &c, and in contrasting them with similar articles of modern date, one naturally realises that we are decidedly far behind those good old craftsmen. In this old work of theirs, if we meet with a hinge there is no attempt at concealment, but the opportunity is at once availed of for a display of the maker's art. A lock-plate, or even a nail, seems to have been regarded as affording the artist a cban'e of showing his skill and ingenuity. It would be well if our cabinet-makers were to follow
in the footsteps of these handicraftsmen, and bear in mind that it is not necessary for a lock to be hidden, but that there is every reason why it should display charms of its own. The sketches shown on one of our Separate Vlates have been designed with this object in view, and we would advise manu facturers to give up the use of plain, polished surface brasswork, replacing it by hammered, ribbed, or punched articles. The substitution of the latter for the former would add greatly to the charm of many an article of furniture. The ten designs for drawerhandles, scutcheons, &c, referred to are from the pencil of Mr. R. A. Boyd, of 5, Poplargrove, West Kensington-park.

1881 Wardrobe & Cabinet

The illustrations below are English design and if your characters were to purchase them more than likely they wouldn't have been able to in 1881. However, if your character is living in America and stumbles upon this magazine "The Furniture Gazette" it could inspire him or her to build one like it. Just a couple random ideas you could make use of these tidbits with.

DESIGN FOR A WARDROBE.
The Wardrobe that forms the subject-matter of one of our sheets of illustrations belongs to the Bedroom Suite shown in our last issue. In style, it partakes somewhat of the Chippendale character. It is made both in walnut and in pitch pine, with bevelled plate-glass in the centre. The wardrobe, as well as the above cabinet, have been manufactured by Messrs. Bamett Moss & Co., of Great Eastern-street, Old-street.

DESIGN FOR A CABINET.
An Ebonised Early English Cabinet is illustrated on our third Plate. It is of solid construction, without being massive in appearance. Cupboard, drawer, and shelf room have been provided in such a manner that almost every nook of the Cabinet has been turned to good advantage.

1881 Furniture Chair Back Designs

Below are 12 illustrations of various chair back designs from 1881, as included is the brief description from the original source.

ORIGINAL SKETCHES FOR CHAIR.BACKS.
IT has been well observed that a slavish imitation of antique styles, probably unsuited in some of their solid qualities to the lighter and more variable tone of modern society, is not desirable. This remark applies with special force to chairs, for, without being disposed to dispute the merits of many a fine old specimen that has been handed down to us from the days of Chippendale and Sheraton, there can be no doubt that in m.iny particulars such seats are not suited to exact reproduction in the nineteenth century. That novel ideas may, however, be evolved from the old JBateriftl is forcibly illustrated by the dozen Chair-backs delineated on one of our Separate Hates. They are not by any means all of an equal degree of merit, and yet there is, perhaps, not one of them but may be turned to useful account by the cabinet-maker of our own day. There is, indeed, ample room for improvement in this particular direction, for too much of a family likeness is apparent in many modern chairs. The designs in question are from the pencil of Mr. A. Weatberstone.

Self Rocking Bassinette

Here's a simple tidbit but something you might find handy for your stories. The illustration below is a self rocking bassinette (which today we spell it as bassinet). This comes from an 1881 publication.

1881 Ladies Fashions

Traveling & Walking Dress

House & Evening Dress

Seaside Costume

Walking Dresses

Outdoors

Garden Party

Visiting Dress Back & Front

Awning and Ventilation Designs from 1881

In the days before air conditioning, all of the 19th Century, folks had to come up with other ways to help cool down their stores and homes. Below is an illustration and article about new and improved awning ventilation and designs. Enjoy!

IMPROVED AWNING AND
VENTILATOR.

