Author's Notes: What was a Baby Farm?

A child's life saved: before(above) 

and after (below) removal from a baby farm, 1917.  

Photos from The Adoption History Project 

  

http://pages.uoregon.edu/adoption/topics/

babyfarming.html

  My new book is entitled The Baby Farm, but what exactly     was a baby farm?

  The FreeOnlineDictionary notes two definitions:

  1. a place that houses and takes care of babies for a fee.

  2. a residence for unwed mothers that also arranges      adoptions.

  The term "baby farm" was common in the late nineteenth and   early twentieth century when illegitimacy was severely    stigmatized, it was felt that unwed mothers should be    punished, not helped, and pregnant unmarried women were  refused admission to maternity hospitals.

  Originally, a baby farm meant family day care, but soon    developed a terrible reputation when horrific abuses and  death traps were exposed.  The scandals that resulted  prompted the child welfare laws we have today. 

  In its extreme form, babies were bought and sold like any    other product.  The Adoption History Project (see reference below) notes: "Baby farmers sometimes profited on both ends of the adoption transaction, first extracting fees from desperate birth mothers and then demanding large sums from adopters."  Often the homes combined an unlicensed maternity hospital, a brothel and a baby farm combined.  Here is an example, again from The Adoption History Project, of such an enterprise:  "The woman who operated this home made a specialty of taking in unfortunate girls for maternity cases, she then made inmates of them and charged them for the board of their children; or she would dispose of a child for the sum of $25.00 or more."

Lest we think that baby farms were confined to big cities like New York or Chicago, there were 40 baby farms operating in Minneapolis alone in 1905.

References and additional reading:

http://pages.uoregon.edu/adoption/topics/babyfarming.html

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Baby+farm

http://www.friendsofthecemetery.org/history/alley_articles/Abandoned_Infants_nov2006.shtml

Now Available: THE BABY FARM (The Secret Society of Sugar and Spice, Book 2)

My new book is now available.  Get it in e-book and print paperback at www.whiskeycreekpress.com or www.amazon.com and for Nook at www.barnesandnoble.com.  Here's the back cover blurb:

Seventeen-year-old Hannah Winter is seven months pregnant and married… to the wrong man.  When it appears that her true love has abandoned her, she is forced to marry a brutal man, for it’s 1885, and her only choice is to marry someone, anyone, or give up her baby.  But once her daughter is born, her cruel husband sells the child to a baby farm. Outraged, Hannah attacks him only to be beaten and imprisoned. Now it is up to Claire Sargent and the girls of the Secret Society of Sugar and Spice to plan a daring escape and spirit Hannah away to safety.  But once rescued, Hannah won’t leave without her daughter.  Claire and the girls of the Secret Society face their most daunting mission yet, for not only must they find the baby girl, they must steal her away. 

The Baby Farm is part of a series.  The first book in the series is The Secret Society of Sugar and Spice.  Get it online at the same websites.



TEEN LIFE WAY BACK WHEN: The Foundation of Domestic Happiness

In 1898, what did men believe was the foundation of domestic happiness"?  Here is one man's opinion (from Western Womanhood.  A Journal Devoted to the Interests of Women.  Fargo, North Dakota):

I am dumbfounded at the first reference to the dictionary that is beside me, wherein I find an expression that makes me weep over the opinions of the old as well as the present time.  I find:  The foundation of domestic happiness is faith in the virtue of woman.” (Hare.)  I am pained to think that Mr. Hare was forced to make woman’s virtue the sole ingredient of a foundation so imposing as that of domestic happiness.  Being a man, I blush with shame that one of my own kindred should thus be compelled to make our record.  “Domestic happiness” that boon to which the weary traveler returns after his day’s work is done; to have it rest upon one-half of human life, and that half, so far as virtue is referred in the definition, the absolute slave of man, for there is no legal redress during coverture*, for the abuse of woman’s sexual organs, not even if the man bring to her person the most infectious of diseases.  By O.W.L.  Feb. 1898, Vol IV, No. 8, pg 4.

