Kristin Holt's Blog, page 29

Victorian America Celebrates Easter

Nineteenth Century American Easter Celebrations are very much like those we experience now. This article covers a wide range of Victorian American observances from church services to Easter eggs (to the giving of eggs), ladies Easter Bonnets and new clothing for men. Easter parades, donation plates, and historical menus from newspapers of the era.

BOOK REVIEW: Object: Matrimony by Chris Enss

5 STARS!--what did Chris Enss do with this title to earn such a high rating? I explain why I read non-fiction books about the Old West, why I recommend them to readers of fiction, the particular value of OBJECT: MATRIMONY for readers of fiction.

Real Mail-Order Bride SUCCESS stories!

After a 12-part series consisting of lengthy blog posts covering many (but far from all) scams reported in Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride situations, is it possible to believe anyone found success in such a venture?
It's true! While happiness might not garner front-page news stories, happy mail-order bride marriages did occur--more often than they ended in disaster. This article contains six historically documented SUCCESS stories!

Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride SCAMS, Part 12

Flourishing in Our Midst are "Matrimonial Agencies" Which Seem to Need Attention:
Trysting Places for fools, Old and Young Which Can Be Dispensed With.
One Institution Investigated, the Vile Character of Which its Proprietors Do Not Deny.
The original newspaper article appeared in The Inter Ocean Newspaper, Chicago, Illinois, 28 August 1887.

Victorian America Celebrates St. Patrick’s Day

Our 19th Century (Victorian) American ancestors celebrated St. Patrick’s Day in many ways that mirror current / modern observations. The ‘holiday’ has morphed a bit, too, as is to be expected over a 150 to 100 year time span. Across the country–East to West, large cities to small villages–St. Patty’s tended to include (but not […]

Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride SCAMS, Part 11

A parade through historical newspapers taking a look at the wild and colorful history of one Charles H. Rowan, proprietor of a matrimonial agency in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the late 1890’s. He was accused, arrested, tried, found not-guilty, allegedly bribed government officials, retried… and the story doesn’t end there. Charles H. Rowan is in trouble, […]

Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride SCAMS, Part 10

One Chicago Matrimonial Bureau circulated the photograph of one miss to cowboys in the West, inferring an abundance of brides… Matrimonial Bureau run by a man named Chinn, accused of having purchased pictures of Actors and Actresses and passing them off as candidates for marriage. 40,000 Love Letters: Manager of a Matrimonial Bureau Slides Down […]

Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride SCAMS, part 9

The previous eight articles within the Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride SCAMS have illustrated various types of fraudulent methods, crimes, and the consequences. One common thread through all is the criminal’s intention to capitalize on their victims’ loneliness and desire for love and companionship. Some brides-elect and grooms-elect actually had their intellect about them enough to […]

Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride SCAMS, Part 8

My series of articles regarding mail-order bride scams in the United States, documented mostly in newspaper articles, continues: a murderer finds his victims through a matrimonial bureau; and two wealthy (and married) women entrap unsuspecting swains into expensive courtships, engagements, marriage– or close enough– broken hearts and shattered illusions. MURDERER USES MATRIMONIAL BUREAU TO GET […]

Nineteenth Century Mail-Order Bride SCAMS, Part 7

I‘m continually amazed at how easily “suckers” fell for the hook, line, and sinker scammers threw out to entrap the unsuspecting. This article covers a few short newspaper reports of circumstances wherein the honest fell for scams and ultimately paid plenty. Note: amateur historians will enjoy documentation of the term “sucker” as in ‘fool’ or […]