Saturday, February 9, 2013

THE MORE THINGS CHANGE...

...the more they stay the same!

We’re in the middle of a whopping snowstorm here in Maine. The driving conditions were pretty wild yesterday – lots of fender-benders in town as people slid their way through stop signs and around curves.

Now, consider this – from a newspaper in 1899:
“Monday morning the sleighs slewed badly and in several instances it certainly looked as though an accident could not be averted. A man and woman were driving up Water street at a fair rate of speed and when a little past the Evans House they turned out for a team. Then it was that the sleigh commenced to go around and it kept turning until it was completely turned, and the horse with a comical expression in his eye was gazing down the street instead of the other way as he had expected.”
Reporter Journal
{Gardiner, Maine}


The sleigh at the top is a Portland Cutter, perhaps the most popular form of transportation in Maine at the time – this one was advertised in the 1902 Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog. The copy assures us it was “made of...solid panels, guaranteed not to split, warp or crack...second growth hickory...braces, bolts and clips best grade Norway iron...spring back and spring cushion...body, black, neatly striped...nickel plated arm rails and dash rail...”
          It sold for $16.95.

If you had a big family, a Portland Cutter wouldn’t provide enough seating for you, your spouse, and your children. A large family would need the equivalent of today’s station wagon, and Sears had just the vehicle – a Russian Bob Sleigh for only $46.90.


 “Our Russian beauty combines elegance and comfort,” the advertisement claims. “Wide, roomy, comfortable body...double sweep easy back, shaped for comfort and elegance...spring backs and cushion, richly upholstered with imported English broadcloth...body panels green, gear dark Brewster green, striped to harmonize with the body...”

See the curved front on both of those sleighs? My grandfather told me that curved panel is called the dash, and it protected the people in the sleighs from the snow and ice (and other unpleasant substances!) tossed backwards into the air by the horses’ feet as they trotted down the street --  the dash is the precursor to the front instrument panel we call the dashboard.

I can’t imagine doing the errands in these things – sometimes we take for granted the ease and convenience of our lives today.

It’s nice to know, though, that the more some things change, the more they stay the same: bad driving conditions in 1899 are still bad driving conditions in 2013.

There’s an odd sense of security in that.

23 comments:

  1. Hi Deb! I am so glad that you posted here today, because I have been thinking of you and wondered how you are doing with the storm.

    What a fascinating post. That station wagon sleigh is wonderful, and the prices on both sleighs sure seemed reasonable.

    Stay warm,

    Kathy M.



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    1. I just can't imagine having to go out in one of those, especially on a day like today! It's just wild up here, but things beginning to calm down. Nice to hear from you, Kathy!

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  2. The Portland Cutter has a distinctly Egyptian appearance. I could see a Pharaoh charging across the desert s???s.

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    1. I never thought of it that way, Mike, but you're absolutely right -- VERY Egyptian! I wonder if there's any logic to that?

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  3. Great post on sleighs -- sleighs have always seemed rather romantic to me, but then I never had to depend upon one to take me from one place to another in cold, miserable snow storms. Hope Maine weather doesn't get too bad, tho it does look like you are in for a bit of a blow.

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    1. Things are much better tonight, Joan. We broke all kinds of records here, though -- this is the most snow we've had in one storm since 1880-something! Incredible...and I'm glad I didn't have to do the errands in a sleigh (or a Toyota, for that matter)! Thanks for your commments.

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  4. Very interesting. Sleighing accidents! I've always seen pictures of them one at a time so I never gave it any thought. And the origin of dashboard!

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    1. I just love it when I can make a connection between a word we use everyday and an origin from a hundred years ago -- it just fascinates me, Helen! Thanks for taking the time to read my post!

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  5. I never knew about the dash or the origin of the dashboard. Now, all of a sudden, I am thinking of "dashing through the snow" (as in Jingle Bells).

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  6. Oh, good thought! I suppose that connects somehow...I guess I'm going to have to do some verbal sleuthing on this "dash" thing...I love a good challenge.

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  7. I'd suggest you stay indoors and don't contemplate going out in that snow, even if you have a sleigh as nice as those.

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  8. Thank you for a different slant on the prompt with the history of sleighs. They somehow present a romantic image but was the reality differen? Last year, I saw a wonderful exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland on Catherine the Great of Russia. One of the exhibits was her sleigh - magnificebnt.

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  9. In Dutch a dashboard is called a ... dashboard, so this was interesting. I guess if you own such a giant sleigh you prefer it to snow the whole year round.

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  10. I wonder if you could get speeding tickets and parking fines with them? Fascinating post, thanks.

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    1. Believe it or not, Alan, but you COULD get speeding "tickets!" Oftentimes you were not allowed to drive your horse faster than a trot while inside city limits...and in some areas -- like loading/unloading areas -- you had to stay at a walking pace!

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  11. Well that was a different take on the snow theme. I enjoyed the descriptions too, especially of the horse with a comical look in his eye!

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  12. Now I can see the point of a dashhoard; but can someone tell me what my Blogger dashboard prevents.
    That second sleigh is really impressivel I fancy a ride in one of those.

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  13. Thanks! A fine journey back to tougher but simpler times.

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    1. Thanks for visiting -- it's always fun to see a new face in the comments! And I shall check out your blog, too!

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  14. I love these!!
    Not me driving, of course!!
    Glad to see you have resolved your Google/Blogger issues.
    :)~
    HUGZ

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    1. It's funny, TB...I didn't do anything to resolve this! THEY did (and I'm assuming it's Google+, Blogger's parent company). At the beginning of the year, I couldn't access -- and now I can.
      But, at any rate, it's nice to be back!

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  15. I'm convinced -- a sleigh is not the best way to go! HA! Next Christmas, I will boycott all singing of "Jingle Bells."

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    1. I've been in a sleigh a couple of times, Wendy, and absolutely loved it -- smooth, swift -- and those bells are just beautiful. But I sure wouldn't want to travel any great distance in that cold!

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