Blog Content
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Soda Fountains
May 13
You may think your ancestors who lived in the 1940s and 1950s were the only ones to visit their local soda fountains but these popular establishments date back much earlier. Back at the turn of the 20th century local pharmacies were adding a section to their business that would be the local soda fountain. This was due to the new popular drink, coc...
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MyHeritage Acquired by Francisco Partners
May 13
MyHeritage announced that it has been acquired by Francisco Partners, a leading global investment firm that specializes in partnering with technology businesses. Gilad Japhet, Founder and CEO of MyHeritage, will continue to lead their excellent and dedicated team as they create new and exciting ways for people to learn about their origins. ...
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Some Dangerous Items of Your Ancestors
May 11
With many health and safety standards in place today in the 21st century, it is only due to the struggles and dangers our ancestors suffered with new manufacturing, technology and chemistry decades ago. Our ancestors were offered new consumer products with little or no testing of their safety on humans. They instead had to learn firsthand if so...
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23andMe Explains the Genetics of Allergies
May 11
23andMe highlighted two studies that might explain why some people suffer from allergies every spring. The studies found information about allergies that may surprise you! According to the Mayo Clinic, an allergy starts when your immune system mistakes a normally harmless substance for a dangerous invader. The immune system then produces an...
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Jello – Everyone Once Loved
May 9
Oh, the familiar Jell-O brand of gelatin. Everyone remembers Jell-O. But the idea of gelatin food items goes back to the Middle Ages in Europe. Gelatin was made from collagen, created by melting and filtering of pigs' ears and feet. Back then it was not an easy process, needed special equipment to heat, store and cool the gelatin. The finished gel...
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The Family History Guide – USA
May 7
Compared to years ago, there are many online databases and resources you can start or continue your family genealogical research. Never leave out getting copies of documents from city/county/state archives and courthouses and documents from the federal level. One very good source that has put many of the online resources at your fingertips is '...
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Students Took Photos of Gravestones for BillionGraves
May 6
Students from Siskiyou County in the Mount Shasta ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints took photos of gravestones at the Mount Shasta Memorial Park cemetery. The photos were for BillionGraves, and the students took and uploaded nearly 1,000 photographs. BillionGraves states that it is the largest resource for searchable G...
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Early Chairs for the Handicapped
May 5
The modern use of wheelchairs and walkers has helped many people over the last 80 years but no such items existed in the 1800s and early 20th century. If someone in the 1800s was sick or disabled they either stayed in bed or a stationary chair. There were some chairs affixed to carts that were then pulled by another person to transport a person...
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Ancestry Launches Community Impact Program
May 4
Ancestry announced the launch of its new Community Impact Program, which aims to mobilize Ancestry resources and products to build more connected and resilient communities through preserving at-risk history and empowering the next generation of history makers. For nearly a decade, Ancestry has offered access to historical record collections...
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Rose Tipped Cigarettes
May 3
As most of us do have ancestors who smoked cigarettes during their life time, mostly at their height of the 1920s to the 1970s. Of course as with any product companies produced all types and items to sell that went with that product. Cigarette holders, those long sticks in which the cigarette was placed, also considered a fashion accessory. They w...
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Spittoons
May 1
Now this item – a spittoon or cuspidor, you may or not be aware of. Yet for decades it was a necessary item in all types of locations – in homes or businesses. They were used as a disposal location for tobacco-laced saliva. Yes, many men in the 1700s into the early 20th century, chewed tobacco. The person didn't swallow the tobacco but rather ...
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Tradition of Pearls
Apr 29
You just might have a family heirloom of a pearl necklace, ring, earrings or pin. Pearls have been a favorite for hundreds of years and they are still popular. Years ago, since it could be hard to locate perfect ones, pearls could be very expensive. With newer methods of producing pearls ( pearl farms), they are more available to the middle class....
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Penny Restaurants of the 1930s
Apr 27
Even during the lean years of the 1930s with the Great Depression, no jobs, weather disasters, and poor living conditions, a decent meal in a diner might cost 15 to 40 cents, depending on what was ordered. However, another type of restaurant or diner developed, known as the 'Penny Restaurant'. This was no a new idea, in other times of a down econo...
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Pink for Girls
Apr 25
Girls dressed in the pink color may be thought to be a natural but not always. Going to the 1700s and early 1800s, the masculine color was pink in order to grow into a more manly individual later in life, while girls should be dressed in a more feminine alternative like blue. Then go to 1900 and a little earlier for your great-great grandmothers a...
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Images Available Online with Smithsonian
Apr 23
An often overlooked resource is with America's Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D. C. What is very special is the recent release into the public domain some 2.8 million images with their program 'Smithsonian Open Access'. Free to anyone are nearly 3 million images that you can download and use however you select. These come from the Smithsonian's...
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