THE novel window awning shown in the accompanying illustration is capable of being readily put into various positions to shade the window and to effect a proper circulation of air in the apartments.
lower bent bars, a b, pivoted together at their ends, and secured to the window-frame by means of thumb-screws, c. The awning cover, B, is attached at its upper and lower ends to the bars a and b, and at its lateral edges to the window-frame by buttons or rings. This construction practically divides the awning into two sections, d e, either of which can be opened or closed, as may be required. The only difference between the old frame and the new one is that the latter has two bars instead of one, and is attached to the middle of the window-frame instead of to the lower quarter. The new awning has also an extra cord and pulley, and requires a little more canvas than the old style; but this is compensated for by the readiness with which it may be applied to a window, no fitting, cutting, or nailing being required, and the inventor states that when the durability of this awning is considered, it is much cheaper than the common form.
The various ways in which this awning may be arranged are shown in the annexed engraving, which is taken from a photograph, and accurately represents the invention as applied to the building at the corner of Gay and Baltimore-streets, Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A.
Fig. 2 shows the old style of awning, with improvements attached. Fig. 3 shows an adjustment made by loosening a central cord, opening the top, and closing the bottom, placing the awning in an inverted position. Fig. 4 shows the awning having one of its sides dropped on its inner surface. With this arrangement, when the wind blows along the side of the building, it is gathered and directed
thus arranged, not only in thoroughly ventilating and cooling the apartment, but also in excluding the noxious vapours that rise from the street and gutter at night.
The inventor says that by the aid of these room " ventilators every bed-chamber can be made a sanitarium during summer epidemics. The germs of disease, animal and vegetable parasites, fungi, albuminoid, ammonia, &c, which are swept from the streets and gutters by servants into the air, and carried into our sleeping-rooms for hours before our waking, will find an effectual check by the use of these inverted " awnings."
These room ventilators are so constructed that their entire surface can be brought under the immediate inspection of the eye, and within reach of the brush and cleaner. By drawing up the lower part of it, and letting the upper bar fall through the lower one, the canvas is turned inside out, bringing its upper outer surface close to the window, where it may be freed from dust, spots, or stains, and cleaned with suitable washes for preserving its colours and making it last three times as long as the old style awnings, which are nailed securely to the top and sides of window frames, putting all the outer service of canvas beyond the reach of any protection. As these ventilators are reversible, they can be readily turned inside out, and they may be used in that condition after the outer surface has faded or worn seedy.
These improvements have been patented by Dr. James E. Dwinelle, south-east corner Broadway and Baltimore, Maryland (U.S.), who may be addressed for further information.
Source: The Furniture Gazette ©1881

Collections of Shells & Minerals

For those who have collections this tidbit comes from The Detroit Free Press ©1881

FOR SHELLS AND MINERALS.
Many of you have doubtless collected beautiful shells, pebbles, am! other marine treasures, which all would be glad to preserve. A handsome cabinet filled with shells is no mean or inconspicuous article of adornment in a tasteful home.

A cabinet for shells or minerals should never be deep; and if more than one row is to be accommodated, it should be arranged with sloping shelves, furnished with narrow ledges, in order to preclude the possibility of the shells sliding down.

A beautiful cabinet of this kind is made as follows: Side pieces, ei^ht inches deep, of half-inch pine, three feet long (or high) united by shelves four feet long—two feet for each half, and the shelves edged with a border of dark pinked leather.

The amateur conchologist should be guided in the style and size of case or cabinet by the nature of his collection. A set of small shallow cases made of thin board will be found an excellent mode of arranging shells, as they may be easily removed and cleansed. These cases, placed upon the receding shelves, are arranged so that the lowest one projects two or three inches in front of the one next above it. They may be lined with velveteen, silk, satin, or even tinted muslin. For those lovely shells which have tints of unusual beauty and curious markings, pieces of looking-glass placed behind and beneath the specimens will be found especially effective, as by this means the entire shell is reflected and exposed; for delicate white or tinted varieties, black, purple; or crimson velvet linings will be found most desirable. Another pretty arrangement for certain specimens is to cut a series of shield-shaped or rather fanciful tablets, covered with a layer of cotton flannel, glued to the surface, with velvet on the top in the same manner, the edges covered with narrow velvet ribbon glued on the under side—or chenille is pretty, and imparts a soft effect to the delicate shell which it surrounds. A row of such tablets adds materially to the beauty of the cabinet.

The case may be supported on a pair of carved brackets, varnished and bronzed; and in lieu of glass doors, soft silk or wool curtains, furnished with rings and running on a rod hung on small brackets at the top of the case, will shield the shells from dust. These curtains may be embroidered or hand-pointed.
The shells should be fastened in place with the following cement: Take one ounce of gum tragacanth and half an ounce of white gum arabic; dissolve each in sufficient water to form a thick mucilage, to which add a few drops of alcohol to prevent moulding.

