Post Desert

I don't know what's been going on lately but it seems like everyone has been taking a break from posting, including me. I don't know what it is. Maybe it's too hot or everyone's been too busy. I know I've been doing some kind of event every weekend and it's been crazy.

Andy and I have been going a lot of places that we haven't been to before. After 6 years of reenactments, we've decided to try do to some new events, non-reenactment events and places.

Obviously, we haven't left the hobby, but our schedules are now jam packed. We've definitely discovered some new things we'd like to do in the future.I'm looking forward to posting about some of the fun places we visit but my blogging habits have been terrible lately.

Blogger keeps making it harder and harder to post. I've hit my image max which means I have to host somewhere else and link to my images and has really been giving me problems with formatting to the extent that I dread trying to post things that I've written up. :( I know a lot of people hit their image max and switched to wordpress.

We'll see if some of these technical issues have been affecting other bloggers' will's to blog. I for one am grateful that blogger has let me post so long for free but a paid for site is not in my immediate future. I'll keep everyone updated if I decide to pick up and move to another host or domain but I'd rather not do that.

Has anyone else been having blogger formatting problems or image problems?

History Questions From Passion for the Past

This post is a response to Ken's post at Passion for the Past. Go on over and check his blog out if you haven't already.

 

How long have you into history?

-I have been into history since elementary school. I was really interested in ancient Egypt first. 

What got you into it?

-  I had a really cool Egyptian set when I was a kid that had stamps for Egyptian letters. My best friend and I used to write each other notes in “Egyptian.” We also played French Revolution (barricades, anyone?) and runaway slaves. I guess we were an eccentric duo.  

What was it that clicked inside your head that all of a sudden made you realize you had an obsession with the past?

-I loved historical fiction. I really wasn’t interested in fantasy books like most children. 

Do you only study a certain era in history or all eras?

- I am limited in my areas of history. American history is my favorite but history does not exist in a vacuum so American History is a world affair.  My favorite eras and places in order might surprise you:  Revolutionary War, French and Indian, Civil War, Ancient Egypt. Maybe not.

Do you only study American history or do you study world history?

-I’ve taken a good amount of classes on Chinese and Indian history as well but it’s not my focus.

Are you partial to daily life, politics, or wars of the past?

- I am one of those people who is happy that she gets to choose what historical period she wants to be in for a few days. However, if I had to pick another period to live in for one month, I would probably pick Colonial.

Whichever subject you chose (daily life, politics, or war), what interests you most about the chosen subject?

-Daily life of the average person is my favorite thing to study but I do believe that you need to study as many aspects of a time period as you can. These things didn’t exist independently of each other and we should work together with each other to help create a fuller picture of the past.  I force myself to read books on politics and military strategy. Surprisingly, as with most things, it gets more interesting the more I learn about it. 

How do you do your research? Do you look up information on the internet or stick with history books? If you research on the 'net, do you double or triple check the sources?

I read A LOT. I try to read everything I can about a subject that I am researching. I read current books, magazine articles, scholarly journals, newspapers ect. I ask more knowledgeable people to point me in the direction of sources. I check old archives. I read older books on the subject to see how historiography on the subject has changed. I collect primary accounts and secondary accounts from the period (it’s nice to know what people of the time thought about an event, even if they weren’t there or their information was not correct.) I make note of conflicting sources and try to factor out who is reliable and who isn’t. You would be surprised how misinformation spreads.  

If by book, do you read multiple books on the same subject? 

-I do read multiple books on the same subject but sometimes on related subjects too. For instance, if I am studying colonial cooking, I will also be studying economics and trade to see what exactly was available and at what prices. 

To what extent do you research? 

- Too much. I am a perpetual researcher and never get around to writing anything up. My perfect job would be assistant researcher, although I would love to be a writer. Maybe, someday.

If you reenact, why? What makes you want to put on period clothing and subject yourself to ridicule by family and friends and strangers?

-I reenact because it's fun. If it wasn't fun I wouldn't do it. I like to spend my weekends in the past because I am overcome with technology and modern work. It's nice to get a taste of historical work (working together at home with family and friends.) I like teaching about the period but I like creating a different world for people to get lost in, more. I kind of like the strange literary "gypsy," caravan-style meetings. All reenactors have friends all over the country and we all drive far distances to meet up with our friends and build a town for a weekend. Then we don't see each other until the next meet up, sometimes we only see certain friends once a year. If you go to an event where you don't know anyone, you are almost certain to know someone who knows someone you know. :)

Is dressing in period clothing a want or a need?  

- I think it’s still a want at this point. It is definitely a preference over modern clothes. I feel pretty in dresses, even my dirty Civil War dress. Modern clothing clings to every body flaw. In the past, you could achieve an attractive “shape” regardless of what your body shape was.   

How do you feel while wearing accurate period clothing?