*Coverture is the legal term whereby upon marriage, a husband and wife were said to have acquired unity of person that resulted in the husband having numerous rights over the property of his wife and in the wife being deprived of her power to enter into contracts or to bring lawsuits as an independent person (www.legaldictionary.com)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author's Notes: A Really Cool Pinterest Board

You know how I love all things nineteenth century.  Well, I just discovered a really cool board on Pinterest devoted to photographs of women's fashion in the 1890's.  What a joy.  There are lots of pics of royalty, but it's the photos of everyday women that are so fascinating. Click here to see this board!

TEEN LIFE WAY BACK WHEN: Courting Rituals in America, Part 3: A Uniquely American Dowry System

In the Gilded Age, fabulously wealthy Americans could have anything they wanted, except for one thing - a title. Thus developed a uniquely American dowry system.  Rich American industrialists married their daughters to poor British aristocrats who had a title but no money. This raised the status of both the bride and groom and their families. In 1895 alone, nine American heiresses married members of the British aristocracy.  They became known as the "dollar princesses".

Consuelo Vanderbilt (Duchess of Marlborough) at
the coronation of Edward VII

The quintessential example of this was Consuelo Vanderbilt, one of the great beauties of her time.  Daughter of the railroad millionaire, William Vanderbilt, she married Charles Spencer-Churchill, the 9th Duke of Marlborough, on November 16,1895, becoming the Duchess of Marlborough.  The marriage settlement was 2.5 million dollars of railroad stock, an estimated 61 million to 2.6 billion in 2012 dollars. Pressured into the marriage by her ambitious mother, the loveless union ended in divorce in 1921.

Medicine in the Nineteenth Century: Deadly Diseases Part 2: The Croup

The Sick Child, 1886
Arturo Michelena, courtesy of Wiki Commons
Public domain

What does frizzy hair, runny mascara and a clammy damp uniform have to do with the croup? 

I was astonished to read that the croup was a deadly childhood disease in the nineteenth century. Today, the illness is not considered serious and is usually treated at home.  Known medically as laryngotracheobronchitis, the croup is an infection of the upper airway which obstructs breathing and causes a characteristic barking cough (sounds like a seal).  Caused by a virus, usually the parainfluenza virus, the illness most commonly strikes children 6 months to 5-6 years of age.  Treated with oral or inhaled steroids or a tracheotomy in severe cases, the disease is rarely fatal today.  But in the late nineteenth century, almost three per cent of childhood deaths were attributed to this illness.

As I was researching this topic, I discovered that the standard treatment for hospitalized children with the croup back in the 1960's was a steam tent (a plastic tent over the crib also known as a croupette) or a steam room.  Now here is where the frizzy hair comes in.  Back in the early seventies I was training to be a medical technologist.  One of my jobs during the year of internship was to draw blood from the children in the "steam rooms".  Aha! As I schlepped in and out of these rooms with the croupy kiddies, my carefully coiffed hair turned to a limp lump of frizz, my expertly applied dime store mascara drizzled down my cheeks and my pressed and starched uni turned to a damp, wrinkled clammy mess. And here's the kicker: The steam rooms and steam tents were subsequently proven to be ineffective!

For references and additional reading see the Extras section.

Author's Notes: Whooping Cough

Click on this link to hear the sound of whooping cough

                                

In my book, Big Stone Heart, the heroine encounters whooping cough with tragic results. Today in the United States, pertussis (the medical term for whooping cough) is pretty much off our radar in terms of  infant mortality.  It shouldn't be. Cases of whooping cough still occur here largely due to the refusal of parents to have their children vaccinated.  For example, in 2010, ten infants died of pertussis in California and an epidemic was declared with over 9,000 cases.

TEEN LIFE WAY BACK WHEN: Courting Rituals in America, Part 2: Handfasting

F.T. Richards, Illustrator
The Idiot at Home by
John Kendrick Bangs
(public domain)

In Colonial America there was a way to get married without a priest, minister, magistrate or a license.  The ritual was called "handfasting" or "spousal".  This do-it-yourself marriage arrangement was an option for couples who could not obtain parental permission to marry or who could not marry for other reasons.

