A Bilingual Guide; Your Great Great Grandmother Spoke Civil War

JPK Huson 1863

Brev. Brig. Gen'l
Joined
Feb 14, 2012
Location
Central Pennsylvania
pigs lard.jpg

From LoC, any self respecting ad agency may now quit. Delightful? Fewer and fewer of us will recognize what on earth ' lard ' may be, much less ' refined lard '- or its genesis. Or uses. Our ancestors knew and this ad would have sold Fairbanks by the 20 pound block.

CWT needs a light-ish thread. Chellers would have liked this anyway, and maybe added something 'Texas'. There's always more in Texas.

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It's a lovely poem, from a collection for women in Godey's- " zephyrs " being gentle breezes although NYPL offers us this from the 18th century. " Terpsishore "? Spell check hates it but perhaps out grgrgrandmothers knew?
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She does seem breeze-ish?

Reading Godey's, Demorest's, era ladies' companion guides and heck, advertisements for a plethora of feminine wants, needs and pleasures it occurred to me our ancestors understood what amounted a whole, ' nother language. Well, our ancestors made use of more words regardless. It can sometimes be difficult to differentiate, when made-up term entered the daily fray.

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So... what is a chatelaine? Besides pretty, it transpires it fastened onto one's bosom, on a button, and carried one's glasses, spare change- pepper spray, you know, things to keep handy. You could make it yourself if you knew what passementerie cord may be.

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" Vermifuge ". Something one employs when afflicted with er, worms.

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" Imperatrice Porte-Montre ", an " appendage to a bed ". From Godey's, listed as a delightful gift, if someone could please explain what one does it with, would love to know?

How exhausting for our ancestors.

Without plumbing, there was a certain need to dress up things a trifle- any of ancestors would have recognized this attempt.
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Isn't it awesome? I say bring these back! Beats cold plastic lids.

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Have ox-gall, will write

what ad ox bitters.jpg

??? Oxegenated Bitters are advertised everywhere, but what in blazes were they?

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One of Godey's slightly terrifying pen wipers- pre ball point, you couldn't wipe your ink on your dress, whn quills beaded up, could you?

SO out of time- a sampling among dozens saved. Feel free to ad words, deeds, furniture- in aid of becoming confusingly bilingual, like our era ancestors.
 
A chatelaine in times past would have had your scissors on a ribbon, needle case, smelling salts and prbably the key to the spice cabinet. As well as any keys to your dwelling you might have. Oh, and your fan on a cord too.

A great deal of the patent medicine of the time period contained alot of alcohol, because it’s easy to distill herbs in it..vinegar too. Bitters indeed!
 
I have several pieces. Inherited from my Grandma. Mom liked it too. One of my favorites is a candy dish. Also I collect the old fashioned shoes and have 2 in milk glass. They all wrapped and packed now. Just hope movers don't break anything.
I have pink depression glass in my collection. Inherited from my grandmother. One piece of carnival glass, “Feathered Serpant”. It’s so ugly, I had to keep it. Lol! I used to go to a big depression glass show every year with my inlaws. I still wish I had bought another fireking green cereal bowl. They are just the right size.
 
When my mother made pie crust, she used lard as the shortening. IMHO, it still makes the best pie crust, although it's a saturated fat bomb. However, it's less harmful--and makes better crust--then the more popular trans-fat shortening. I rarely make pie any more and use monounsaturated cooking oil when I do.

You can still buy toilet lid covers, made of the same fabric as the bathroom rug or bathmat. Not at all fancy, though! Here's one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0721K2C4D/?tag=civilwartalkc-20 I gave up using them when I recently bought oak toilet seats.

A chatelaine was originally the mistress of a chateau (castle), and she would have lots of keys (can't manage a chateau without 'em!) which were kept on a hook device that also became known as a chatelaine. Passementerie, per wikipedia (I had to look that one up), "is the art of making elaborate trimmings or edgings (in French, passements) of applied braid, gold or silver cord, embroidery, colored silk, or beads for clothing or furnishings." Or, of course, chatelaines!
 