Cards cuts in some tasteful form, marked with the name of the shells and any incident desired to be remembered, should be fastened to the sides of each case or tablet.

Arranging Bouquets

Floral Arrangements have always been an art in my humble opinion, an art that I'm not that great at. I have improved over the years but when I see the arrangements the local florist puts together, well mine pale in comparison. However, our 19th Century Characters and Ancestors took great skill in making this bouquets for their homes, or to go courting, etc.

Below is a tidbit from the Detroit Free Press ©1881.

BOUQUETS.
ARRANGING THE FLOWERS.
It seems an easy thing to make a bouquet as one looks over the garden and sees the beautiful flowers. But after all it is a difficult matter, and one sometimes forgets that flowers have their affinities and preferences as well as the human race. Above all give them room and not crowd them. When flowers are massed heavily together all lose their beauty.

When you cut the flowers for bouquets, provide yourself with a tin basin or dish having a little water in it. Cut them, never pull or break them; it bruises the stems and hastens decay. Flowers will keep best if gathered at night; the early sun seems to wilt them. Stand the flowers up in the dish and put those of one kind together, then when ready to arrange them you can easily tell what materials you have to work with, and avoid tumbling them over. The water prevents them from wilting, for flowers carried in the hand will wither in a short time.
When a flower is of good size and a fine one, it will look more beautiful if arranged by itself, the single flower among sprays of fern or feathery grasses, than if put among other flowers. Flowers are difficult to arrange in a shallow dish unless wet moss has first been put in; the flower stems can then be imbedded in the moss, and it will help to preserve them. If a shallow glass dish is filled with white sand and made up into pyramid form (as can easily be done by wetting it), and the flowers arranged in it, commencing with the tiny fine ones at the top, and filling out with larger ones as the base is reached, the effect will be beautiful, and if the sand is kept damp the flowers will keep fresh many days.

Some of the holders for flowers are very pretty; they have a saucer at the bottom and a slender single vase in the center; the lower one can be arranged as a flat bouquet, and with a single lily and fern sprigs or grasses in the vase, what can be lovelier! The white day lilies, their yellow centers, are very beautiful, and a single one will perfume the whole room with its fragrance.

Colors should be chosen wisely; pinks and scarlets should not be included in the same arrangement, and large flowers should not be mixed with very small ones. Yellow can be used sparingly, and white to blend the colors. Green should be used to separate the colors, as a bouquet not softened by grasses or vines is very glaring in its effects. Button-hole bouquets should always be small—conspicuous for their beauty, not size. A single geranium leaf, with a rosebud, a tuberose, or two or three small flowers put together with a leaf of green, is very pretty for these, as almost any flower is beautiful.

FOR VASES AND HAND BOUQUETS.
In selecting vases for flowers get those of a light or neutral color; cut glass, of delicate shape and color, are prettiest. Never put flowers in heavy vases, unless large sprays of flowers are selected, and then a tiny, delicate bouquet and vase is much prettier than these large, massed bouquets in heavy vases. A spray of ferns with a single rose or bud, or a saucer of ferns and pansies is much prettier than a large bouquet even if composed of beautiful flowers.

For small vases a very good way is to clip the flowers off and put them in carelessly as they come, then they will look natural; too much arrangement often spoils the looks of a vase of flowers. For either hand or vase bouquets do not put too many colors together.

For vases and bouquets of any sort there should be plenty of white for the foundation. Where stemless flowers are used, like a tuberose or a single geranium, stems can be made by putting the ends inside of straws and then wiring them in ; when arranged in the bouquet the straw cannot be seen", but the flowers can be kept fresh by absorbing the water. A pretty arrangement is to take a spike of scarlet gladiolus, with its brilliant coloring; arrange it with feathery grasses and gleams of white feverfew here and there and you will have a lovely spot of. coloring for some dark corner. Again, petunias and morning glories are difficult to combine with any flower, but give them a wide-mouthed vase and a few leaves and they are positively graceful. All lilies are prettiest if no other flowers are mixed with them.

