Questions tagged [19th-century]
The 19th century began on January 1, 1801, and ended on December 31, 1900.
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What did Nathan Forrest do on September 19 1863?
I am currently reading a book on bad military leaders in history, and this one chapter concerns a man named Nathan Forrest.
I only have very basic knowledge on the US Civil War, so I have trouble ...
4
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0answers
112 views
Did anyone in the 19th century deliberately use bank runs to bankrupt their competitiors like in *Tai-Pan* by James Clavell?
In James Clavell's semi-historical novel Tai-Pan, Dirk Struan and Tyler Brock head two competing British merchant companies that earn their income by trade with China around the time of the Opium Wars:...
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100 views
Did they have dorm mothers for finishing schools in the 19th century?
I'm currently writing a novel, and was doing a lot of research on 19th century finishing schools for young ladies. In my book, the girls need to stay on site or next to the finishing school. However, ...
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2answers
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Did Lord Acton ever say "freedom faces four major challenges"?
I read a Chinese article that quoted a passage purported to be from Lord Acton, describing how "freedom faces four major challenges". The original Chinese states:
每个时代，自由都会面临着四大挑战：
...
8
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1answer
290 views
What did 'bookseller' cover as an occupation on British census documents during Victorian times?
I have been researching some of my husband's ancestors who lived in the poorest parts of Liverpool during the second part of the 19th century. Two of his female relatives who had been widowed turned ...
3
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0answers
195 views
What was so good about the 19th Century Osage police?
I was recently directed to an article written by Historian Art Burton for a police publication about policing in late 19th Century Indian Territory. I got interested in this due to a family story ...
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1answer
84 views
Where can I find fully translated letters from János Bolyai and Farkas Bolyai?
The mathematicians János Bolyai occupies an interesting place in the history of mathematics for the development of hyperbolic geometry. Certain quotations from letters between him and his father (the ...
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144 views
Can anyone identify this 19th century US military uniform?
I found this among our family photos and am trying to figure out who it might be.
3
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1answer
159 views
What was the wealth distribution in US antebellum North / South
My question relates to the following quote from chapter XI of the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass:
I had very strangely supposed, while in slavery, that few of the comforts, and ...
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0answers
119 views
How did composers of the mid 18th and early 19th century get discovered and hired for jobs?
Say you were a composer of the mid 18th and early 19th century during the time of composers such as Beethoven and Mozart. How would you go about getting yourself discovered by others?
Was it through ...
5
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1answer
304 views
What is this 19th century British army uniform?
I believe this chap is a distant relative of mine. It is in a large photo album my granny had but of course no names anywhere.
On the back of this photo it is noted "Sept 1881" taken in ...
6
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1answer
444 views
At what age did girls start wearing corsets in 1880s-1890s Britain?
So, I found some contradicting information to answer this on the internet and almost none of it was dated to a specific time of the victorian era, so I would like to know if anyone can answer this ...
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Would a house built in 1745 have a water tank in the attic? (up to 1847)
Was looking at the floorplans on this page (picture 43), was wondering if buildings from 1745-1847 were likely to have water tanks in the attic? Would this have been added during a relatively modern (...
11
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3answers
436 views
How did they measure speed in the 19th century so they could issue the first speeding ticket?
The first speeding ticket was issued in UK. In 1896 a person was caught driving 13 kilometers per hour in a zone where the maximum limit was 3km/h. Without a portable radar speed gun (also radar gun ...
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0answers
104 views
Did the concept of "all for one and one for all" actually exist in France in the 17th century, or did it come later?
The phrase "all for one and one for all" comes from the book "The Three Musketeers," which was set in the 1620s. But the book itself was published in 1844, which opens the ...
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144 views
Did the world suffer a general economic decline in 1870?
Last year the World Bank reported that :
According to World Bank forecasts, the global economy will shrink by 5.2% this year. That would represent the deepest recession since the Second World War, ...
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101 views
Was there something in Lord Palmerston's career that made him associated with temporary appointments becoming permanent?
While researching the quote "nothing more permanent than something temporary", I stumbled upon this quote from the "Royal United Service Institution Journal" from 1888:
I fear ...
