#early 20th century

Still Life of Garden Vegetables. Middleton Family. Circa 1905.

Crowded Beach. Circa 1890-1900. Atlantic City.

hoodoothatvoodoo:

Rudolf Eickemeyer (American, 1862-1932), In My Studio, Evelyn Nesbitt, Tired Butterfly, 1909

Henry A. Marcellus. Circa early 20th century.

In Arkadien by Herbert Arthur Hess, 1901 (full size)

Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh (British, 1864-1933);

White Rose And Red Rose&The Heart Of The Rose, part of the design for the ‘Rose Boudoir’ room,1902

Painted gesso over hessian, with glass beads, 97.8 cm. x 100.3 cm, Private Collection.

*(images are high quality, click to enlarge and view details)

Beyoglu 1920s.

Magic Carpet Fun House
Coney Island

The Magic Carpet Fun House was one of many attractions at Coney Island in the early- to mid-20th century. Located at 1501 Bowery and West 15th Street, the attraction was run by Edie and Seymour Maxim, who also ran the Donkey Game next-door. On the other side of the Magic Carpet Fun House was the Tunnel of Laughs and opposite these was the Thunderbolt Roller Coaster.

It opened somewhere between 1925-1941, and like many of these types of attractions, it is poorly documented and most information comes from oral records.

The fun house attraction was a common style of facility found at amusement parks and fun fairs of the time. There were indoor structures with wacky and whimsical atmospheres intended to surprise and entertain guests. They are typically self-guided, and feature various interactive elements, such as funhouse mirrors, physical and optical distortions, dark mazes, and obstacle courses.

Most accounts of this one found at Coney Island focus mainly on the “Laughing Lady” and the namesake slide which led the guest out of the building.

The Laughing Lady

Also going by Minnie Ha Ha, this audio-animatronic figure stood outside the attraction, and appears to have left a lasting impression in the minds of generations of visitors.

• “’HA HA HA.’ It could be heard from a distance and children especially loved her and liked to imitate her laugh.” — Taty Alicea
• “The cackling sound of the lady laughing was a big part of my Coney Island. You heard her laugh, and that was the whole key to Coney Island.” — Lenny Goodstein
• Here are some more great oral histories of the figure!

The Laughing Lady was in-fact one of many similar animatronics that could be found throughout the country during this period. They were produced by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company (PTC), and this particular model was known as Laffing Sal. It was a 6ft, 10in papier-mâché figure of a woman on a 12in pedestal. It would wave its arms and lean forward at the waist. There was also a record player hidden within the pedestal, which played recording of a woman’s laugh on 78-rpm phonographs. The base model featured a set appearance of an artificial wig and missing tooth. The purchaser could customises them with their their own clothing and hats. In the images above, the first Laffing Sal image is the preserved version that was found at Coney Island, while the following two are of the model found at San Francisco’s Musée Mécanique.

If you want more in the topic, my full research notes on all topics are available for all $3+ Patreonpatrons!

Image Sources

Magic Carpet Fun House ticket, front | SRNY Collection
Magic Carpet Fun House ticket, back | SRNY Collection
Map, Geographica Maps via Forgotten-NY, 1938 | Source
Magic Carpet Fun House building, front | Source
Magic Carpet Fun House building, side, 1969 | Source
Coney Island’s Laughing Lady / Minnie Ha Ha | Source
Laffing Sal at the Musée Mécanique in San Francisco, close-up | Source
Laffing Sal at the Musée Mécanique in San Francisco, full | Source
Coney Island, Fun House interior, c.1970s | Source

This post comes to you thanks to Patreon supporters at the Ephemera Club level. Those subscribed in January 2022 will receive a genuine Magic Carpet Fun House ticket, and a fun 1940s arcade card. If you would also like to receive neat, period-appropriate items in the mail each month, you too can join the Ephemera Club for just $15. Spaces are limited!

[Support SRNY through PatreonandKo-Fi]
And join us onDiscordfor fun conversation!
I also have an Etsywith up-cycled nerdy crafts

Recipe Wednesday #47

Happy Recipe Wednesday!

