Kristin Holt's Blog, page 24

Victorian America’s Ice Delivery

Victorian Americans needed ice--for home use, through delivery businesses, on a commercial scale (to keep food from spoiling at the grocery and in railroad transportation). Ice houses were built all over the United States from the independent family's ice house on their property to the enormous commercial Swift & Co. Ice House storing 60,000 tons annually. Ice harvesting occurred in January and February and kept in storage facilities until the following winter by applying ingenuity, science, and hard work. Men used saws, horse-drawn sleighs, and the strength of their own backs to harvest the cash crop each winter. This article contains vintage photographs, newspaper ads, and science info of the Victorian era.

Victorian Refrigerators (a.k.a. Icebox)

Our Victorian American ancestors were inventive people. They needed a solution for perishable food in the worst of summer's heat (and beyond). They came up with a remarkably well-insulated icebox (officially called a refrigerator far earlier than you might guess), designed to be a beautiful piece of furniture and functional. Some iceboxes went so far as to serve the melted ice water by silver tap. This article contains Victorian instructions for care and cleaning of 19th century refrigerators, advertisements, a crime committed with an industrial-sized (believe it or not: a walk-in) refrigerator, current images of antique iceboxes (both family size and commercial size), the icebox's impact on beer, and so much more. Coming next, the business of ice harvesting, storage, and door-to-door delivery of ice all year long.

Screen Doors, a new invention!

Pop Quiz! Were screen doors (and window screens) invented BEFORE or AFTER 1870? Do you know?

This article includes images of the screen doors on historic homes (taken recently), images from Sears Roebuck & Co. Catalog and Montgomery Ward & Co. Catalog, as well as historical information about why and how screens were invented during the Victorian era, as well as a solid answer about whether these household basics were invented before or after 1870. The answer just might surprise you.

Pencil Skirts, Victorian Style

OBSERVATIONS: WIDTH OF A WOMAN'S SKIRT

The humor in a newspaper columnist's observations taught me plenty about a man's attitude regarding the width of women's skirts, comparing the tight fit of the day's fashions to the wrapping of a mummy or a soaked bathing suit clinging to the unfortunate woman's form. He infers that the pursuit of fashion is so all-important that the wearers sacrifice comfort, modesty, safety, decency, the capacity to go anywhere by both carriage or the power of one's own two feet. The Victorian humor in this brief piece published in 1875 is evident!

19th Century Bathing Costumes from Harper’s Bazaar

Harper's Bazar (also spelled 'Bazaar', later on) is a Ladies Magazine founded in the Victorian Era. This article highlights bathing costumes (swimming suits) featured in Harper's Bazar in the 1880s and 1890s.

Victorian Summer Resorts

The Victorian Era drew to a close in January, 1901 with the death of Queen Victoria. The newspaper article I share within this post comes from July, 1902 (technically the Edwardian Era), but society's expectations of table manners and propriety at a summer resort hadn't changed. This article covers a few of the many, many "Summer Resorts" in the Victorian-Era United States and touches on why these resorts were so loved.

Meet Utah Authors of Western Historical Romance

"Pioneer Hearts" may be a Facebook Group whose members are scattered throughout the United States--and worldwide--but we often meet in local gatherings. This post introduces the Utah contingent (with a Texan thrown in for good measure), with pictures taken at yesterday's get-together, links to each author's webpages and online presence, and more!

A Victorian Picnic Basket…worth $7.50? (And a peek inside Courting Miss Cartwright)

Picnics were a common and notable diversion for Victorian Americans whenever weather permitted. Schools, churches, families, and organizations hosted picnics. Reasons varied from welcome-home parties to gatherings to hear a speaker or minster to holiday celebrations. This article contains recommendations for preparing and transporting picnic foods properly, protecting young ladies from harm (let's keep those chaperones in place!), and a peek inside my new release Courting Miss Cartwright--specifically the picnic basket auction scene.

Book Birthday: Welcome, Cowboys & Calico (includes opening scene!)

It's Release Day! Cowboys & Calico, a Western Historical Romance Box Set is now available, exclusively for kindle, at 99-cents! This box set will be available for a very limited time, so grab your copy while you can. This title is also available as a FREE read with your kindleunlimited subscription.

This article presents the opening scene of my novella,  Courting Miss Cartwright, in whole. Enjoy this peek inside!

A Proper Victorian Courtship

The first spark of an idea for my new release (Courting Miss Cartwright) came from The Reverend George W. Hudson 1883 book: The Marriage Guide for Young Men: A Manual of Courtship and Marriage. While this "self help" book is now in the public domain, I don't quote the book directly; I used it as a springboard, a frame of reference, as the ideas, attitudes, and advice expressed within it are common within the latter Victorian-era. I share a segment of Hudson's book as this true-to-life argument for methodically choosing the right woman to fall in love with becomes a major part of my new novella. Courting Miss Cartwright will debut in three days (7-30-16) within the Western Historical Romance Boxed Set Cowboys & Calico.