It is generally understood that perfect whiteness is indispensable in all flowers used for bridal purposes, rendering jessamine, orange blossoms, gardenias, white carnations, white azaleas, amongst the flowers in most general use. And although white should predominate in the wedding bouquet, a few flowers of delicate tint may be sparingly used. Amongst exotics, the orchid class of plants, those tinted with pale mauve and blush rose, are most useful for such bouquets, The style of flowers should have some analogy to the age of the bride. Thus a bouquet composed of nothing but orange buds is appropriate for a young bride in her teens, whilst full-blown flowers are equally well fitted for a wearer of more mature age.

TO KEEP FLOWERS FRESH.
When cut flowers have faded, either by being worn a whole evening in one's dress, or as a bouquet, by cutting half an inch from the end of the stem in the morning, and putting the freshly-trimmed stalks instantly into quite boiling water, the petals may be seen to come smooth and resume their beauty, often in a few minutes. Colored flowers, carnations, azaleas, roses and geraniums, may be treated in this way. White flowers turn yellow. The thickest textured flowers come up the best, although azaleas revive wonderfully. Another very good mode of renovating cut flowers is to place them in water under a glass shade. For keeping flowers in water, finely-powdered charcoal in which the stalks can be stuck at the bottom of the vase, is excellent; it preserves them surprisingly, and renders the water free from any obnoxious qualities.

If you would keep flowers for evening wear, you must be up early, and gather them before the sun is on them, and, if possible, while they are still wet with dew. Place them in water in a shady place, and just before they are wanted cut a short piece off the stalk with a sharp pair of scissors—a knife will not do; then, if possible, keep them in one of the tubes used by gentlemen for their button-holes; if not, seal the ends of the stalks. Some persons can wear natural flowers much better than others; if the skin is hot and damp they will soon fade, and only hard-wooded plants should be chosen. For azaleas, scarlet geraniums, etc., a drop of gum should be planted in the center of each flower to keep them from shaking.

Or this: Mix a tablespoonful of carbonate of soda in a pint of water, and in this place your bouquet; it will preserve the flowers for a fortnight. This is a fact worth knowing, as in warm weather flowers fade and wither rapidly. Sprinkle the bouquet lightly with fresh water, and then put it in a vessel containing soap-suds; this will keep the flowers as freshly as if first gathered. Then, every morning take the bouquet out of the suds and lay it sideways, the stock entering first, into clean water; keep it there for a minute or two, then take it out and sprinkle the flowers lightly by the hand with water, replace it in the soap-suds, and it will bloom as fresh as when first gathered. The soap-suds need changing every three or four days. By observing these rules a bouquet may be kept bright and beautiful for a long time. The natural color of flowers may be preserved for any length of time by dipping them for a moment in clear glycerine. When the glycerine dries the various tints are seen almost as bright as before the flowers were plucked. Also a good way is to lay them in wet cloths; take them out of the vases at night, sprinkle with cold water and then wrap them in cloths made very wet with cold water. The weight of the cloth will not crush the most delicate flowers, while it keeps out the air and prevents their falling to pieces or opening still more.

Aquariums

I wonder if you've thought much about an Aquarium in your historical novel. If not, here are some tidbits from The Detroit Free Press ©1881 about Aquariums

AQUARIUMS.
FOR THE SITTING-ROOM.
The fresh-water aquarium, or drawing-room fish pond, is a pleasing and interesting ornament for a city or suburban town. It is cheaply and easily made, and requires but little care. Comparatively tew persons can adorn their homes with costly pictures and statues, but almost anyone with a love of nature and art can have an aquarium, fulfilling in miniature realities the glowing and poetic water legends of Northern and Oriental climes. It is the expression of the cultured taste, more than the embellishment of wealth, that makes a charming home.
A tank for a fresh-water aquarium may be constructed of four plates of glass, with a large piece of slate, marble or metal for the bottom; or the tank may be made wholly of metal and set like a large sink in a bay or oriel window; or one may be constructed of a seamless bowl or tub, either earthen or wooden; if the latter, all seams (providing a seamless one cannot be obtained) must be made water-tight by the use of a cement manufactured for the purpose, and sold as "aquarium cement." No lead or paint must be where the water can touch it. The placing of this bowl will call into use your artistic fancies; it may be surrounded upon a stand with earth and rocks, among which may be planted the drooping vines of the house plants and others that may suggest themselves, though not surrounded with plants so thickly as to darken the pool, for fish enjoy a little sunlight—but do not broil them.

