Welcome to our blog, where we embark on a captivating journey through time, exploring the rich tapestry of history and genealogy.
In this edition, we'll delve into the treasure trove of historical news articles dated December 15, unearthing stories that resonate with genealogists and history enthusiasts alike.
From local happenings to global events, we'll uncover the stories that shaped the lives of our ancestors, providing valuable insights for those on a quest to discover their roots.
So, grab your magnifying glass and step into the past as we unravel the December 15 historical headlines that may hold the missing pieces of your family's history puzzle.
1898 - Charm of Farm Life. The Rural Habitation is the Place Where Home Ties Are Strongest and Purest.
No one pretends that farmers are making money rapidly; they have their vexations and discouragements as do others, but they have several things to be very thankful for. They have good homes, in nearly every case, plenty of wholesome food and decent clothes. They are not under the eye of the task-master, nor working under great nervous strain, with every minute lost from work counted against them when pay day comes. They need not, in the language of the shops, "be afraid of their jobs;" they are ... Read MORE...
Daily Herald - Mississippi - December 15, 1898
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The Munsing
Plated Underwear
The Northwest Knitting Co., Minneapolis
The Ladies' Home Journal
September 1898
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Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada (Port La-Joie, Isle-St-Jean, Acadia)
Charlottetown, P.E.I., Dec. 15 - With two known dead and three missing persons believed also to have lost their lives in the flames, the Falconwood hospital for the insane was in ashes today after a spectacular fire that spread terror among the hospital's 400 patients.
The two known dead were:
DON MacKENZIE, 65, who fell from a top floor window as he tried to grab hold of an extension ladder.
FRANCIS MacDONALD, 35, who jumped from another window.
Three others believed to have perished... Read MORE...
Stevens Point Daily Journal - Stevens Point, Wisconsin - December 15, 1931
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1931 - FIRE AT HOSPITAL FOR INSANE KILLS THREE, 300 PATIENTS DRIVEN INTO COLD OF NIGHT.
Charlottetown, P.E.I., Dec. 15 - With two known dead and three missing persons believed also to have lost their lives in the flames, the Falconwood hospital for the insane was in ashes today after a spectacular fire that spread terror among the hospital's 400 patients.
The two known dead were:
DON MacKENZIE, 65, who fell from a top floor window as he tried to grab hold of an extension ladder.
FRANCIS MacDONALD, 35, who jumped from another window.
Three others believed to have perished... Read MORE...
Stevens Point Daily Journal - Stevens Point, Wisconsin - December 15, 1931
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Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA
Allentown, Pa. (UPI) - A series of gas explosions destroyed the Mountainville Inn Sunday, killing six persons including a newspaper employe apparently trying to photograph the incident.
Some 24 persons were injured, two of them critically. The injured included some of the crowd attracted to the scene by the first blasts.
The first explosion in the street in front of the tavern routed about 30 patrons and employes and brought residents running from nearby homes. As they gathered outside, the ... Read MORE...
Lebanon Daily News - Lebanon, Pennsylvania - December 15, 1958
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1958 - SIX KILLED BY ALLENTOWN GAS BLASTS. FIRE SPECTATORS ARE VICTIMS OF HOTEL EXPLOSION.
Allentown, Pa. (UPI) - A series of gas explosions destroyed the Mountainville Inn Sunday, killing six persons including a newspaper employe apparently trying to photograph the incident.
Some 24 persons were injured, two of them critically. The injured included some of the crowd attracted to the scene by the first blasts.
The first explosion in the street in front of the tavern routed about 30 patrons and employes and brought residents running from nearby homes. As they gathered outside, the ... Read MORE...
Lebanon Daily News - Lebanon, Pennsylvania - December 15, 1958
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1800s Cooking Tips and Recipes
Potato snow (1892)
Prepare the potatoes and let stand for several hours in cold water. Cook in boiling salted water until tender. Drain well and press through a colander into a deep dish. Let them lie as they fall. Put in the baker until very...Read MORE...
clickamericana.com
Dunkirk, New York, USA
Wire Window Screens Prevented Easy Access to the Fire Escapes - Nothing Saved from the Building.