These are real early-20th century recipes, taken from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, a local newspaper that would have been accessible to Steve, his mother, and Bucky during their time in Brooklyn.

This week’s recipes come from the Tuesday 13 November 1934 edition of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. For context, Steve would have been 14 (comics) / 16 (MCU) when this recipe was printed.

Buckwheat Sausages

Taketwo cups of prepared buckwheat flour,one and a half cups of milk, or a little more, sausages according to the number to be serves and a few slices of bacon. Prepare the batter, stirring until nice and smooth. Slit the sausages but do not cut through, flatten out and fry in bacon drippings. When cooked, pour the buckwheat batter over each sausage, just enough to cover them, fry a rich brown and serve piping hot, generously buttered, with slices of bacon on the side. Garnish withparsley.

Chunk Biscuit

2 cups sifted flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dry ginger
½ cup sugar
Mix dry ingredients together, work in shorteningandliquid all at once; beat in. Turn on floured board, knead a minute or so. Pat, shape and place in a greased deep dish and bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. Break into chunks. Serve hot with sweet butter.

Butterscotch Parfait

10 to 12 servings
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup water
4 egg yolks
1 pint whipping cream
1/16 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
Combine sugar and butter—heat till melted. Cook 1 minute, add water—cook until melted—add syrup slowly to beaten yolks. Cook in double boiler until light and fluffy. Chill, add whipping cream, salt, vanilla. Fill freezing trays—do not stir while freezing.

Criss-Cross Cranberry Pie

Pie crust
4 cups cranberries
1 ½ to 2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons water
¼ teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon melted butter
Line a pie plate with pie crust. Chop cranberries; mix with other ingredients; fill pastry shell with this mixture. Place strips of pie crust over the top and bake in a moderate oven 25 to 35 minutes.

Johnny Cake

1 cup corn meal
1 cup flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
5 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons shortening
Mix and sift dry ingredients, add milk, well beaten egg, shortening. Bake in shallow buttered pan in hot oven 425 degrees for 20 minutes.

Delicate Rice Pudding

½ cup rice
½ cup raisins
½ cup sugar
3 eggs
1 quart milk
2 tablespoons butter
1 quart milk
½ teaspoon salt
A few gratings nutmeg
Boil milk, raisins and rice very slowly in a double boiler about 1 ½ hours. Beat the yolks of the eggs with the sugar, stir it into the rice, add the butter, pour into a pudding dish, spread with the whites, which have been stiffly beaten with 2 tablespoons of sugar, over the top. Place in a very slow oven long enough to brown the meringue.

I’d love to hear if you try out any of these recipes! Take photos and I might post them on the blog.

Visit the Recipe Wednesday Masterpost for the all the Recipe Wednesday posts, and the Indexed Recipe Wednesday Masterpost for all the recipes broken down individually!

[Support SRNY through PatreonandKo-Fi]
And join us onDiscordfor fun conversation!
I also have an Etsywith up-cycled nerdy crafts

Recipe Wednesday #46

Happy Recipe Wednesday!

These are real early-20th century recipes, taken from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, a local newspaper that would have been accessible to Steve, his mother, and Bucky during their time in Brooklyn.

This week’s recipes come from the Tuesday 27 October 1931 edition of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. For context, Steve would have been 11 (comics) / 13 (MCU) when this recipe was printed.

Alligator Pear Salad

1 alligator pear
2 slice pineapple (fresh or canned)
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lime juice
Lettuce
Peel alligator pear and cut pulp in small pieces. Cut pineapple in cubes. Have twice as much pear as pineapple. Arrange on crisp head of lettuce leaves. Mix the rest and pour over fruit.

Baked Creole Rice

2 cupfuls cooked rice
1 ½ cupfuls consomme
1 ½ cupfuls tomato soup
1 onion
1 tablespoonful minced green pepper
Seasoning to taste
¼ pound sliced bacon
Add the rice gradually to the boiling consomme. Place over hot water and let steam for 20 minutes, or until the consomme is absorbed. Brown the bacon slightly and remove to another pan. Cook the sliced onion and minced pepper in the bacon fat until well browned. Add to the tomato soup. Put the rice in a baking dish. Cover with the tomato soup and slices of bacon. Brown in a quick oven.