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When my mother made pie crust, she used lard as the shortening. IMHO, it still makes the best pie crust, although it's a saturated fat bomb. However, it's less harmful--and makes better crust--then the more popular trans-fat shortening. I rarely make pie any more and use monounsaturated cooking oil when I do.

You can still buy toilet lid covers, made of the same fabric as the bathroom rug or bathmat. Not at all fancy, though! Here's one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0721K2C4D/?tag=civilwartalkc-20 I gave up using them when I recently bought oak toilet seats.

A chatelaine was originally the mistress of a chateau (castle), and she would have lots of keys (can't manage a chateau without 'em!) which were kept on a hook device that also became known as a chatelaine. Passementerie, per wikipedia (I had to look that one up), "is the art of making elaborate trimmings or edgings (in French, passements) of applied braid, gold or silver cord, embroidery, colored silk, or beads for clothing or furnishings." Or, of course, chatelaines!


This is wonderful, thank you! Yes, Dad remembered during the Depression butter was replaced by ( iew ) lard, which you colored yellow- came with packets containing dye. Guessing it helped fool your head but wow! What an awful piece of toast.

I was thinking these seat covers over those round, wooden circle covers, in outhouses would be the purpose here. Well heck, both types would be. Had no idea people still used them- remember some from years ago. There's only so much you can do with this particular object, be it plastic and porcelain or wood. Remember those crocheted poodles sitting on the tank, gosh, back in the 70's? You could swear they were hiding toilet paper.... :angel:

Knew I'd bumped into ' chatelaine ' somewhere, although with only a vague idea of purpose, thank you! It makes some sense now!
 
It is to hold your watch at night so you can access it easily, and so no one can steal it whilst you sleep?


Ah! A handy 'bedside table', as it were, excellent guess. Makes more sense the longer I think about it NL- and honestly, someone should bring these back. Could use it for any item. If I knock over the water one, more time groping for the phone I'm giving up sleep.
 
Ah, toilet cushions!
Had several Aunts that had lavishly decorated powder rooms! It was a sure source of status and pride for some!
Was always told when I went in to use the facility:
"Do not touch anything!"
:unsure:


' Powder rooms '! Thank you! Yes, and ' lady's room ', little girl's room '. rest room '- maybe ' bathroom ', if you wished to be scolded. It's hysterical, still cannot bring myself to say anything else. No judgment here, just had your aunts and mother, that's all.

Also was a large idiot. The ' don't touch anything '? Left me with this awful impression that no matter how full of frills, frou frou and loveliness was someone's powder room, it had to have been a festering hot bed for every variety of deadly germ. Teenager before the coin dropped.
 
A chatelaine in times past would have had your scissors on a ribbon, needle case, smelling salts and prbably the key to the spice cabinet. As well as any keys to your dwelling you might have. Oh, and your fan on a cord too.

A great deal of the patent medicine of the time period contained alot of alcohol, because it’s easy to distill herbs in it..vinegar too. Bitters indeed!


You're all so interesting, find myself replying to all these posts and cluttering up the thread- now some of those post war photos make sense? You've seen them. Matrons who seem just festooned with ' things ' draped, pinned and cluttering the necklines of their dresses?

I have several pieces. Inherited from my Grandma. Mom liked it too. One of my favorites is a candy dish. Also I collect the old fashioned shoes and have 2 in milk glass. They all wrapped and packed now. Just hope movers don't break anything.


Try not to add to your stress by worrying about your treasures, Donna! I know there are some horror stories out there but honest, bet a gazillion bucks it'll be fine. Keep looking at this set of Mom's, ridiculously fragile old Steuben- darn thing has been packed up and moved from New York to Virginia, back to New York, down to PA and within PA, twice. Not a crack. Movers must be awfully aware of treasures, too.
 
Oops, sorry, veered off into the 21st century with the previous. Mea culpa! Of course, you could use a period-correct water bottle! I found that the Mason jar was created in 1858. The current lid system with a separate ring and a sealing lid came later. The earlier lids looked like this:
Masons-Patent-Nov-30th-1858-520x1024.jpg
 
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