I think these ads are from people planning little rendezvous!

I will be at hotel on Monday at half-past two, if I do not see you, then Tuesday at the same place and hour.  Pray come; I want to see you before I leave the country.  B--------Y.



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Two more ads from the article featuring me in the Rutgers Magazine, both of which I've been itching to post since I got the invitation to be a part of this spread:

Will handsome young lady that is in mourning, wears Spanish veil on her head, sat at Spingler House window Thursday… Read full post »

So, the reason you've gone two days in a row with no new blog post is that yesterday I defended my dissertation!  Hooray!  Of course, it is far from perfect and I'll be making some big revisions before submitting it to the graduate school, but at least one hurdle is past.
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So, some really good news today: I am featured in the Spring 2010 issue of Rutgers Magazine.  Just a short blurb, some great ads and a very clever little spread.  Yay for publicity, and thanks to the editor for giving me this great opportunity.

A couple of the ads are…

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These ads were all on the same day, and although they're not all romantic, I thought they were each so interesting in their way that I decided, why not, I'm gonna post them all. The first two in particular are very unique, which is why they deserve a mention.

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You see lots of matrimonials from men in which they specify that they want a woman "of means" or with a fortune for their wives.  And it is interesting to me how they also say that they want a loving wife, with no sense that this could be hard to reconcile…

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I've posted a few ads like this one before (too lazy to link to all of them, but my favorite is here), but I liked this one especially.  I wonder what this guy's method was?  Or at least, what he claimed his method was, because I for one think he was/…

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These two ads were right next to each other, and they're great examples (especially the first) of why people found matrimonial ads so disturbing. The businesslike nature really worried observers, who thought, you know, if people just got married for money - or if there was no difference between a…

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Now these are entertaining.  I don't know if they are all to or from cheatin' hearts, except the last one - and in fact they might not be "love" ads as this blog is meant to be about, but whatever.  I've been putting up so many depressing ads lately (they are…

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I almost forgot to put up a post today. Been so distracted with life being super busy right now, blogging has kind of taken a back seat, but I am still here for you, dear readers. Today, another sad one:

Louise - In vain I have tried… Read full post »

Does anyone else see something seriously wrong with this picture?

Will the young lady in deep mourning who sat next to and noticed the gentleman on her left at Booth's theatre, on Monday evening, July 5, communicate by note? Address H.C., Herald office.

Nice. Soliciting a woman in deep mourning./…

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This is very much your stereotypical missed connection ad, but there is something about it I rather like.  The trouble of writing about history is that you're so limited by what evidence you can find.  This is a great example of a little piece of evidence that goes a very long/…

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...it probably is.

Check out these two ads for example:

Charming lady of fine appearance, loving disposition, worth $30,000, desires to marry at once; no objection poor or workingman.  Will assist husband financially immediately after marriage.  No triflers.  Mrs. Morton, J.Q., 98 5t… Read full post »

First off, I totally forgot to post an awesome link that my uncle sent me the other day. Please check this out - it is wonderful. If I had all the time in the world, I would love to make one of these for my ads. What is…

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Well, the guy's not looking for romance, but at least he's honest:

A young man is preparing to open a dry goods store in Spring, wishes an introduction to a lady suitable for a wife and assistant, and partner in business; owns the store, dwelling and stock, with $10,000… Read full post »

Some of you may remember that guy from Hungary who advertised for a wife and I said, no way am I buying this man is for real. Well, here's another of his ilk:

French nobleman, with celebrated name, high situation and means, wants to marry a rich American heiress. …

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I''m going through some pretty busy times right now, which is making blogging hard - not so much because of time (although that's part of it) but because when you're stressed it's hard to be entertaining.  So I thought, without looking too long, I'd try to find some ads which don't…

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This ad struck my eye today; I see lots of ads from young widows, but not so many from widowers. I don't think that's particularly meaningful, but it's rare enough that when I do see them, I take note. I have no real theories on why this might be…

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You all probably remember back when I had that op-ed in the New York Times (I mean, how could you forget?), and one of the ads was from a man looking for a woman he met at the Liederkranz Ball. And then I posted about that in…

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Unbelievably, these two ads were printed on the same day. What is wrong with these men?

I met you three times yesterday. First, Broadway and 18th st., and last, Broadway and 21st st., and you must know am great admirer. Will you grant honor of your acquaintance? Describe dress to… Read full post »

Okay, y'all, you remember there were a few ads that made me slightly uncomfortable because they were apparently between a brother and sister, but seemed a little too close?  (They are here and here.)  In both cases, I said I didn't think the two people involved were actually in some gross…

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Okay, I will grant that the first name Elizabeth and the last name Bennett are quite common, so it's perfectly reasonable that someone might have that name.  There are probably women now named Elizabeth Bennett.  But I can't help wonder if the name this advertiser gives is her own, or if/…

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I love finding these little ads that make no sense because I know that there was someone who did know what the hell the author was talking about.  To quote a contemporary writer's thoughts on the matter: "somewhere lives and breathes the mysterious being who holds the key of this thrilling…

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People often "misuse" quotation marks (in fact, there are entire websites devoted to these charming snafus. What I want to know is, in the first ad below, is that a deliberate use of quotes, or is this widow lady about to get a lot of unexpectedly sleazy replies to her…

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These two ads, as you see, were right next to each other, and I thought they were both so charming that I'd just put them up together:

Heart for sale - Who'll bid.  Address for one week with carte de visite, Clara Montalban, station G. Broadway.

Two… Read full post »