The couple joined hands and declared each other husband and wife, then lived together.  In Latin this was called verba de praesenti. The marriage vows would be exchanged either alone or before witnesses.  A blacksmith was often called upon to officiate, hence the anvil came to symbolize the of forging a long-lasting union. 

The ceremony could be performed anywhere, even in the bedroom.  This, as you can well imagine, posed a problem. It wasn't unusual for a dishonorable suitor to exchange vows with a young lady, only to renege on his promise the morning after.  Indeed, court records of the time are full of such skulduggery. To forestall backsliding, young girls found it prudent to hide a couple of friends in the closet to witness the pledges.

Handfasting has reemerged in recent times.  In the early 2000's a form of handfasting was practiced in Neopaganism, especially in Wicca, a modern pagan witchcraft religion.  A part of the ceremony involved joining the hands of the wedding couple by wrapping them in ribbons. By 2010, handfasting ceremonies were on offer by commercial wedding organizers and had mostly lost their Neopagan association.


For references and additional reading see the Extras section

Medicine in the Nineteenth Century: Deadly Diseases Part 1: Causes of Death Compared to Today

Photo courtesy of Flickr Commons

While doing research for my next book, I began to think about the causes of death in children and teens back in the late 1800’s.  What did they die of and how does it compare to today.  The result, I must admit, is shocking.  Whereas homicide and suicide are in the top five causes of death for ages 10 to 24 in America in 2010, they do not appear at all in the statistics from 1899-1900. Here’s the breakdown:

 

1899-1900  Ages 5-14                                                            2010  Ages 5-14

1  Childhood infectious diseases	Unintentional injury
2  Respiratory infectious diseases	Malignant neoplasms
3  Accident /Injury	Suicide (age 10-14);congenital anomalies (ages 5-9)
4  Heart Disease	Homicide
5  Tuberculosis	Heart disease (age 5-9);congenital anomalies(ages 10-14)

 

1899-1900  Ages 15-24                                              2010  Ages 15-24

(Based on adult statistics)

1  Pneumonia	Unintentional injury
2  Tuberculosis	Homicide
3  Gastrointestinal infectious diseases	Suicide
4  Heart disease	Malignant neoplasms
5  Cerebrovascular disease	Heart Disease

 

Of course, with modern medicine’s diagnostic tests, antibiotics and supportive care many of the deadly infectious diseases of the past have been conquered.  But there were plenty of guns around in the nineteenth century and the means of suicide were always available.  It is absolutely appalling that in America today our children are dying of homicide and suicide.  What has happened to us in the last 110 years?

For references and additional reading:
http://www.progenealogists.com/19thdeathrecords.htm
http://www.nber.org/chapters/c11541.pdf
http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/pdf/10LCID_All_Deaths_By_Age_Group_2010-a.pdf

Author's Notes: An Infamous Cave

Gangster John Dillinger

In the opening scene of The Secret Society of Sugar and Spice, the girls of the Secret Society are meeting in a cave high above the Mississippi River in St. Paul, Minnesota.  What does this have to do with the notorious gangster, John Dillinger?

The caves on the southern shore of the Mississippi have a long history.  The sandstone of the cliffs is soft and subject to erosion.  Many of the caves were man made so, technically, they should be called mines.  Since the 1840's, the caves were used for storage, growing mushrooms, and as bars and restaurants. 

In the 1920's, a cave on Wabasha street in St. Paul was the site of a speakeasy.  Legend has it that this became a hideout for such notorious gangsters as John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson, Roger "the Terrible" Touhy, Machine Gun Kelly, Alvin "Creepy" Karpis and the Barker gang.

Today, the site of the former speakeasy is still in use as an event hall known as the Wabasha Street Caves.  You can tour the cave, hear the history and even see the bullet holes from a shootout that occurred there.


