Wanting to do a seasonally-appropriate post on popular Victorian summer activities, I decided to take a look at the history of croquet. For a few decades, the game was undeniably the most popular pastime in both England and America. With an absence of socially acceptable mixed-gender activities, young people especially flocked to lawns to take [...]
Last week I wrote about Edwardian depictions of women and the threat that many men felt about women claiming more and more independence in the early 1900s. One of the common depictions was of a wife heading out of the house with the husband forced to stay at home and attend to the laundry. This, [...]
How Women Used Their Skirts to Smuggle Goods in the Victorian Era When I covered the rise and fall of the bustle in a post late last year, one of our readers brought up a good point. The extra space under the skirts of the popular dress styles of the mid to late 1800s would [...]
There are starting to be some warm days mixed in here and there with those that are still too chilly to enjoy being outdoors. Spring is upon us and the end of the frigid temperatures is in sight. In Victorian times, the end of winter meant that garden parties and picnics would soon be following, [...]
A few weeks ago I bought my first pair of snow boots and cannot believe the difference that they have made in my overall comfort this winter. I have recently moved to snowy Denver after five years in Australia and had to accept that my Converse Allstars aren’t really the best for walking around icy [...]
Theresa looked forward to attending the Colfax Annual Ice Cream Social with her grandmother each year. It was an opportunity for her to participate in this sweet treasured tradition, and it was held at the 1886 Victorian home known as the Perkins House. Theresa Fitzerald-Dale loved history and things of old since she was a [...]
Evergreen trees decorated with lights, garland, and ornaments have become a staple in most households that celebrate Christmas, however, these trees haven’t always been a symbol of the upcoming holiday. In fact, just like many aspects of Christmas, they have gained popularity since the Victorian era. Let's take a short look at the history of [...]
It has become the norm that when we travel from state to state we must factor in time zone changes and that there is a Sunday in the spring and in the fall when we change our clocks for Daylight Saving Time, but time has not always been this way. The Concept of Time Before [...]
Early Life Susan La Flesche Picotte was the first Native American female physician. She is remembered for breaking racial and gender barriers. Susan was born in 1865 in the Omaha Indian Reservation, daughter to Chief Joseph (called “Iron Eyes”) and Mary Gale (called “One Woman”). Both parents were of mixed race. The chief knew his tribe [...]