Tag Archives: the domestic scene

Must Be True!

From the April 3, 1879 edition (although it might have fit nicely into the April 1st edition…):

From the dead

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Singular as this circumstance may seem, we are assured that it is true in every particular.”

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When Every Photograph Was Precious

daguerrotypes xxv March 19, 1903 v3Most of us have boxes (and hard drives) stuffed with images of our loved ones, so we tend to undervalue our photographs. This item from the “Household Matters” section of the March 19, 1903 edition of The Chatham Record hints at how novel and fragile these family images were to turn-of-the-century folks.

Bean There, Done That

coffee xxiii sept 13 1900 no 4From the September 13, 1900 edition:

How many of us secretly (or not so secretly) hold that we know the one true way to brew coffee properly? A short note in the September 13, 1900 edition of The Chatham Record indicates that this attitude has been with us for a while.

Household Hints

From an 1885 edition of The Chatham Record, these hints speak to the concerns of another era.  Kerosene spots just aren’t the problem these days that they used to be.  Not all of them are outdated, however.  The admonishment to “turn the children out into the sunshine to play,” for example, is as sound today as it was then.

All’s Well That Ends Well

From March 2, 1933:

Warm Weather Winners

The heat of summer is just beginning – why not try some of these refreshing beverages and tasty treats? The inspirational quotes are a bonus.

From the August 9th, 1916 edition of the Chatham Record:

Colonel Chatham on Men’s Fashion

Good ol’ gentleman Colonel Chatham joins us this week to opine on the trials of men’s fashion. Apparently at this point in time, men just had to wear too many clothes!

Well Colonel Chatham, you may not have had to suffer the horrors of high heels, but I see your point. Good thing the times have changed!

Cookies for a Rainy Day

As I write this on Saturday the 31st, Pittsboro is in the middle of a chilly, misty morning shadowed by a solid cover of gray clouds. Weather.com claims that the rain will be here all afternoon, bringing the month of March to a typical rainy close. What’s the perfect solution to a cool gloomy day? Warm oatmeal cookies, if you ask me. Next time a Spring shower falls on Chatham County, stay off the wet roads and spend the afternoon with this cookie recipe from 1961 (click for a larger image):

If you’re wondering about the “salad oil”, you can simply use vegetable oil or any bland-tasting oil that won’t interfere with the flavor of your cookies.

Attached to the cookie article is a report on forest fires from the year of 1960 showing the price of damages and the causes of fires. Next to it, you can get a glimpse of what the “personals” section was like in 1961!

Have a great week, Chatham, and stay dry!

Jelly, Inflation, and More Miraculous Medications

This little section from a 1937 issue of the Chatham Record contains several interesting tidbits. I love old recipes and cooking techniques, and the first thing you’ll notice about this excerpt is the article on troubleshooting your homemade jelly. I’ll admit that I’ve never made jelly at home, but this article sure makes it sound like an exact science! If you’re up for a new project and have never tried making jelly, this article should get you off to a good old-fashioned start. Click the article to see a larger version. (…more below the image)

I also found it fun and somewhat horrifying to read this list of grocery prices, though admittedly, a world in which ice cream costs twenty cents is not a world I need to live in. Also, don’t miss the advertisement in the bottom right – “Rub-My-Tism” is apparently the world’s best liniment!

Freedom for Women!

This advertisement in the Chatham Record from August 1937 calls for a very different brand of freedom and independence for women than we might be used to!

Thinking about the time period, I can see how all electric appliances would come as a relief for the career homemaker; and here I am, unable to live without my electric tea kettle. How spoiled we are now!