Dunkirk, N. Y., Dec. 14 - From the smoldering ruins of the Fredonia State Normal and Training School, which was destroyed by fire at 6 o'clock this morning, one charred body has been recovered, and it is now certain that seven persons perished in the fire.
There were seventy-five young women students in the building, of whom six perished. The other victim was the aged janitor. The dead... Read MORE...
The New York Times - New York, New York - December 15, 1900
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1900 - SEVEN WERE KILLED IN NORMAL SCHOOL FIRE. SIX OF THE VICTIMS GIRL STUDENTS OF THE FREDONIA INSTITUTION.
Wire Window Screens Prevented Easy Access to the Fire Escapes - Nothing Saved from the Building.
Dunkirk, N. Y., Dec. 14 - From the smoldering ruins of the Fredonia State Normal and Training School, which was destroyed by fire at 6 o'clock this morning, one charred body has been recovered, and it is now certain that seven persons perished in the fire.
There were seventy-five young women students in the building, of whom six perished. The other victim was the aged janitor. The dead... Read MORE...
The New York Times - New York, New York - December 15, 1900
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Pillsbury's Vitos The Ideal Wheat Food for Breakfast
Pillsbury-Washburn Flour Mills Co., Ltd., Minneapolis, Minn.
The Ladies' Home Journal
October 1898
Visit Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA!
Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Atlanta, Ga., Dec. 15. - One of the most terrible railroad accidents ever known in Georgia, occurred last night at midnight, fifteen miles from this city on the Georgia Pacific road. The East Tennessee, and Georgia Pacific run the same track to Austel. Last night the Georgia Pacific mixed train with coach and one sleeper stopped at the tank to be watered. The coach and sleeper were on the trestle thirty feet high. The East Tennessee passenger going at the speed of thirty miles an hour, struck... Read MORE...
Daily Iowa Capital - Des Moines, Iowa - December 15, 1885
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1885 - A FATAL WRECK. FEARFUL ACCIDENT ON THE GEORGIA RAILROAD. FIFTEEN PERSONS KILLED OR FATALLY INJURED. A TERRIBLE RAILROAD ACCIDENT.
Atlanta, Ga., Dec. 15. - One of the most terrible railroad accidents ever known in Georgia, occurred last night at midnight, fifteen miles from this city on the Georgia Pacific road. The East Tennessee, and Georgia Pacific run the same track to Austel. Last night the Georgia Pacific mixed train with coach and one sleeper stopped at the tank to be watered. The coach and sleeper were on the trestle thirty feet high. The East Tennessee passenger going at the speed of thirty miles an hour, struck... Read MORE...
Daily Iowa Capital - Des Moines, Iowa - December 15, 1885
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1791 - December 15 - The Bill of Rights takes effect
The Bill of Rights is the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, confirming the fundamental rights of American citizens. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of religion, speech, and the press, the rights of peaceful assembly and petition.
George Mason, the "Father of the Bill of Rights," carefully wrote out these amendments to ensure individual liberties. He was a lifelong champion of the rights and freedoms of people.
The first 10 amendments guarantee the right of the people... Read MORE...
www.americaslibrary.gov
December 15, 1791
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1800s Advice and Etiquette for Ladies
Never eat every morsel that is upon your plate; and surely no lady will ever scrape her plate, or pass the bread round it, as if to save the servants the trouble of washing...Read MORE...
The Ladies' Book of Etiquette, and Manual of Politeness: A Complete Handbook for the Use of the Lady in Polite Society... by Florence Hartley, January 1, 1872
New Bedford, Massachusetts, USA
We make the following extracts from a letter recently written to the Titusville Herald by Capt. LEONARD HARTWELL, of New-Bedford, Mass.:
"Having spent the past four years on whaling voyages in the Pacific and Arctic Oceans, I have no hesitation in stating that the Territory of Alaska was, in my opinion, a good bargain for the United States. The climate is not too severe for Americans and not so trying to the constitution as tropical countries. The soil is adapted to grazing, and the common... Read MORE...
