Pepys’s Ghost (1899)
In this strangest of diaries, the author and adventurer Edwin Emerson Jr voices one year in his life through the mouth of Samuel Pepys….more
19th Century
W. E. B. Du Bois’ Hand-Drawn Infographics of African-American Life (1900)
Visually dazzling set of hand-drawn charts created by Du Bois, condensing an enormous amount of data on African-American life into aesthetically daring and easily d…more
Hypnotism Posters (ca. 1900)
A set of amusing turn-of-the-century hypnotism posters showing hypnotised people up to various strange shenanigans….more
Portraits of Ellis Island Immigrants
A selection on Augustus Sherman’s photographs of immgrants passing through Ellis Island on their way to new lives in the United States….more
Bird Gods (1898)
A book on various birds from mythology by the American linguist, poet, and critic Charles DeKay (1848-1935)….more
In Search of the Impossible: The Perfect English Rabbit
The aesthetic requirements for achieving the “Ideal English Rabbit”, the benchmark of perfect markings for a particular breed of rabbit first developed in the middl…more
Palacio’s Plan for Colossal Monument to Columbus (1890)
The truly gigantic monument planned by the Bilboan architect Alberto Palacio designed for the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair in honour of Christopher Columbus….more
Highlights from the 20,000+ maps made freely available online by New York Public Library
The New York Public Library have made available online, free from all restrictions, high resolution copies of more than 20,000 historic maps. Containing maps from t…more
Horse Drawn Fire Engines (1896)
Four horse drawn fire engines roar up a snow-covered Newark, New Jersey, street while spectators watch from the sidelines. Until the mid-19th century most fire engi…more
Rip Van Winkle (1896)
The first film adaptation of Washington Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle”, a short story about a man who awakes after a 20 year long sleep to a huge white beard on hi…more
Landscape and Marine Views of Norway
Selection of images from “Landscape and marine views of Norway” (ca.1890-1900), a set in the Library of Congress’ Photochrom Prints Collection (via Flickr Commons)….more
The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (1895)
This re-enactment — just 18 seconds long — of the beheading of Mary, Queen of Scots, is likely to have been the very first film to use trained actors, and the v…more