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Time Machine » The 1870s

1870s Related Articles

How Snake Oil Got a Bad Rap (Hint: It Wasn't The Snakes' Fault)

These days, "snake oil" is synonymous with quackery, the phoniest of phony medicines. A "snake oil salesman" promises you the world, takes your money, and is long gone by the… Read more

The Colors and Forms of Early American Pattern Glass

My mother was our inspiration for collecting pattern glass. She collected it, and she died at a very young age. My sister and I inherited it and my aunt said not to sell anyt… Read more

Taking Stock of Scripophily

I got interested in stock certificates by happenstance, really. I collected stamps at one point, and sold my collection to put a down payment on the house. I tried to get bac… Read more

Malcolm Warrington Invites You to Learn about Victorian Greeting Cards

Malcolm Warrington is based 12 miles to the west of Central London. He is a council member of the UK Ephemera Society with responsibility for the society's web site. He also … Read more

U.S. Gold Coins: Holding the California Gold Rush in the Palm of Your Hand

The double eagle is really a result of the California Gold Rush. Prior to the California Gold Rush, the biggest gold discoveries were relatively small strikes in Georgia and … Read more

Too Lazy To Work Out? Machines That Exercise for You, From Victorian Era to Now

Time was, humans didn't have to worry much about getting exercise. When we had to kill, gather, grow, or herd our own food, working out happened naturally. Of course, as soon… Read more

John Werry Explains How To Appreciate Victorian Furniture

How did I get started collecting Victorian Furniture? Antiques is in my genes, my mother's family were longtime antiquers and lived in a house built in the 18th Century. But … Read more

The International Influences of Buffalo Furniture

About 11 years ago, my wife and I went on some architectural tours. We joined the organization that sponsored the tours, and I volunteered to be the Webmaster for them. I dec… Read more

Gerry Fortin Explains the Many Varieties of Liberty Seated Dimes

Like everybody else, I started collecting coins when I was probably around 10 years old—going to the bank, buying a roll of Lincoln cents, and trying to fill those Whitman fo… Read more

19th-Century Photographs, from Daguerreotypes to Cartes de Visites

I’ve always been interested in antiques. As a kid, I collected a variety of stuff – fossils, rocks, minerals, natural history stuff, Indian artifacts and antiques. I grew… Read more

Selling Soap and Smokes With Victorian Trade Cards

How did I start collecting Victorian trade cards? In the late 60s I was a bottle collector, early American bottles and flasks. I started noticing there were colorful trade ca… Read more

Bill Lindsey on How To Read a Bottle

My maternal grandfather and uncle got into bottles in about 1965 or ‘66 when I was in high school, and we started digging. My uncle was in Arizona, near some of the old minin… Read more

U.S. Pattern Coins Tell the Stories Behind Our Currency

I started collecting coins when I was five years old, and I started dealing when I was 13 or 14. Most kids start with coins of circulation—I had albums for Jefferson nickels,… Read more

1870s Related Categories

Rolling Pins

Rolling pins are perhaps the earliest known kitchen baking utensils, documented in the hand of a baker in a 17th century illustrat… (more)

Bitters Bottles

Bitters are a form of patent or proprietary medicine made by steeping herbs, roots, and other spices in alcohol. They likely origi… (more)

Reed and Barton Silver

The Taunton, Massachusetts, firm of Reed & Barton began in 1824 as Babbitt & Crossman, which produced a cousin of pewter known as … (more)

Stereoview Photographs

The idea for stereoview photographs (also known as stereoscopic photographs, stereographs, or, simply, views) was hatched long bef… (more)

Mechanical Banks

Antique mechanical banks make the act of saving money fun. Insert a coin, push a lever, and watch the action play out! The coin mi… (more)

Cabinet Card Photographs

First introduced in the 1860s, cabinet card photographs were similar to cartes-de-visites, only larger. Measuring approximately fo… (more)

Wallace Silver

Robert Wallace is considered the first metalsmith to make a spoon out of German silver, which is also known as nickel silver, even… (more)

Majolica

When Minton & Company of Staffordshire exhibited a new line of ceramics at The Great Exhibition of 1851 in London, the firm called… (more)

Magic Lantern

Magic lanterns, also known as optical lanterns, provided one of the most popular forms of entertainment during their heyday in the… (more)

Victorian Furniture

Victorian antique furniture refers to pieces made during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901), and includes both mass produced … (more)

Shield Nickels

The nickel was born out of the Civil War, when the hoarding of silver coins such as half dimes and quarters was commonplace. This … (more)

Stoneware

Stoneware is the roughhewn cousin of porcelain. Like porcelain, it is fired at very high temperatures (1,200 to 1,400 degrees), li… (more)

Early American Pattern Glass

Early American Pattern Glass (EAPG), also known as pressed glass, was produced from roughly 1850 to 1910. Cheaper to manufacture t… (more)

French Dolls

During the 14th century, dolls modeled on adult figures were popular among the most affluent families of Europe, and the exquisite… (more)

Box Cameras

Box cameras rely on the most basic form of photographic technology, utilizing a sealed rectangular container with a fixed focus le… (more)

Trade Cards

Victorian trade cards are an early form of collectible advertising. Popularized after the Civil War by businesses, they offer a co… (more)

19th Century Unused US Stamps

The first official US stamps were issued in 1847, depicting Benjamin Franklin and George Washington (5 and 10 cents). These were f… (more)



1970s1960s1950s1940s1930s1920s1910s1900s1890s1880s1870s1860sPre-1860s