- I feel “at home.” I do wear a Colonial dress 5 days a week in the summer so maybe it’s from that. I feel most at home in a corset. It just makes everything feel very secure and covered.  

How long have you been doing living history?

- Well if you count those years of pretending as a small child, then for a very long time. I did come Colonial living history with a homeschooled family when I was in 7^th grade.  I didn’t reenact until I was in college because my family wasn’t really interested in history at all. I had to go to reenactments by myself. I've been reenacting the Civil War Era for 6 years.

To what extent do you portray one from the past: mainstream, progressive, or hardcore? 

- I am a happy mainstreamer. I am always trying to improve but I am also poor and frugal. My kit is limited but quality. I frequently do without than to do incorrect. I am far from a hardcore, though.  

Do you believe in time-travel?

- I wish it was possible, but I do not think it is possible in the way we want it. I mean, I think Einstein had a theory and I’m with Einstein. But I don’t think that would put us in a world of the past.

Actual time-travel or mind-travel?

-I do love mind-travel. I think the world needs more mind-travel and the best place to get it is from living histories and books.

Have you ever experienced "seeing the elephant" while reenacting, whether soldier or civilian?
In other words, have you ever felt you were "there"?

-Yes.  Every time I can’t go to the ball because I don’t have a nice dress. I sit in my tent and mope and girls put on their beautiful silks and I’m stuck in my grease covered work dress.

How do you feel upon entering a period home?

- When I enter a period home I feel like I want to build my own. I love a house where you can fix things yourself. Historical homes make me relaxed. There isn’t the background noise like in a modern house: no toilets flushing, no air conditioner running in the back, no hard drives buzzing or refrigerators running. It’s glorious.   

Does the feeling change when entering said home while in period clothing?

-When I enter a period house in period clothing I feel like I am a part of the house.  The house is another world and I am just the ambiance.  

Head over to Ken's blog and leave your answers there. The photo above was taken by my friend and fellow blogger Jeff at Dispatches from Company Q. 

Cupping, Bleeding, Leeching and Tooth Extracting...

Just some of the many services your 1850s barber could supply.

Today's post is brought to you by the shot that I have to receive today at 8:30 AM. I am very scared of needles. They gross me out like you wouldn't believe. I would much rather undergo cupping, bleeding or leeching rather than have a needle stuck in me. Yes, I know needles don't hurt and that this is an irrational fear, but I really dislike the thought of having a needle anywhere near me. It's very unnatural and if I wasn't bullied into getting one, I never would. 

Wednesday, I had to race from work to the doctors to get a test done for school which required the unnatural puncturing of my arm and the insertion of a needle filled with a foreign substance. As I sat in the chair, I asked my companion to take note of how similar the chair I was sitting in was like the ones used for lethal injection. He told me he could strap me down if I wanted. I politely declined, but it would have made it easier on the nurses.

Credit: http://www.burnsarchive.com

As I was sitting there, one nurse came in and called their new nurse.

"This is as good of a time as any. You have to learn how to do this eventually,"she held the needle up and flicked it a few times.

The new nurse astutely replied "This probably isn't the patient to try on." :)

She was right.

After some back and forth between the two of them, the more seasoned nurse had a go and after 30 seconds it was finished and I was thoroughly grossed out for the rest of the day. Unfortunately, they ran out of another shot that I "need" and I have to go back today. I bet those nurses are looking forward to the grown-up-woman-who-acts-like-a-child-near-needles. I'll know I'm an office attraction if other nurses pop in for random items like toothpicks or something. :)

By the 1850s, bloodletting was losing favor but was still an acceptable part of the medical field. Cupping, while lesser known, was at its medical height in the West.  Physicians would heat small glass cups and place them on the skin to create a vacuum, which drew blood to the area to form a blister.   

This painful procedure was performed during the Civil War on Sarah Morgan, a wealthy refugee from Baton Rouge after a wagon accident left her unable to walk. She described the experience in her journal, which has recently been published as “The Civil War Diary of a Southern Woman,” as follows:

“I was interrupted yesterday morning by Mrs Badger who wished to apply a few dry cups to my back, to which I quietly submitted, and was unable to move afterwards with[out] pain, as a reward for my patience.”  

When the doctor visited her later, she wrote of the pain she experienced, the large amount of blood lost and the reactions of her sister and friends during another cupping procedure. "two dozen shining, cutting teeth were buried in my flesh....Then came the great cups over the cuts that I thought loosened the roots of my teeth with their tremendous suction power, and which I dare say pulled my hair in at least a foot."

I guess I'll just bite the bullet and get my shot. :( "Bite the bullet?" That's a post for another day.

Predicting the Weather 18th Century Style

In the 18^th century, families relied on almanacs to help them make many weather and seasonal decisions, such as when they should plant their crops or travel. However, almanacs only gave a long-term idea of what the weather might be based on weather in the past. If someone wanted an immediate weather forecast, weather accounts and “indicator 
journals,” which used observations of nature, were prolific.   

