The Menagerie Or Animals In Very Small Cages
These photographs taken by an amateur photographer in 1901 show the Central Park Menagerie, more commonly known as the zoo. Continue reading
The New York City Zoo In 1901
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Category Archives: History
Woodlawn Cemetery Memorial Tells A Coney Island Story Of Unusual Death
Brighton Beach Lightning Strike Felt By Thousands, Kills Six – July 30, 1905
When walking through Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, you can come across fancy mausoleums and simple grave markers of the famous and infamous. F.W. Woolworth, Fiorello LaGuardia, Duke Ellington, Bat Masterson and Herman Melville are among the half million souls interred in this historic place.
Then out of the blue you may stumble across the lives of ordinary New Yorker’s memorialized in an extraordinary way. Such is the Demmerle monument.
Unlike many other tombstones which record a name and birth and death years with a short epitaph, the Demmerle memorial is an ornate series of carved monuments which tells and shows the story of one family’s tragedy.
Sunday July 30, 1905 started out as a beautiful, sun-filled, hot day Continue reading
150th Anniversary Of The New York City Draft Riots
July 13, 1863 The Civil War Draft Riots Begin + Related Book Recommendations
“The Battle in Second Avenue” from John Shea’s 1886 book, The Story of a Great Nation
If you’ve watched Martin Scorcese’s 2002 film The Gangs of New York, you saw a vivid depiction of what the Civil War Draft Riots may have looked like. In reality the tumult was probably a lot worse than what was portrayed on the screen. It was the most violent civil disorder in 19th century American history.
Protesting the conscription act, mobs of citizens went on a multi-day rampage of killing and looting. The riots were quelled after four or five days. The estimated number of people killed was 105. The number of injuries was in the hundreds.
In a November 26, 1938 New Yorker story, journalist Meyer Berger wrote about combing through the original blotters at the West Forty-Seventh Street Police Station. Berger came across the station’s last riot related arrest which occurred on July 30, 1863. Fergus Brennan, 35 was charged with being a leader of the rioters. He was held on $2,000 bail by Justice Kelly.
There are several books which cover the draft riots in detail. Among the best are: July 1863 by Irving Werstein (Julian Messner, 1957); The New York City Draft Riots by Iver Bernstein (Oxford University Press, 1990); The Second Rebellion by James McCague (Dial Press, 1968); The Devil’s Own Work The Civil War Draft Riots of 1863 by Barnet Schecter (Walker & Co., 2006) and The Armies of the Streets: The New York City Draft Riots of 1863 by Adrian Cook (University of Kentucky, 1974).
Things You Didn’t Know About The George Washington Bridge
The George Washington Bridge Was Going To Have Its Steel Towers Covered In Stone
The George Washington Bridge seen here during construction in 1930, was built from 1927 until 1931. Architect Cass Gilbert intended its towers to be sheathed in stone. Still visible on the towers are the hooks for which the stone was to be attached.
Proposed Original Design With Stone Arches
It was decided for practical reasons that the bridge towers did not need to be encased in stone. The Depression hit soon after construction started and the cost of procuring and installing the stone would have been prohibitive. The designers and builders reevaluated the whole look of the bridge and felt that there was a natural beauty in showing the function through the form of the exposed naked steel.
The bridge’s chief designer and engineer Othmar Ammann had incredible foresight. Though the bridge had only one level when originally constructed, the design he came up with allowed for the eventual addition of a lower level which was added in 1962. This increased the number of traffic lanes from eight to fourteen. Morning and evening rush hours can create delays of one hour or longer. Can you imagine what the delays would be like without the second deck?
12 other interesting facts about the George Washington Bridge:
1. When completed in 1931 the George Washington was the longest suspension bridge in the world. It was eventually displaced as the longest bridge by San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge in 1937.
2. The bridge was completed eight months ahead of schedule and under budget.
3. To finance the bridge, the states of New York and New Jersey each advanced $5 million and $50 million in bonds were issued.
4. Tolls were set to pay off the bonds, which would mature serially starting in 1953. It was assumed after paying off the bond holders, the tolls would eventually be reduced or even eliminated. (Hah!) Continue reading
Chart of The World’s Religions In 1890 – Over 100 Million Barbarians
In 1890, Almost 10% Of The World Contained “Nondescript Heathens”
Click to enlarge
This plucky statistic is from a chart entitled “Estimated Number of all Creeds” in S.T.W. Sandford and Sons Book Of Information published in 1890.
The 32 page booklet was given away by the company to promote their patent medicines. Dr. Samuel T.W. Sandford was made wealthy during the mid to late 19th century by selling his cure-all Dr. Sandford’s Liver Invigorator. The information is presented in almanac-like fashion, yet interspersed with advertising for Dr. Sandford’s products on practically every page. Most of the information presented is basic “did you know” material. But the chart caught my eye.
