1900s
Essay on Silence
Essay on Silence, authored by Fra Elbertus (pen name of Elbert Hubbard) was published by the Roycroft Press in 1905. It consisted of 40 blank pages, bound in leather with a spine printed in gilt. As such it belongs to the genre of empty books.
image source: Specific Object
Wikipedia notes that most empty books are published as political satires. For example, one of the earliest examples of the genre was The Political Achievements of the Earl of Dalkeith, consisting of 32 bound, blank pages. Hubbard's book seems to be the earliest, non-political example of the genre.
A 1905 first edition of the Essay on Silence will cost you $125. But there were various reprints published over the years, which are cheaper. Some of the reprints included a four-page, blank text insert titled, "The Essay on Silence Revised Edition with Corrections and Emendations to Date."
Incidentally, Elbert Hubbard is rumored to be the uncle of L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology. At least, L. Ron Hubbard claimed this to be so. But Elbert Hubbard's followers disagree, arguing that "L. Ron Hubbard was known to elaborate on his background, and it is said he used the popularity of Elbert’s name to promote his own causes."
Posted By: Alex - Mon Jan 25, 2021 -
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Category: Books, 1900s
Kiss Me
The urge to prank is eternal.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Jan 16, 2021 -
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Category: 1900s, Pranks
The Tramp’s Unexpected Skate
Posted By: Paul - Wed Nov 04, 2020 -
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Category: Bums, Hobos, Tramps, Beggars, Panhandlers and Other Streetpeople, Juvenile Delinquency, 1900s
The Gordon Sisters Boxing
Posted By: Paul - Sun Oct 04, 2020 -
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Category: Martial Arts, 1900s, Women
Birth of the Pearl
Posted By: Paul - Sat Sep 19, 2020 -
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Category: Movies, Sexuality, Myths and Fairytales, 1900s, Women
Rescued by Rover
The first film to star a dog.
And the first to pay its actors!
Posted By: Paul - Tue Sep 01, 2020 -
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Category: Movies, World Records, Dogs, 1900s
Mystery Gadget 87
This device measures something. What?
The answer is here.
Or after the jump.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Paul - Wed Aug 19, 2020 -
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Category: Technology, 1900s
S. P. Dinsmoor’s Garden of Eden
The oldest surviving outsider art installation in the USA.Home page.
Creator's Wikipedia entry.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Aug 16, 2020 -
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Category: Art, Outsider Art, Statues and Monuments, Regionalism, 1900s
The 1902 penny craze
Sometime in late 1902, a rumor began to circulate that a worker at the mint, while making the 1902 pennies, had accidentally dropped a bar of gold into the copper. As a result, the 1902 pennies were worth more than a penny. The treasury would supposedly pay up to 18 cents for each penny. So people began frantically hoarding and stockpiling the 1902 pennies.Despite frequent denials by the treasury, the rumor persisted as late as the 1960s.
There are different theories about how the rumor began. The article below attributed it to a Brooklyn school superintendent. Another theory, offered over at coinbooks.org, said that it started as a joke told by a fish dealer named Alvah W. Haff:
On January 29, 1903, Mr. Haff bought 3,000 copper pennies from the bank. Someone who witnessed the transaction commented on the strange occurrence, and Mr. Haff jokingly explained that he was going to take the coins and get the gold out of them.
The story spread like wild fire and people began hoarding 1902 pennies.
The Formoso New Era - Dec 11, 1903
The Spokane Spokesman-Review - July 12, 1961
Posted By: Alex - Fri Jul 10, 2020 -
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Category: Confusion, Misunderstanding, and Incomprehension, Money, 1900s
Danderine Grows Hair
As far as I know, Jeanette Wallace's only claim to fame was appearing in an ad for Danderine Hair-Growing Remedy. The ad ran in numerous magazines and newspapers between 1906 and 1908.She claimed that Danderine made her hair "fairly crawl out of my scalp"... which sounds like it could be the premise for a horror story.
Incidentally, according to Google maps, her address in New York is now occupied by a noodle shop.
Posted By: Alex - Wed Jul 08, 2020 -
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Category: Patent Medicines, Nostrums and Snake Oil, 1900s, Hair and Hairstyling
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