ancestors

  • Flame Glass

    Feb 5

    Over the decades there have been many different types of decorative glass pieces, many handed down in the families. One other type is known as 'Flame Glass.' They were tall vases in vibrant colors, oddly shaped ashtrays, and exotic-looking bottles and vases. Flame glass was popular in the 1960s with its unique designs. The pieces often blended ...

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  • Advice to Newlyweds in the Early 1900s

    Feb 3

    If you had grandparents or great grandparents (also aunts-uncles and great aunts and uncles) who married around 1900 (1895-1910) it appears man needed some guidance about being newly married. Here are some of the advice suggested to newlyweds in and around the early 1900s. It appears young ladies and men who had never married before had no e...

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  • Wizard of OZ

    Feb 1

    The book first in 1900 “The Wonderful World of Oz” and later the 1939 movie, “The Wizard of Oz” are treasured by young and old. Your ancestors for sure have watched the movie more than once. Here are a few interesting backstory items about the making of the book. The book was written by L. Frank Baum, first living in Aberdeen, South Dak...

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  • Toys of the 1950s

    Jan 31

    It was said that children of the 1950s were spoiled, parents getting them anything they wanted, especially if it was featured on TV, in a comic book or in the stores. Here is a sampling of the toys of the 1950s that you had, our your children, maybe even your grandparents. Make note, it was part of their childhood. 'Mr. Potato Head' was very...

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  • Popularity of Bicycles

    Jan 27

    The bicycle first gained mass popularity in the 1890s, when the “safety” bicycle replaced its perilous, giant-wheeled predecessor. While automobiles gave bicycles strong competition, manufacturers quickly pivoted and began making children’s bicycles after the end of World War I (about 1919). Schwinn’s balloon-tired Excelsior model debut...

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  • New Items First Shown in 1893 World’s Fair

    Jan 25

    The early World Fairs have been placed to showcase the newest innovations and inventions to all audiences. There was always a variety of the newest foods, items, fun activities, etc to interest the public. This was especially true of the 1893 Fair held in Chicago, often referred to as the fair that changed America. Some 27 million people attended,...

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  • Toilets in the Basement

    Jan 23

    You just might recall seeing in a relative's older home, in the basement, a toilet, all be itself, no walls around it, no sink, just the toilet. Such basement toilets have gotten the name 'Pittsburgh Potties.' Some were placed in homes of families living in western Pennsylvania. It was thought that Pittsburgh known as the 'Steel City' that workers...

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  • Unusual Features of Old Homes

    Jan 17

    You may have grown up in a vintage older home that had special features not found in more modern homes. Here are some examples, see if you or your parents or other relatives had such touches in their homes. In the early decades of the 20th century, a special new feature was to have a telephone. But built into the home then was a Telephone Nook,...

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  • Fruit Fashions of the Early 1960s

    Jan 15

    It was in the early 1940s that the singer, dancer, actress, Carmen Miranda made waves with her fruit cap piled high with berries and bananas in the musical 'The Gang’s All Here' and it later became her trademark costume. But in the early 1960s, fashion designers, started by Charles W. Davis, began creating lady's dresses, jewelry and hats wit...

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  • Polly Pocket Toy

    Jan 13

    The original tiny sets of Polly Pocket Toys were sold for less than a decade, first licensed by small toy company Bluebird in England. The Bluebird company was founded in 1980 with toy creator Torquil Norman’s genius ideas, the first of which was the plastic lunchbox. The first Polly Pocket was created by Chris Wiggs for his young daughter out o...

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