For additional reading and references:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wabasha_Street_Caves
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/st-pauls-gangster-era/http://www.wabashastreetcaves.com/

TEEN LIFE WAY BACK WHEN: Courting Rituals in America, Part 1: Bundling

Photo courtesy of the Charles P. Rogers Bed Archive, www.charlesprogers.com
Original publication A. Monroe Aurnad, Jr., 1938

 



There was a time when parents put their daughters in bed with a man for the night.  Practiced in Colonial times in America it was called bundling, tarrying or bed courting. The idea was to allow intimacy between the couple without sex to see if they were compatible for marriage.

Wrapped in blankets or a bundling bag, sometimes with a board between them (called a bundling board) the couple were expected to talk to one another throughout the night.  The practice was largely limited to winter with the boy staying at the girl's house. There was the added advantage that if the girl got pregnant (those blankets and boards didn't always work), the parents were fairly certain of the father.

Bundling was common in Colonial America especially among the Pennsylvania Dutch.  It was still practiced in the mid-nineteenth century.  By the twentieth century, except for a few accounts among the Amish, bundling had died out.

References and additional reading:
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/historyonline/uscourt.cfm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundling_(tradition)
http://www.quiltersmuse.com/Bundling-A-Courtship-Ritual-with-Ancient-Roots.html
http://www.charlesprogers.com/bed-archive/little-known-facts-about-bundling-193/

Author's Notes: What is the Difference Between Dating and Courting?



Geza Udvary, "Courting",date unknown, 

courtesy of Wiki Commons,

public domain

 

In my book The Secret Society of Sugar and Spice there is a scene near the end of the book where the hero, Jack Robbins, says to Mace, the heroine: "I will speak to your father and ask him for permission to court his daughter.  Then I am going to court you right and proper."

But what does it mean to court?  Is it the same thing as dating?  No.  Essentially, the difference is that dating is recreational (for fun) and courting is intentional (for marriage).  In other words, in courting, the couple enters into the relationship with the explicit understanding that marriage is the endgame.

In the nineteenth century, courtship was supposed to have no physical contact or sexual activity.  But here's the surprising bit: A study comparing late nineteenth century marriage records to birth records showed that 30 - 40% of brides were pregnant on the day of their wedding here in America.  We think of the Victorian era (1837-1901) as an age of prudery, chastity and innocence. We thought wrong.


References and additional reading:
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/historyonline/uscourt.cfm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courtship
http://theweek.com/article/index/246490/5-courtship-rituals-from-colonial-America

Author's Notes: Next book

Woo hoo!  Just finished the first 10,000 words of my next book.  I don't have a title yet but I'm working on it.  Now just 50,000+ more words to go.

MEDICINE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY: Chronic arsenic poisoning

Women in the nineteenth century obsessed about having light skin and used patent medicines and cosmetics containing arsenic to achieve the desired effect.  What would happen if these preparations were used repeatedly over a long period of time?  CAUTION - GROSS DETAILS AHEAD.

After as little as six months, the woman would develop darkening and discoloration of the skin and, predominantly on the hands and feet, raindrop shaped skin bumps resembling corns or warts.  Her breath and urine would smell like garlic and she would experience night blindness. Her fingernails would show horizontal white lines called Mees' lines.  Eventually, she would become partially paralyzed and liver and kidney functions would deteriorate.

To see photos of some of these manifestations of chronic arsenic poisoning, click here

If she were to take too much arsenic (and this actually happened to several unfortunate young ladies) she would experience acute arsenic poisoning characterized by headaches, confusion, severe diarrhea, drowsiness, convulsions, and death.