Southern Beaten Biscuit

2 cupfuls flour
1/3 cupful shortening
1 teaspoonful salt
Milk and water
Sift the flour and salt. Work in the shortening and moisten to a stiff dough with equal quantities of milk and water combined. Place mixture on floured board and beat with rolling pin for at least 30 minutes, folding the dough every few minutes. Roll to one-third-inch in thickness, shape with small biscuit cutter and prick with a fork. Then place on greased baking sheet. Bake in a hot oven, from 400 to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, for 20 minutes.

Hamburg Pastry Roll

1 ½ pound top round steak
1 ½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon white pepper
2 tablespoons minced onion
¾ cup bread crumbs
1 ½ cups strained canned tomatoes
2 eggs
2 teaspoons minced parsley
Trim steak, run through meat grinder, add beaten eggs and other ingredients except tomatoes. Mix lightly with a fork. Turn into well-greased biscuit pan, shape into a long narrow loaf, pour tomatoes over, bake in a lot oven 400 degrees for 20 minutes, basting occasionally. While meat is baking, make a biscuit dough of 1 ½ cups flour,2 teaspoons baking powderand½ teaspoon salt, sifted together; cut in ¼ cup shortening, mix to a soft dough with ½ cup milk. Roll dough in oblong sheet, then cover meat roll completely with it. Return to oven and bake pastry about 25 minutes. Remove roll carefully to platter. Add ½ cup water and 1 tablespoon butter to juices in pan; let boil up several times; serve as gravy to loaf. Add ¼ cup tomato juice if more gravy is desired.

Stuffed lambs’ Hearts

Carefully wash and trim loose edges from the hearts, allowing one to each person and parboil in water to which has been added a tablespoonful of vinegar. For the stuffing, take one cupful stale breadcrumbs, a half teaspoonful of poultry seasoning, a small onion which has been fried in a tablespoonful of butter and a strip of bacon cut in small pieces. Mix these ingredients and add to them a whole unbeaten eggandsufficient soup stock or water to moisten. Mix thoroughly before filling the hearts, and after filling, bake them base side down for an hour. Pour a half cupful of water into the pan and baste the hearts frequently. This amount of stuffing provides for about three hearts.

Watermelon Preserve

Cut off the rind of the watermelon and remove all of the red pulp. Cut into dice. Put in a stone jar, add one-half cupful of salt to every five pounds of watermelon. Cover with cold water and let stand five hours. Drain and cover with fresh water, changing the water several times. Allow to soak about two hours. Make a syrup using two and one-half pounds of sugarandone and one-half quarts of water. Boil five minutes and then add the watermelon. Simmer gently until clear and tender. Remove from the syrup. Add the rind of a lemon, the juice of two lemons and a small piece of ginger root, cut in thin slices. Boil gently for ten minutes. Fill sterilized jars with the watermelon, cover with the boiling syrup and seal.

Hot Chocolate

1 ½ squares chocolate
¼ cupful sugar
3 cupfuls milk
Salt, few grains
1 cupful boiling water
1 teaspoonful vanilla
Scald milk. Melt chocolate in double boiler, add sugar and salt. Then add boiling water, stirring until smooth. Boil five minutes, add vanilla. Then add mixture to scalded milk, beat until foamy. Serve with whipped cream or marshmallows.

Plum Pudding Sauce

1 cupful powdered sugar
¼ cupful butter
2 eggs
1/3 cupful top milk or cream
2 tablespoons non-alcoholic sherry flavoring
Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the sherry flavoring and the well-beaten egg yolks.When thoroughly mixed stir in the milk or cream. Cook in a double boiler until consistency of custard and then gradually pour it into the stiffly beaten egg whites, beating constantly.

