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Saturday, November 30, 2019

Eisenhower Late for this Post

#button #campaigncollectibles #eisenhower #foundastory #estatesalefinds #urbanarcheology
I wanted to post this on Election Day but, as you may have guessed, Eisenhower or more late.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Found films! Detroit V Yankees late 1930s

#foundfilms #sports #newyorkyankees #baseball #vintagesports #bronxbombers #sportshistory #baseballnostalgia #detroittigers #16mm #foundastory #estatesalefinds #urbanarcheology
Found films! This is a discoveryI am really excited about viewing. To visit Yankee stadium today with a camera is pfft! No big deal. In the 1930s or 40’s....with a 16mm home movie camera!? Holy Cow! I’m not sure of the year and can only guess once I see players numbers or cars in the lot. It is definitely pre 1960s. What am I waiting for!? To be continued.....

from Instagram

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Things found in books: exhibit 11a - The New York Exchange for Women’s Work.

#thingsfoundinbooks #civilwar #newyorkcity #bookmarks #foundastory #history #womenatwork #Earlyentrepreneurs #urbanarcheology #estatesalefinds
Things found in books: exhibit 11a - The New York Exchange for Women’s Work. The Civil War pitted brother against brother with the result being a multitude of War widows. This affected the rich and poor and everyone in between. In New York City many women who were familiar with the high life before the war, found themselves with no husband and no support.

Unable to enter whatever jobs there were for women at the time, it seemed as thought there was no where for them to turn. That was until 2 ladies saw the problem and felt the best solution was an exchange. Exchanges had been around since the 1830s and were a kind of thrift store featuring knitted items and baked goods made by the war widows.

As you can see from the card, a store front on Fifth avenue was probably a guarantee for success. In time, it would be, but not without loans from wealthy providers as a sort of bridge during the lean times. This particular exchange was not unique, there were many others like it around the country. It really succeeded when a restaurant was added making it the place to be seen.

What’s really amazing is that my research revealed that this exchange survived 125 years. It closed in 2003 when the expense of doing business in New York City became cost prohibitive. It’s a shame we don’t read as much as we used to. There is a lot you can learn by opening a book.