2
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0answers
75 views
What's a major 19th Century history of the American Revolution from a British perspective?
I recently read McCaulay's History of England, which he initially projected to cover in detail events up to the reign of Queen Victoria. I was excited to see his take on the American revolution, ...
11
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1answer
532 views
Why was the Ottoman flag changed from an eight-pointed star to five-pointed in the 19th century?
According to Wikipedia, alongside the crescent, the flag of the Ottoman empire had an eight-pointed star until 1844 or so, when the star was changed to five points.
It seems the eight-pointed star was ...
2
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0answers
154 views
Did the Duke of Cambridge wear rouge?
I'm looking for evidence that the Prince George, Duke of Cambridge - Queen Victoria's cousin and the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army - enhanced his complexion by the judicious and semi-discreet ...
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2answers
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How long was a sea journey from England to East Africa 1868-1877?
I'm trying to find out how long the sea journey took from England to East Africa in the period 1868-1877. One source I've found suggests something like 3 months earlier in the 1860s. It mentions a ...
2
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0answers
351 views
Are the coal mining revenue provided in the "Gentleman Jack" realistic for 1830s?
The "Gentleman Jack" series is based on the diaries of Anne Lister - a XIX century woman, often declared as "first modern lesbian" (the "gentleman" is apparently a slur, ...
3
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3answers
462 views
What was the route for ships from England to South Africa in 1840?
I am writing a piece that requires me to understand the route that ships would have taken from Liverpool to Cape Town in the 1840s. What I have not been able to ascertain is whether the ships would ...
5
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1answer
169 views
How to track down a Spanish/Latin American soldier that fought in wars internationally (18th/19th century)?
The details are scant, but I hope it's enough to get the community interested and a clear answer emerge (there can't be that many people who fit the bill?).
I read a long time ago about a famous ...
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2answers
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Can you identify this US Army uniform?
This is my great-grandfather. I would like to know what he did in the Army. Can you identify whether he was infantry or cavalry?
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2answers
914 views
When was the first full length book sent over telegraph?
When was the first full length book sent over telegraph?
or
What was the longest message sent over telecommunications before 1900?
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60 views
Can you identify this European uniform or awards?
This is my great great grandfather. I am having trouble identifying the uniform. It should be from around 1860-1890 ish. It would be from a German speaking country. The story that was passed down was ...
6
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2answers
427 views
What is this military uniform from the 1870s?
This is a Tintype photo from around 1860 to 1870 time period. I don't know what country this comes from. The photo was discovered in the United States with a group of pictures tracing a German ...
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0answers
108 views
Could a person in Victorian UK be in charge of their own money at 18 years old?
Could a male or female in Victorian UK be in charge of his or her own money at 18 years old? (Circa 1888) Could a legal guardian argue in court that since the age of majority was 21, he should be in ...
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2answers
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Did "music pendants" exist in the 1800s/early 1900s?
I watched somebody play a video game recently (Maid of Sker) which is a period horror set in the late 1800s, and in it there is an object that caught my attention.
They call it a "music pendant&...
3
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1answer
238 views
Why is the Amazon rubber boom said to have started in 1879?
According to Amazon Rubber Boom
From the beginning of the second half of the 19th century, rubber began to exert a strong attraction to visionary entrepreneurs. The activity of latex extraction in ...
3
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1answer
126 views
Why did Burgers' Transvaal try to build rail east?
According to shanskraal,
[Thomas Burgers, president of the Transvaal Republic] considered a railway link with the non-British port of Delagoa Bay (Maputo) as essential for the economic survival of ...
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70 views
What decided the First Sekhukhune War?
I'm trying to find out more about the First Sekhukhune War, and in particular exactly how and why Sekhukhune won. As wars in historical times go, it seems to be very sparsely documented. Here's what I ...
2
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0answers
104 views
To what extent was the US government financed by land expropriations between 1790 and 1846?
How significant was land expropriation as a source of US federal, state, and local government revenue between 1790 and 1846?
I chose 1846 as the breakpoint because of the Walker Tariff; feel free to ...
