Brass Napoleon Award Would You Have Liked Living During the 19th Century?

Would You Have Liked Living During the 19th Century?

  • Yes.

    Votes: 18 15.8%
  • No.

    Votes: 67 58.8%
  • Maybe.

    Votes: 29 25.4%

  • Total voters
    114
i guess mentioning some pantyhose would do you in

I've got this @Yankee Brooke...
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Sometimes it seems that life in the 19th century was a simpler time – a time when folks were more connected to the earth, when folks were taught practical life skills and could rely upon their neighbors to help them out during difficult times. Our Victorian friends were never distracted by their smartphones and everything did indeed move more slowly. Yet when I closely examine life in the 19th century I'm always reminded that my Civil War heroes lived less than idyllic lives.

One thing that is often forgotten or ignored by my favorite period movies, the ones where beautiful ladies dance in ball gowns and fall in love with heroes, is that hygiene was not so great during the 19th century. Folks generally took baths once a week and some people relied only on “hip baths” (basically washing from a bucket). Body odor was common and while some people tried to compensate with perfumes and flower petals under their arms, this really wasn’t very effective.

Based on the depiction of horse drawn carriages in movies and in my imagination, I have often romanticized this form of transportation. I always picture those fancy horse and buggies that tourists can hire in places like Charleston or Savannah. Well the truth is horse poop littered the streets pretty much everywhere folks went during the 19th century. Members of the upper class actually wore shoes with lifts on them because the streets were so coated in horse poop. Another fact that doesn’t get much attention is that the horses sometimes died right in the middle of the street. Due to their size there wasn’t a quick or easy way to remove them so people would often leave the dead horse where it fell. Needless to say this was not a pretty (or romantic) sight.​

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Heartbreak was abundant in the 19th century. About one third of children born in this time period died before they reached adolescence. It would have been considered highly unusual for a family not to have at least one child die. In fact it was unusual for anyone to live past the age of 50. Life expectancy for the 19th century as a whole was 40 years for men and 42 years for women. Medicine or rather what passed for medicine in the 19th century was generally awful. Many procedures were quite painful and they usually didn’t cure what they set out to treat. Most Victorians had no idea where their organs were located inside their bodies and figured there was something wrong with their “humours” when they suffered symptoms of serious illnesses. They also didn’t know how illness was transmitted. Treatments largely consisted of forced vomiting, pooping or bloodletting to remove “impurities” from the body.

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And finally, what about the wars? The United States was involved in over 60 wars and major military battles between 1800 and 1900. Aside from the American Civil War, the 19th century also saw the Spanish American War, the Philippine American War, the War of 1812, the Mexican American War and a whole lot of wars with Native Americans.

So, would you have liked living during the 19th century? Cast your vote and share your reasoning in the comments. As for me, I often romanticize this time, but I'm not sure how well I would have actually done "back in the day."



Sources:
“Health & Medicine in the 19th Century” by Jan Marsh
“Child Mortality” by Max Roser
TeachUsHistory.org

What an excellent question and very well frames.

For all the reasons you say my answer would be no. Though to be fair if I didn't have modern knowledge of the progress made after that then yes I think I would have liked living then.

You really nail a view I see often, the grass is greener pointed to the past. It's easy to forget both how much progress has been made in real and significant ways as well as how many of the things people complain about in the here and now haven't changed.

I sometimes see people refer to some sort of modern increase in illegitimate children, sleeping around, etc. Usually combined with how things have gone to hell or along those lines lol. The thing is if you spend a lot of time in genealogy you quickly find that humans in the past were just like humans now. There was a lot of sleeping around and a lot of illegitimate children. Some are indeed tracked in various records and many more are now being discovered with DNA testing.

The difference is mostly that it's more open in modern society, where it was more taboo in the past, so often was kept secret and little talked about even if common knowledge.

This applies in all those great ways you illustrated too. Where there have been general improvements both in social rights and science and technology that have genuinely improved the quality of life for pretty much everyone to some extent (and some to a great extent).

I would love to visit, to go into a time machine and take a quick trip back. Even better to just view it, not sure I could stand the smell to be honest. Though that's all from knowing the progress of today, if that knowledge was gone then it would be a different story. Much like people 150 or so years from now will look back at our time and find it unbearable compared to what they'd likely have to give up.
 
Yep! It's said that at the battle of Mill Springs he mistook a unit of Kentucky Unionists to be Confederate - they didn't immediately see he was a Confederate officer because he had on a raincoat. But...his poor vision let him get close enough somebody among them recognized him and a volley brought him down! Of course, that's the legend - both Stuart and Forrest rode into Union forces thinking they were Confederate and there was nothing wrong with their vision!