Are these weather indicators old wives tales or were 18^th century weather enthusiasts on to something?

Some 18^th century weather predictors:

Rain

-"You May expect some Rain, or Snow, according to Season of the Year, either on the third or fourth Day before, or on the third or fourth Day after every Change or Full of the Moon, in the whole Year; as also, at or near the Time when the Moon enters every first or last Quarter."

-"If there appear a Circle about the Moon, you may expect stormy Weather to follow shortly after."

-"If the Moon change on a Sunday, it is almost a certain Sign of a Flood before the next new Moon."

-"If the Sun set under a thick black Cloud, it is almost a sure Sign of some Rain the next Day."

-"If a Rainbow appear in the Morning, it is a Sign, for the most Part, of several Showers of Rain before Night."

-"When the Wind keeps varying much, from one Quarter to another, you may expect Rain in twenty-four Hours."

-"If there be no Dew in a still Summer's Morning you may expect Rain before Night, sometimes before Noon."

-"If the Smoke from the Chimnies, instead of ascending, fall to the Ground; you may expect Rain within twenty-four Hours, frequently sooner. [1]

-"The Crows flocking together in large Flights, holding their Heads upward as they fly, and crying louder than usual, is a Sign of Rain, as is also their stalking by Rivers and Ponds, and sprinkling themselves."

-"When Sheep leap mightily, and push at one another with their heads [it indicates rain.]"

-"When Cats rub their Heads with their Forepaws (especially that Part of their Heads above their Ears) and lick their Bodies with their Tongues[it indicates rain.]"[2]

-"It has been the Observation of those that have had many Years Experience of the Weather, That when the Wind in the Summer Time has been South 2 or 3 Days, and it grows very Hot, and when you see Clouds arise with great white Tops like Towers, as if one cloud were on the Top of another, and join'd together with Black on the nether Side, that then it is like to be Thunder and Rain suddenly in many Places." [3]

Sunny or Hot Weather

-"If the Clouds appear of a scarlet Red at or near the Setting of the Sun, it is a sure Sign of fair Weather..."

-"In a hazy Summer's Morning, when you see many Spider-webs upon the Grass, Trees, &c. you may expect it will clear up, and be hot, in general, before twelve o'Clock."

-"I have observ'd that many, if not most of 'em do expand their Flowers and Down in Warm Sun-shiny Weather, and again close them towards Evening, or in Rain, especially at the Beginning of Flowering, when the Seed is young and tender, It is manifest in the Down of the Dandelion..." [4]

Snow

 

-"If the Mist [in the mornings] continues many Days, as it frequently does in November and December, I think it is a sure Sign of much Rain or Snow falling in the Winter." 

-"Clouds like Woolly Fleeces appearing high and moving heavily; the Middle a Darkish Pale, and the Edges White, carry Snow in them..." [5]

I think I'll go outside and check the "down" of my dandelions. I knew I was growing them for some reason. :) 

---

[1] Allen Hall, Observations on the Weather (Lincoln: Drury's Office, 1788), 10-21.

[2] John Pointer, A Rational Account of the Weather: Shewing the Signs of its several Changes and Alterations, together with the Philosophical Reasons of them (Oxford:S. Wilmot, 1723), 3-5.

[3] Pointer, A Rational Account, 35.

[4]  Hall, Observations on the Weather, 13-21.

[5] Pointer, A Rational Account, 37.

Pocketbook Pattern from Godey's Lady's Book, 1862

Uh oh! I have seen to have hit my image max on my blogger account and I can't add anymore photos until I upgrade to a paid account which would cost $30 per year. I love blogging, but it is just a hobby for me. I am certainly not willing to pay money for a blog that makes me $0.00 in profit. I won't be going anywhere, but I'm experimenting with different, free ways to get my photos up here.

In the meantime, please take a look at this tiny pocketbook from Godey's Lady's Book. A the image suggests, it is to be made in velvet or leather and includes two small pockets and a change pouch. The total pocketbook only measures 5 x 8cm when it is completed.

I can't for the life of me figure out what the middle "holder" and "strap is for. My best guess is a skeleton key possibly. Maybe one of my readers knows or has a different guess. If I made this, I would probably put a few pencil ends in there, so I have them when I need them.

This could easily be enlarged or adapted to make a "housewife," or sewing kit for soldiers. I diagrammed the pocketbook out below. It's a pretty straightforward pattern. I recommend using some thick fabric and stiffener under the "fashion fabric" to give it a sturdy shape and a good base for embroidery or beading.

The pieces are cut out and the raw edges are bound with tape. These were popular embroidery items due to their small size. A great collection of purses for inspiration can be found at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Most of these purses are from the 1700s but they are so gorgeous!