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1answer
60 views
How can I evaluate the relative fiscal burden on different groups in the US, for various periods between 1790 and 1846?
What are some good ways to evaluate the relative burden of government finance on different groups in the US, for various periods between 1790 and 1846? I'm especially interested in state and local ...
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98 views
How significant were government-linked enterprises as a source of revenue for the United States between 1790 and 1846?
What proportion of US government (federal,state,local) revenue came from profits or debt issuance of government-linked enterprises between 1790 and 1846?
I chose 1846 as the breakpoint because of the ...
3
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2answers
288 views
How realistic is the food consumption in Astrid Lindgrens 'Emil of Lönneberga' books?
The books take place on a small rural farm in Smaland in Sweden. I don't think it is spelled out exactly what time period it takes place but I would put it around 1830 to 1850. If someone has some ...
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0answers
115 views
Were there any missing opera actresses in Paris between 1881 - 1910?
As you might have guessed (or maybe not), my question was merely risen by the mystery of the Opera Ghost, from the Phantom of The Opera written by Gaston Leroux.
I have been all over the internet in ...
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4answers
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What is this symbol in a financial record from Wisconsin, USA, in 1860?
I am trying to read some records about wages in Wisconsin in 1860 (the data is from the Social Statistics schedules of the Decennial Census). I cannot read the record from Milton, Rock County, ...
3
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1answer
261 views
Why did wagons in the frontier era travel at night?
I'm currently reading 'The diamond diggings of South Africa' by Charles Payton, a first-hand account of a visit to the diamond mines in 1871.
On page 80 it says
For the first fortnight from leaving ...
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1answer
202 views
Why did Teddy Roosevelt have his second wedding in London? [closed]
Theodore Roosevelt married Edith Carow in 1886 at St George's, Hanover Square, London
Both of them were New Yorkers being raised at Union Square.
At the time of his marriage he was just reentering NY ...
27
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1answer
5k views
Why were diamond mining plots 31-foot squares?
The Kimberley diamond mine, one of the richest in the world, was discovered in 1871, setting off a rush by hopeful miners. In The South African Diamond Fields, and a Journey to the Mines the author ...
4
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1answer
100 views
What was the available transport to Kimberley in 1871?
The DeBeers diamond company was not actually named for the founders, but for two farmers who discovered diamonds on their land in 1871, and sold the farm to be developed into a diamond mine, the place ...
8
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1answer
104 views
How difficult was Muraviev's amassing of troops for the forcing of the Treaty of Aigun, and what effects on development did it have?
I'm reading an account of the Trans-Siberian Railways' construction, and what was interesting was the poor level of development in Siberia, including that roads were very limited and transport ...
5
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0answers
94 views
What did a 19th century New Orleans Yellow Fever immunity passport look like?
In response to proposals for a so-called "immunity passport" system to be developed so that people who have recovered from COVID-19 can return to life as usual (without being subject to ...
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0answers
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What did people do about kerosene lamp fires?
In the late nineteenth century, kerosene lamps were widely used for illumination. They were effective and affordable, though had the nontrivial disadvantage of being a significant fire hazard; a lamp ...
6
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1answer
144 views
How did mid-19th century American legislation affect the corporate structure of railroad companies?
It is my understanding that a part of the complexity that the Standard Oil Company built up was due to the nature of US corporate legislation (while, of course, the rest was that they wanted to hide ...
4
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1answer
153 views
Was a drop in standards of living a significant factor in the revolutions of 1848?
A lot ink has been expended discussing the revolutions of 1848 and their causes, only a small fraction of which I have read.
From my point of view, there seem to be two main schools of thought in ...
5
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1answer
277 views
Why was Napoleon so lenient to Austria?
Austria (unlike Prussia) "rebelled" against Napoleon during the War of the Fifth Coalition. After putting down this country (but not Spain, Portugal, and the U.K.), Napoleon allowed the ...
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2answers
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Was the name 'Valerie' used during the Regency Era (1811-1836)?
I am working on a novel that takes place in England during the Regency Era (1811-1836, the era right before the Victorian Era). I was wondering if you know if the name 'Valerie' or 'Valeria' existed ...