The New York Times - New York, New York - December 15, 1870
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1870 - Our Frozen Possessions - A Sea Captain's Opinion About Mr. Seward's Purchase - The North-West Pasasge.
We make the following extracts from a letter recently written to the Titusville Herald by Capt. LEONARD HARTWELL, of New-Bedford, Mass.:
"Having spent the past four years on whaling voyages in the Pacific and Arctic Oceans, I have no hesitation in stating that the Territory of Alaska was, in my opinion, a good bargain for the United States. The climate is not too severe for Americans and not so trying to the constitution as tropical countries. The soil is adapted to grazing, and the common... Read MORE...
The New York Times - New York, New York - December 15, 1870
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1890 THE BIG PROVIDENCE FIRE. THOUSANDS OF CURIOUS PERSONS WATCHING THE RUINS.
PROVIDENCE, R. I., Dec. 14. - Thousands of spectators flocked around the scene of Saturday's half-million-dollar fire to-day. Chief of Police Child ordered the circle of the ropes contracted to within safe distance of the tottering walls in order that the crowds might better survey the ruins. Trains coming into the city and the street-car service brought a multitude of spectators, who came and went till late this evening. Portions of the walls which remain, cornices, and a network of...
Read MORE...
The New York Times
New York, New York
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1888 Fell Through Ice
At Ithaca, N.Y., on the 12th E. S. Nevins, of Orange, N.J., a student and Maggie Sullivan, a teacher, broke through the ice while skating and were drowned.
St Joseph Herald
Saint Joseph, Michigan
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1869 A Morocco Factory in Charlestown, Mass., Burned.
BOSTON, Dec. 14. - The morocco factory of C. C. PERKINS, in Charlestown, including the machinery and a portion of the stock, was destroyed by fire last night. The loss in 20,000, which is partially covered by insurance.
The New York Times
New York, New York
Visit Charlestown, Massachusetts, USA*!
PROVIDENCE, R. I., Dec. 14. - Thousands of spectators flocked around the scene of Saturday's half-million-dollar fire to-day. Chief of Police Child ordered the circle of the ropes contracted to within safe distance of the tottering walls in order that the crowds might better survey the ruins. Trains coming into the city and the street-car service brought a multitude of spectators, who came and went till late this evening. Portions of the walls which remain, cornices, and a network of...
Read MORE...
The New York Times
New York, New York
Visit Providence, Rhode Island, USA!
1888 Fell Through Ice
At Ithaca, N.Y., on the 12th E. S. Nevins, of Orange, N.J., a student and Maggie Sullivan, a teacher, broke through the ice while skating and were drowned.
St Joseph Herald
Saint Joseph, Michigan
Visit Ithaca, New York, USA!
1869 A Morocco Factory in Charlestown, Mass., Burned.
BOSTON, Dec. 14. - The morocco factory of C. C. PERKINS, in Charlestown, including the machinery and a portion of the stock, was destroyed by fire last night. The loss in 20,000, which is partially covered by insurance.
The New York Times
New York, New York
Visit Charlestown, Massachusetts, USA*!
America - Did you know?
The state of Rhode Island could fit into Alaska 425 times!Quebec - Did you know?
In New France, a seigneur's home was sometimes built of timber but more often of stone, with dimensions rarely exceeding twenty feet by forty, it was not much more pretentious than the homes of the more prosperous and thrifty among the seigneur's...Read MORE...Daily Life in New France (www.chroniclesofamerica.com/ french/ daily_life_in_new_france.htm)
Picture of the Day
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Miami River, 1908
Embroidery Lessons with Colored Studies for 1899
The Brainerd & Armstrong Co.
No. 6 Union Street, New London, Conn.
The Ladies' Home Journal
September 1898
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