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Hi Everyone and welcome back to another artifact corner. In honor of Valentine’s Day, happening just a couple of days ago, we will be looking at a small book, the perfect size to fit in a pocket. The book is called “A Token of Affection. Poetry of the Heart.” The book was published in London, by Charles Tilt of Fleet Street. There is no publishing date, but it must have been published sometime before 1840. There is an inscription on the flyleaf that reads, “For little Frances, from her affectionate friend, H. C.C. Hartford, Oct. 16th, 1840.” Little Frances is our Fannie Delord Webb Hall, the last family member to reside in the house. She was born in Albany in 1834, and lived in our home for the first four years of her life, being raised by her Grandmother Betsey Delord. She then moved down to Connecticut to be raised and educated by her Aunt Eliza. So, at the time of receiving this gift, she was only six years old. But the book must have been treasured, because it has survived almost 200 years. Let’s take a sneak peak inside.
One of the first poems in the book is called “Affections Keepsake.” It reads as follows:

“Affection never for a moment tires,

But still the same, for ever will love on;

The cloud of sorrow oftentimes conspires,

To shade it’s brilliant fervor; but when gone,

How bursts it forth in all it’s radiant fires,

To shame the former light with which it shone.

So ever be it still – forbid it Heaven,

That lasting hindrance to true love be given.”

Another poem in the book is meant to be set to music. It says this poem is arranged for voice and piano-forte. It’s called, “How like yon evening star of heaven.”

“How like yon evening star of heaven

Was Ella’s eye,

With joy was mixed no bitter leaven

When she was by:

Nor thought I then of ought besides,

The groves and flowers

All yielded unto her their pride,

In those sweet hours.

When summer days were long and fair,

How we would pine

Until appear’d yon welcome star

On Us to shine.

But why o’er joy departed cast

Such lingering gaze?

’Tis set no more to rise – are past

It’s latest rays.”

Lastly, we’ll read a short poem towards the end of the book. It’s called, “The Origin of the Red Rose.”

“As first in Eden’s blissful bowers,

Young eve survey’d her countless flowers,

An opening rose of purest white

She mark’d with eyes that beam’d delight,

It’s leaves she kiss’d, and straight it drew

From beauty’s lips the vermeil hue.”

This little book is in quite good condition. The leather binding is almost perfect, and the gold leaf lettering is also pretty much perfect. The pages have some foxing, meaning browning and spotting, but this is very common for books that are almost 200 years old. The ink inscription is still very clear and legible as well. This is a beautiful little book, and we are so lucky to have it in our collections. We hope you all had a lovely Valentine’s Day! Thanks so much for stopping by.

The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Sunny Morning by MusicLFiles
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/7813-sunny-morning
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Artist website: https://cemmusicproject.wixsite.com/musiclibraryfiles

Hi Everyone, and welcome back to another artifact corner. Today we will be looking at a champagne bottle from ……. Well, we are not really sure. The label on the bottle is pretty distressed and very hard to read. The first two letters are B and O, but the rest is hard to decipher. On the bottom right of the label it says Mareuil Sur A…. And the rest is illegible. There is foil on the neck of the bottle, and some hemp cord around the neck as well. The bottle is hand blown green glass, and is completely in tact with no chips or cracks in it. The cork is broken, but still in the bottle, which is pretty unique. There is no champagne left in the bottle, so whoever purchased this, enjoyed it’s contents. Let’s learn a bit more about the history of champagne.

The first domestic vines in the Champagne region can be traced back to the 1st century. The Champagne region is located in Northern France, and has pretty much the perfect growing conditions for the grapes that make the famous wine. Throughout the Middle Ages, this region supplied most of the white wine that people across Europe purchased. Conflicts (such as Frances Hundred Years War with England) and climate changes directly effected the production of wine in the region, but production always resumed. The beautiful white wine being produced in the Champagne region was until this point, just that, white wine with no carbonation. The real birth of the fabulously fizzy drink starts in the late 1660’s when a benedictine monk named Dom Pierre Perignon, started blending wines, and using a second fermentation process, which allowed for the carbonation of the wine. Upon tasting his creation he is said to have exclaimed, “Come, for I am drinking stars!” The upper echelons of society quickly fell in love with the effervescent beverage, and soon it was being served at the French royal court, and all around Europe.