I have to hear more!! When did this happen to both of them?? :smile:
 
I have to hear more!! When did this happen to both of them?? :smile:

Oh, Forrest's happened at Tupelo - he and an aide were personally scouting the enemy and...they were a little closer than anticipated. The picket challenged Forrest, who promptly rode forward aggressively and shouted, "How dare you challenge your commanding officer!" Then...split! The sentry was taken aback long enough to give them a bit of a start before he began shooting. Stuart's happened when he had taken Jackson's command at Chancellorsville. He heard firing from his right and was certain the batteries were his, firing on friends, so he rode right up to them and ordered them to stop firing. It was twilight, so he didn't realize until he was on top of them they were Union, and they didn't realize he wasn't their officer because he happened to be wearing a dark blue coat. He rode quickly away without harm or getting shot at, because they were unsure what just happened!
 
I wouldn't mind visiting for a few days but not live in the 19th century for many of the reasons listed above. I voted no.
 
I think it would all depend on whether or not I retained the memories of my life in 2018. If I did I think it would probably get real old after a week or two. Now if I had no memories of my life now I'm sure I'd feel blessed to live in the most advanced century man had known up to that point and be glad I wasn't born in the old days just like how we feel now.

Side note does anyone ever wonder what technologies there will be in 2200 and how life will be different then and if people will ask "Would you go back to 2018? That was the place to be but you know you'd have to live without x y or z"
 
Side note does anyone ever wonder what technologies there will be in 2200 and how life will be different then and if people will ask "Would you go back to 2018? That was the place to be but you know you'd have to live without x y or z"

I don't even want to live without wifi, or go back to DOS, 5-1/4 inch disks, and 64K of memory limit. :smile:
 
Oh, Forrest's happened at Tupelo - he and an aide were personally scouting the enemy and...they were a little closer than anticipated. The picket challenged Forrest, who promptly rode forward aggressively and shouted, "How dare you challenge your commanding officer!" Then...split! The sentry was taken aback long enough to give them a bit of a start before he began shooting. Stuart's happened when he had taken Jackson's command at Chancellorsville. He heard firing from his right and was certain the batteries were his, firing on friends, so he rode right up to them and ordered them to stop firing. It was twilight, so he didn't realize until he was on top of them they were Union, and they didn't realize he wasn't their officer because he happened to be wearing a dark blue coat. He rode quickly away without harm or getting shot at, because they were unsure what just happened!

Haha, Forrest...that's my man there. He was such a character. And Jeb...hahaha. I love those stories, and sadly I've never heard them. Why are they not more famous?? Thanks. :smile:
 
Side note does anyone ever wonder what technologies there will be in 2200 and how life will be different then and if people will ask "Would you go back to 2018? That was the place to be but you know you'd have to live without x y or z"

"How did they survive with only 1TB of hard drive space, 4K resolution, and what the heck is a Blu-Ray?!?" :giggle:
 
Side note does anyone ever wonder what technologies there will be in 2200 and how life will be different then and if people will ask "Would you go back to 2018? That was the place to be but you know you'd have to live without x y or z"

Ya never know. Somebody alive in 2018 might see 2200 themselves. Who's to say that at some point in the next century, DNA altering could become routine.

A man who I respected a lot, once told me, "The first person to live to be 150yrs old, has already been born". No, he wasn't in the medical field. He was a mathematical engineer, & worked in the aerospace industry. He had a hand in the Apollo projects.

Look at life expectancy, & medicine 150 yrs ago. Hard to say what could be possible in another 180 yrs. Certainly, plenty that none of us have thought of :smile:
 
I guess it depends on what society your 19th century would be. Mine - well, the 19th century was a real bleep! I'd probably opt for the 18th...and probably get swiped by another tribe in a raid... Can't win! The lifespan, near as can be figured before contact, around here was at least 100 and in amazingly good health - good teeth, still active, didn't even know what a headache was. Must have been doing something right!
 
If I was sent there, with no way back, I would adapt as I'd have little choice. I think being female would help, even if a poor farmers daughter, I'd imagine less would be expected of me just because I'm a girl. (A very rare occasion where sexism would be to ones benefit!)
 
I don't doubt that's true for some. But I have had multiple people tell me it is the most devastating loss imaginable. I don't think anticipating or expecting it would lessen the heartbreak.
I agree with you, Zella. And yes, it's a nightmare, and there's no way in h*ll I'd dare to assume that such a loss was somehow easier back then. I have no doubt people walked around haunted by such things. Just like today.
 
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