Dutch Apple Cake

2 cups flour
4 tablespoonful fat
1 teaspoonful salt
5 teaspoons baking powder
Milk
5 sour apples
¾ cup sugar cinnamon
Make as for baking powder biscuits [see below]. Spread in a buttered dripping pan and brush over with melted butter. Pare, cut in eights and remove cores from apples. Press sharp edges of apples into the dough in parallel rows lengthwise of pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon mixed with sugar. Bake in a hot oven 450 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. Serve hot or cold with whipped cream.

Orange Biscuits

2 tablespoons grated orange rind
4 teaspoons baking powder
4 tablespoons shortening
2 cups flour
Milk
½ teaspoon salt
Orange juice; loaf sugar
Mix and sift flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in shortening with a knife. Add orange rind and enough milk to make a soft dough. Roll out on slightly floured board to ½ inch thickness. Cut with a small biscuit cutter. Dip loaf sugar in orange juice and press a piece into the top of each biscuit. Bake in a quick oven (450 degrees) for 13 to 15 minutes.

Chocolate Eclairs

Putone-half cupful of butterandone cupful boiling water in a saucepan and bring to the boiling point. The sift in one cupful flour and beat vigorously. When this mixture forms a ball and does not stick to the pan, turn it into a bowl and allow to cool about three minutes. The beat in thoroughly three unbeaten eggs, one at a time. Reserve a little egg for the top. Put mixture through a pastry bag onto a greased baking sheet and make the eclairs about 1 inch wide and 4 inches long. Brush with the egg reserved from the mixture diluted with one teaspoonful of milk, and bake in a moderate oven about 35 minutes. When cold, cover with a chocolate icing. Whip stiff one-half pint of cream, add one-half teaspoonful of vanillaandtwo teaspoonfuls of confectioners’ sugar. Slit the side of the eclairs, fill with whipped cream and serve.

Baking Powder Biscuit

2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons shortening
¾ cup liquid (all milk or half milk and water)
Mix dry ingredients and sift twice. Work in shortening with tips of the fingers or cut in with two knives. Add the liquid gradually mixing with a knife to a soft dough. Owing to the differences in flour, it is not always possible to determine the exact amount of liquid. Toss on a floured board, pat the roll lightly to one-half in thickness. Shape with a biscuit cutter. Bake in hot oven (450-460 degrees) 12 to 15 minutes.

Emergency Biscuit

Use the recipe for baking powder biscuit, using more liquid to make the dough soft enough to drop from the spoon. The amount of the liquid in this recipe, in most cases, will be just half the amount of flour (two cups of flour to one cup liquid). Drop the biscuit on to a well-greased pan, or into greased muffin-tins. Bake in a hot oven (450-460 degrees).

Royal Philadelphia Cinnamon Buns

1 cup sugar
4 ½ cups flour
1 teaspoonful salt
8 teaspoons baking powder
4 tablespoons shortening
2 eggs
1 cup water
4 teaspoons cinnamon
8 tablespoons seeded raisins
Sift four tablespoons measured sugar with flour, salt and baking powder; rub shortening in lightly. Add beaten eggs to water and add slowly to dry ingredients to make soft dough. Roll ¼-inch thick on floured board; brush with melted butter: sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon and raisins. Roll as for jelly roll. Cream 6 tablespoons butter with 6 tablespoons brown sugar. Spread this mixture on bottom and side of iron baking pan or iron skillet. Cut dough in 2-inch pieces, place with cut edges up in pan. Allow to stand 15 minutes; bake in hot oven at 425 degrees about 35 minutes. Remove from pan at once, turning upside down to serve.

I’d love to hear if you try out any of these recipes! Take photos and I might post them on the blog.

Visit the Recipe Wednesday Masterpost for the all the Recipe Wednesday posts, and the Indexed Recipe Wednesday Masterpost for all the recipes broken down individually!

[Support SRNY through PatreonandKo-Fi]
And join us onDiscordfor fun conversation!
I also have an Etsywith up-cycled nerdy crafts

stellar-raven:

Wood-nymph (c. 1900-1915); Frances Benjamin Johnston - photographer.

1920s rather than 1930s, by the look of things, but oh so pretty.