SELECTION OF WATER PLANTS.
These can be procured from brooks and ponds near at hand. A good way to plant them is to tie a small pebble to the roots or base of stems and sink them below the surface of the bed. The arrangement of the plants should be made with regard to the best effect, the smallest plants being placed in front and the tallest in the center or at the back of the tank.

A tank of water-plants can be made quite as ornamental as a fernery, while the fish, snails and mussels prove very attractive to all beholders, old as well as young.

Among the best varieties of water-plants are: Arrowhead, a very common plant in brooks and creeks, which has white flowers with golden centers and arrowhead-shaped leaves; eel-grass is a very popular plant for aquaria, as its habitat is in slow-moving waters; waternymph, a slender, thread-like plant, with knot-like lobes ; water-feather, a lovely little plant, a gem for the aquarium; water-cress, water-millfoil. After all the plants are arranged, throw in a few lemna minor, or duckweeds, which are tiny, stemless, floating plants that harbor minute insects that are delicacies for the fish.

The plants should be planted in good soil, in saucers or similarly low dishes, then procure some coarse gravel, sand, fine sand, white gravel or pebble stones, a few common rough stones, and three or four larger ones, with which to construct a miniature arch, placing the closed ends of .the arch toward the ends of the tank, in order that the fish may not hide themselves beneath, as they will be sure to do. Place a layer of the coarse sand over the bottom, then the saucers containing the plants upon the sand; construct the arch firmly by the use of a little cement, and so arrange the balance of material that when finished the bottom will be one of apparent sand and gravel, with mounds, ridges, etc. A few small shells of the most ordinary kind will add to its picturesqueness.
The tank is now ready for the water. Fill about one-quarter full and let it stand for a day, then dip out a part of the water and replace with fresh. This treatment must be continued from day to day until the water in the tank shall be clear and clean; ordinary soft water—brook, spring or pure cistern—required. Fill the tank within about two inches of the top, and it is ready for the fish. The smaller they are the larger the number that may be put together.

SUITABLE FISH FOR WATER LIFE.
After the plants and rocks are arranged the former must have time to become accustomed to their new home before the fish are put in. A fortnight is none too long for the aquarium to remain tenantless. If a green film overspreads the glass it shows there are too many plants for the water, and they have had too much light, It is a good plan to paste thin green paper on all sides of the glass up to the water-line, excepting in front, even when the fish are put in, because it subdues the light, and gives the fish a more natural home, and makes it more healthful.
In selecting fishes for the aquarium, gold and silver fish will of course have the first choice, and after that the minnows. The beauty of these fish, their habits and the management they require are too well known for an extended notice in a necessarily brief article. The perch is a suitable fish for a fresh water aquarium, for a reason that may not be well known. It is one of the few fishes that may be trained, and made to show its docility by taking food from the fingers. The pike, which is the shark of fresh water, may be put into an aquarium with gold fish and perch, but not with other fishes. Even with the gold fish it is not fully to be trusted, as when hungry it has been known to eat its own species.

The trout is a handsome fish, with its crimson, spotted sides, but, like the pike, it must be well fed and kept away from smaller fishes. The eel may be used with safety—a small one, and frogs may be kept with larger fish.
The merot may also be added to the happy family, notwithstanding the antipathy against it on account of its resemblance to the lizard; it is perfectly harmless. During the breeding season it exhibits a variety of shining colors—orange, olive, green, with a mottling of brown and scarlet. The water spider is a curious insect, and, if possible, should be secured for the aquarium. It spends the greater part of its time beneath the water, coming to the surface to seize its prey, and to obtain a fresh supply of air for its sub-aquatic home. Reclining figures of plaster may be added, and if the tank be a large one, an artificial island of stones, mosses and ferns, with a siphon fountain, may be in the middle.

Feed your fish all the worms, meat or fish spawn that they will eat. Take great care to take all that they do not eat out of the aquarium; any decayed meat or vegetables in water have the same smell to fish that it has to you in the air. Two snails added will act as scavengers.

Do not handle the fish, but take them out with a net made of mosquito netting. An aquarium properly stocked and managed is hardly any trouble, and it affords a great deal of pleasure.