So, how exactly is champagne made? All of the grapes are picked by hand between August and October. They are then pressed by hand, making sure that only the clearest juice is allowed. Then the juice is placed in a cask or tank and the first fermentation begins. The result is a still (not sparkling) wine, which has had all of the sugar naturally found in the grape fermented out of it. Next is the process of assemblage, or the blending of the wines. This can combine Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc and Chardonnay, creating a complex flavor profile. This steps normally happens 5 months after the first fermentation. Then the wine is fermented a second time. A mixture of yeast, yeast nutrients, and sugar are added to the wine. The wine is then bottled and put in a cool cellar to slowly ferment. This process is what creates carbon dioxide, and makes the wine bubbly. All quality Champagne is aged for at least five years. Following the aging, the wine goes through the riddling process. The bottles are turned upside down, and given a 1/8 of a turn everyday. This is to force the dead yeast cells to the neck of the bottle. The last step is the disgorging, or the removal of the dead yeast cells. The bottle is kept upside down, and the neck is frozen in a ice salt bath. The bottle is opened, and the frozen plug is removed, clearing out the dead yeast cells, and leaving only the sparkling wine behind. As you can see, this is a very labor intensive process, and part of the reason quality champagnes can carry a hefty price tag.

In researching this champagne bottle, we think this might be a bottle of Bollinger Champagne that was made prior to 1880’s. We attempted to reach out to Bollinger to see if they could identify the bottle, but we haven’t heard back yet. If we do, there could be a part two for this video. This bottle is in good condition, and a reminder to celebrate every now and again, and we are so lucky to have it in our collections. Special thanks to my research assistant Sara Sands. Thanks so much for stopping by.

The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Sunny Morning by MusicLFiles
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/7813-sunny-morning
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Artist website: https://cemmusicproject.wixsite.com/musiclibraryfiles

Hi everyone, and welcome back to another artifact corner. Today we will be looking at two small paper documents from 1856. The first is a document stating that Frank Hall and Fannie Delord Webb were intending to marry, and the second is the marriage license itself. Frank and Fannie were married on May 14, 1856. The couple was married in Hartford, CT, which is where Fannie Delord Webb was residing at the time. Marriage licenses were relatively new in the mid-19th Century. Let’s learn a bit more about the history of marriage licenses.

The first documented marriage happened in Ancient Mesopotamia in 2350 BCE. The initial reason for marriages was mostly legal, and was used to help navigate the complicated intermingling of families wealth and properties. So, the concept of the union of two people was more of a business transaction, than it was a love match. This ultimately meant that most of the marriages were amongst people of means. If you had no land or money, you didn’t have much to protect when entering into a union, therefore, you didn’t need to be legally married. The actual word marriage, comes from Middle English, and is first seen in literature somewhere between 1250-1300. So, we see marriage licenses being issued in England around the 1300’s. Again, marriages were entered into by both rich and poor, but a marriage license was issued for people with means, and it was a financial transaction. Most marriages in the Middle Ages for wealthy people were arranged. It was about creating alliances and consolidating wealth, not a romantic union.

With Europeans moving to North America, they brought their customs with them, and that included marriages. Marriage licenses have been required since 1639 in Massachusetts, with their use gradually expanding to other jurisdictions. Throughout the 17th and 18th Centuries in America, it was not required for couples to obtain a marriage license before forming a union. It was until the mid 19th Century that the US formally made it a law for couples to have a license to marry. Actually, prior to Frank and Fannie getting married in 1856, we have the record of Fannie’s parents marriage. They did not have a marriage license, they instead had a marriage indenture. This literally meant that Fannie’s mom became the property of Fannie’s dad. Not cool. By the mid 1800’s, the licensure made each partner equal participants in the union, as long as you were a man and a woman of the same ethnicity. For mixed race couples, they had to wait until 1967 to have their marriage legally recognized. For same sex couples, they had to wait until 2015 to have their unions recognized legally in the United States.

These two small pieces of paper are a look at marriage in the Victorian period in the United States, and a reminder of how far we have come. Thankfully, most people entering into marriages today are for a love match, and not strictly a legal union. These pieces of paper are in quite good condition, and we are so lucky to have them in our collections. Thanks so much for stopping by.

The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Sunny Morning by MusicLFiles
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/7813-sunny-morning
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Artist website: https://cemmusicproject.wixsite.com/musiclibraryfiles