For additional reading and references, see the Extras section

Guest Blogger at Fifty Authors From Fifty States Blog

This week I am a guest blogger at the Fifty Authors From Fifty States Blog sponsored by Annette Snyder. Click here to read about my home state of South Dakota

Vintage Photos on Pinterest

Just joined Pinterest and added some of the great vintage photos from this blog so take a look: http://pinterest.com/carol1582/pins/

Four Star Review

Four + stars!! Got a great review just out of the blue (LOL, I made a little poem) from a website called Long and Short Reviews on my recent book "The Secret Society of Sugar and Spice".  Here are a couple quotes and the link to the whole article: "Carol has written an excellent historical novel"; "I was definitely caught up in their story, pulling for them through each adventure."

http://www.longandshortreviews.com/book-reviews/the-secret-society-of-sugar-and-spice-by-carol-j-larson/

Medicine in the Nineteenth Century: Deathly Pale - Arsenic in Cosmetics

Pale skin was the beauty goal of women in the 19th century.  But the quest for pale skin could turn deadly.  In July 1880, the "Indianapolis Sentinel" reported on a woman who gradually lost her sight as a result of taking arsenic for beauty purposes.  Another newspaper report told the story of a girl from St. Louis who took several boxes of wafers (pills) in an attempt to clean up a skin complaint. 

There were many beauty products for the skin available that contained arsenic. In Britain one of the most popular was known as Dr. MacKenzie's Improved Harmless Arsenic Complexion Wafers.  This product was also marketed under Dr. Simms, Dr. Rose and Dr. Campbell.  In the United States, the main brand was Dr. Campbell's. The above photo shows the compound for sale under the name of Dr. Rose in the Sears and Roebuck catalog of 1901 and 1902.  It remained available in the U.S. until well into the 1920's.  The product produced pale skin by destroying red blood cells. 

But here's the kicker:  The poisonous effects of arsenic have been known for centuries.  Indeed, it was the poison of choice in Medieval and Renaissance times.  Despite the claim that those arsenic wafers were "harmless", surely women in the 19th century knew better.  Apparently not.

Author's Notes: The Ghost of Browns Valley

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of ...Samuel Brown 

Samuel Brown?  Yes, he's known as the Paul Revere of Minnesota.  During a book event at the Browns Valley Library I learned all about the ghost of Brown's Valley.  Here is what the librarian, Bernice Piechowski, had to say about Sam:

"On April 19, 1866, Sam Brown, the son of Joseph R. Brown and at that time, the chief Army Scout stationed at Fort Wadsworth, started on horseback to warn the settlers there of what was thought to be an impending Indian attack. He rode the fifty-five miles in five hours only to find the report to be false. He was caught in a blizzard and lost his way, drifting many miles to the south and into the Waubay area. He is called the "Paul Revere of the Frontier" due to his famous ride."

Bernice sent me a section of a book about the ghosts of Minnesota.  Turns out that the seldom-seen ghost only comes out in spring blizzards on the plains. When there is heavy snow, sleet and rain, an exhausted horse is seen stumbling on urged by the tall, gaunt man in the saddle. 

Most of us out here know to stay indoors in such weather.  But if you're ever outside near Browns Valley during a spring blizzard, keep an eye out for Sam and his horse.  And now that I think of it, wouldn't this be a great idea for a book?

Life in the Nineteenth Century: True or False? Women Didn't Use Makeup

An 1863 advertisement for Laird's Bloom of Youth Fluid
Pearl for the skin

Did women use makeup in the nineteenth century?  Men didn't think so.  Ah, how naive. Because their women did use makeup but it was makeup designed to look natural as if the face were naked.

The skin was the focus of beauty.  The paler the better, for pale skin denoted that the woman did not have to work outdoors and therefore was of a higher class.  Besides bonnets and parasols to protect the skin from the sun, women used creams and lotions to lighten the skin tone.  Many of these were home concoctions but commercial prepartions were widely available.

There was a difference between skin-improving products and skin-masking products.  The latter were considered skin "paint".  Paints were associated with social climbers and momen who would trick men into marriage.  A woman who painted her skin was engaging in a disreputable effort to use artifice to hide her social status.

 But there was a problem: many of the preparations contained highly toxic chemicals like arsenic, lead, zinc oxide, mercury, nitrates of silver and acids.  Some women even ate chalk or drank iodine to achieve the desired effect.

For references or additional reading, see the Extras tab.