Never feed the fish crackers or other food, for it fills their gills and suffocates them. With the above hints, nearly every one can make a home for the fish and keep them, if they do not neglect them, for many years.
The best position for an aquarium is in a window looking towards the east, where it will not have more than two hours of the morning sun. If such a location cannot be given, put it in a southern window, but shade from the noonday sun. A western or northern aspect is never desirable for an aquarium. The temperature is also of importance. It should range from 45 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit. If the water becomes too warm the fish will die. If it freezes, the tank may burst.

CARE OF GOLD AND SILVER FISH.
Take a bell glass that will hold about two gallons of water , and set it into a box two feet long, twelve inches wide, and eight or ten inches high, or of any dimensions desired. Fill the box with a mixture of silver sand, leaf mold and earth, placing your inverted glass in the center of the box; around this place ferns and lycopodium; cover the box with glass, so that it will be nearly air-tight, to retain the moisture. The plants will require water about once a month; in the bell glass make a thick bed of sand, pebbles and small shells, and fill with perfectly pure water, and two gold fish or minnows, and a few aquatic plants, as they, under the action of the light, consume the carbonic acid gas given forth by the fish, and restore to the water the oxygen necessary to the maintenance of life. Snails are useful also to act as'scavengers to consume the vegetable matter thrown off by the plants, and render it unnecessary to change the water so frequently, which would otherwise become greenish and untransparent. A change once a week will keep the fish in good health ; but an aquarium fairly established with a proper proportion of plants and fish will preserve its healthfulness without change of water, more than to fill it upas the water evaporates. A still more desirable plan is to invert the bell glass in a thick block of wood, in any way that will hold it firmly; the block may be planted, and decorated according to taste, and may be made very ornamental; then for "stocking" follow the directions given above.

For a marine aquarium the "sea coast" affords many a "treasure trove," the sea anemones, those strange and fascinating existences, half fish and half blossom, may be found on the coast of Maine. Each shore has its specialty. The bay abounds in sea weeds of a lovely tint. while the beaches are rich in shells—all of which contribute to make an aquarium an object of interest and source of enjoyment. They should be kept in a cool place—never exposed to a burning sun or the heat of a fire. Too many should never be crowded into one glass. A few branches of box should be kept in the globe for them to rub against, which should be changed once a week. Many persons fancy that gold and silver fish need no food. It is true that they will subsist for a long time with nothing but-water when it is pure and frequently changed. They are best pleased with such diet as bread or biscuit; but these should be given sparingly, lest, turning sour, they corrupt the water. They will also feed on the aquatic plant called lemna, or duckweed, and also on small fry. Fine gravel should be strewed at the bottom of the vessel that contains the fish; and they should be fed on bread and gentles, and have their water frequently changed.
You can easily tell when a fish is falling off in his health by observing him frequently coming up to the surface of the water for air. This shows he has not sufficient power in his gills to extract the air from the water. He also looks dull, and his motions are languid; a hazy or cobwebby appearance likewise seems to envelop his body, and perhaps some of the scales will drop off. When a fish goes into this unhealthy state, he should be immediately removed from the others, who should have fresh water given them several days in succession. The best remedy for diseased fish is to put them into a pond for a few weeks; and it is especially necessary for female fish, which, if not so treated, frequently die for want of spawning. A fish is sometimes saved by being placed in a little artificial dam, made from some running stream in a garden, for two or three days; but their diseases are at all times very difficult to remedy. The best way is to prevent them by precautionary measures—plenty of room and pure water.

Crab Soup

I love making hearty soups and it's been fun going through some of the old cookbooks and finding different recipes. Here's some Crab soups. A different variation on seafood soups.