The world’s estimated 1.3 billion people are broken down as follows:
| Number of all people | Proportion to total Number percent | |
| Buddhists | 405,000,000 | 31.2 |
| Christians | 399,200,000 | 30.7 |
| Mahomedans | 204,200,000 | 15.8 |
| Brahamanists | 174,200,000 | 13.4 |
| Nondescript Heathens | 111,000,000 | 8.3 |
| Jews | 5,000,000 | 0.6 |
A 19th century Anglo-American viewpoint that over 100 million people could be described as “Nondescript Heathens” would not be considered anything out of the ordinary.
Vintage 1978 Yankees Schedule Including Ticket Prices And Other Surprises
A Nostalgic Look At The 1978 Yankees Schedule Handout
click to enlarge
I attended about 25 games in 1978 at Yankee Stadium. I was a young lad with a minimal allowance. So how could I afford it? Mostly I would buy general admission tickets. The cost, $2.50.
When I would splurge, about six times a year, I could buy a box seat for $6.50. Anywhere in the stadium. Field box, mezzanine, upper box, it didn’t matter, they were all available.
The Yankees drew over 50,000 fans 13 times during the year. Seven of the large crowd games were against the Red Sox. The average home attendance for the season was only 28,838.
I pulled this tri-fold schedule from my collection. The ticket prices are displayed below: Box Seats $6.50; Reserved Seats $5.00; General Admission $2.50 and Bleacher Seats $1.50.
click to enlarge
There are several other things to notice here. First the schedule itself. Continue reading
Before They Were Famous…
The 4 Nightingales – “Big Hit Everywhere”
This rare trade card from 1908 – 1909 advertises a vaudeville group known as “The Four Nightingales.” Two of them went on to worldwide fame. Can you guess who they are?
Scroll down for the answer.
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A huge clue is “Minnie Marx Manager”
It is The Marx Brothers. From left to right: Milton “Gummo” Marx, Adolph “Harpo” Marx, Julius “Groucho” Marx and Lou Levy.
Gummo Marx Continue reading
As President, Theodore Roosevelt Carried A Handgun
The 26th President Didn’t Take Chances In Public
Theodore Roosevelt said, “Speak softly and carry a big stick.”
Roosevelt however didn’t carry a stick, but a .45 caliber Colt revolver.
After William McKinley’s assassination in 1901, Roosevelt didn’t want to be at the mercy of some random shooter without the opportunity for self defense.
In Theodore Rex by Edmund Morris, Random House, 2001, Morris describes how Roosevelt shocked the president of Harvard, Dr. Charles William Eliot when Roosevelt was being awarded an honorary degree.
“Dr. Eliot escorted him (Roosevelt) to a guest suite to change, and watched with fascination as he tore off his coat and vest and slammed a large pistol on the dresser. Eliot asked if it was his habit to carry firearms. ‘Yes, when I am going into public places.'”
Morris also tells about Roosevelt vacationing at his home in Oyster Bay, NY during the summer of 1902:
“The sight of a gun butt protruding from the presidential trouser-seat caused some consternation in Christ Episcopal Church.”
Can you imagine President Obama carrying a handgun?
A Peculiar Kellogg’s Corn Flakes Ad 1907
Selling Cereal At The Turn Of The Century
The company was only one year old in 1907 when this advertisement appeared in print.
This advertisement was supposed to sell you on buying Kellogg’s Toasted Corn Flakes. By just looking at the ad you are probably not quite sure what the image means. Not “boy gets girl,” but “corn gets girl”? Maybe she has a case of lachanophilia?
There is an explanation.
Company founder Will Keith Kellogg (April 7, 1860 – October 6, 1951) made himself, his cereals and the city of Battle Creek, Michigan famous. Kellogg did this by producing a better breakfast product and a lot of advertising.
W.K. Kellogg’s education never went beyond the sixth grade, yet with his strange brother Dr. John Harvey Kellogg (he advocated sexual mutilation and eugenics among other things), they figured out how to make a tasty corn flake. In producing their cereal they used only the corn grit or “the sweet heart of the corn.” Continue reading
Beauties Of The Past – Annabelle Whitford
Annabelle Whitford Moore Buchan And The Original “Gibson Girl”
The epitome of feminine beauty at the turn of the century was captured in artist Charles Dana Gibson’s skillful drawings of women, that came to be known as “Gibson Girls.”
Annabelle Whitford was 15 years old when she achieved notoriety dancing at the Columbian World Exposition in Chicago in 1893. Annabelle appeared in movies performing her dances under the name Annabelle Moore from 1896 -1902. She went onto a successful stage career hitting the top as a star in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1908 playing one of the “Nell Brinkley Girls.” Brinkley (September 5, 1886 – October 21, 1944) was a female newspaper artist whose creations were very similar to the Gibson Girls. In 1910 Annabelle married Dr. Edward James Buchan and retired from performing.
In her obituary in the New York Times it was said Annabelle “was the symbol of beauty in her day. She was billed as ‘the original Gibson Girl’ because of her striking resemblance to the Charles Dana Gibson portrait.” The illustrations below are from Gibson’s 1902 book The Social Ladder.