Crab Soup.
Boil a quart of milk, and thicken it with a table-spoon of flour, rolled in butter, pepper and salt. Boil and pick 8 crabs, and when the milk comes to a boil put in the crabs. Just before serving, stir in a cup of cream. Let the soup boil for 20 minutes after adding the crabs.
Source: The Queen of the Kitchen ©1874

CRAB SOUP.
Open and cleanse of the deadmen's fingers and sand, 18 young fat crabs, (raw), cut them into 4 parts and extract the meat from the crabs and the fat from the top of the shells; scald and skin 12 fine, ripe tomatoes; squeeze the pulp from the seeds and juice; chop fine; pour boiling water over seed and juice, and after straining it off, use to make the soup, adding more water, if required; stew in soup pot, one large onion and one clove of garlic in one spoonful of butter and two of lard; then put in tomatoes; after stewing a few minutes, add the meat from the claws, then the crabs, and lastly, the fat from the top shells; sift over it grated bread or crackers; season with salt, pepper, (black or cayenne) parsley, sweet marjoram, thyme, half teaspoonful of lemon juice and the peel of a lemon; pour in water in which seeds were scalded, and boil moderately for one hour. Firm and flaky fish prepared in the same way, make delicious soup. I use twelve good sized crabs, and think more lemon juice an improvement.
Source: The Creole Cookery Book ©1885

CRAB SOUP.
Three pints of milk to one dozen crabs, 3 pound ofbutter, in about a tablespoonful of flour. Let the milk boil, put in the crabs, picked, then the butter and flour. Season with pepper and salt If the crabs are large and fat, it will take two quarts of milk.
Source: 265 Choice Recipes ©1883

Crab Soup.
Pour large crabs, carefully picked in as large flakes as possible. The fat from the backs laid aside to mix with the butter. One quart of new milk, a "grate" or two of nutmeg, mace, a tea-spoonful of butter, salt, black and cayenne pepper. Mix the fat from the backs with the butter, and stir in. Simmer twenty minutes.
Cream is always an improvement, stirred in just before serving.
Three quarts of milk make a large tureen.
Crab Soup.
Boil one quart of milk, a small part of an onion, and a little parsley cut fine; then add the picked meat of six crabs. Boil five minutes. Rub a table-spoonful of flour with the same of butter; soften with the hot milk, and add half a pint of cream, one egg beaten up, salt and cayenne pepper. Boil for one moment before serving.
White Crab Soup.
Six crabs to a gallon of water. Crack the legs and the fins and put them in the water, with the fat from the backs. Season to your taste. While the above is boiling—say about an hour and a half—pick a plateful of the crabs, and, after draining off the water from the legs "and fins, put it back in the pot with the prepared crabs, and let it boil a full half hour. Pour a half pint of milk in the tureen, and serve.
Seasoning: A slice of fresh middling, pepper, and, if you like it, a little onion, quarter of a pound of butter, a small table-spoonful of flour rubbed in the butter.
Source: Fifty Years in a Maryland Kitchen ©1881

1884, 1885 & 1888 Furniture Window Valances

Below are various designs for Window Valances from 1884, 1885 & 1888 These came from "The Furniture Gazette." Below are two tidbits about Valances, from these your characters might decide which one they prefer.

Here's a short excerpt from 'An Encyclopedia of Domestic Economy' ©1855 about Valances.
Betides tie rod on which tht curtain slides, there is generally a piece of the tame material with the curtain, called a valance, suspended before it, to conceal the rod, and likewise the soffit, or under side, of the architrave. This valance gives great richness and finish to the window; but when the rooms are low, they should not be deep, as they then hide much of the light: on the contrary, when the windows are very lofty, they are often useful in moderating the too great glare of light. Valances are contrived in a vast variety of modes, on which depends, in a great measure, the style of the window. Sometimes they are made in the form of festoons, and are then, by upholsterers, termed draperies i the festoon itself is called the swag, and the end that hangs down is termed the tail: see fig. 164. These are frequently ornamented with hinges, tassels, and cords, in various ways. This, which is the former French style, was introduced some years ago, as being much richer and more elegant than ours; at present it Js less used, and what are called piped valances are more generally put up; these harbour less dust, from the folds being perpendicular. Lately, massive brass rods and large rings have been much in fashion; also, rich gilt cornices over the valances.

Here's another tidbit from "The Art of Furnishings on Rational and Aesthetic Principles." ©1881
The simpler and more natural a valance is the better.
Our own opinion is that it is seldom needed. A light brass pole again answers the purpose as an ornamental curtain rod. Cornices necessitate valances, and frequently bring the window into excessive prominence, and detach it from the rest of the walls in a manner injurious to the general effect.

1884

1885

1888
This next design comes from an 1888 copy of "The Furniture Gazette."