1913 Coca-Cola Advertisement

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Saturday, July 5, 1913: Ruth and I went up to McEwensville this evening. I wanted to go up to church. There was a festival, so I went there for awhile, but didn’t have a very good time.

Source; Kimball’s Dairy Farmer Magazine (June 1, 1913)

For That Picnic

–to insure complete success take along a case of

Coca-Cola

The satisfying beverage—in field or forest; at home or in town. As pure and wholesome as it is temptingly good .

Delicious—Refreshing

Thirst—Quenching

Demand the Genuine—

Refuse substitutes.

Send for Free Booklet.

2-A

At Soda Fountains or Carbonated in Bottles.

THE COCA-COLA COMPANY, ATLANTA, GA.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

It sounds like fun to go to a festival on a Saturday evening after a hard week of work. Why didn’t Grandma have a very good time?. . . Did her sister Ruth enjoy herself?

What foods did they eat at the festival? Was Coca Cola sold?

1913 Kodak Camera Ad

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Wednesday, June 25, 1913: Went up to McEwensville this afternoon to transact some very important business, or rather so it seemed to me.

Now what could it be? Nothing less than that I sent off for a camera. I’ve wanted one for a long time, but thought I could hardly afford it. I was reminded that I really wanted it only by finding a camera catalog up in the garret yesterday. And as I had earned almost five dollars during the last two weeks, I carried the project through.

Source: Ladies Home Journal (May, 1913)

If it isn’t an Eastman, it isn’t a Kodak.

It’s springtime. Every field and park and woodland—every walk and ride, every joyous outing, invites your KODAK.

Eastman Kodak Co.,

Rochester, N.Y., The Kodak City.

Catalogue free at your dealers or by mail.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

A camera sounds like a lot of fun. What a great thing for Grandma to spend her money on!

Grandma made quite a bit picking strawberries—and, of course, she had money that she received earlier in the spring as graduation presents.

1913 Quelques Fleurs Perfume Advertisement

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Sunday, June 22, 1913: Went to Sunday School this afternoon.

QUELQUES FLEURS

New Perfume HOUBIGANT

Abroad, the odor of the hour

Sample Bottle will delight you–25¢

Park & Tilford, 225 Fifth Ave., New York

“CAPTIVATED PARIS IN A DAY”

Source: Ladies Home Journal (October, 1913)

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

When I was young I used to put a little perfume on before going to church. (You never knew where you might see a cute guy who would appreciate perfume.)

Did Grandma also spritz on a little perfume before going to Sunday School?

This is what Wikipedia says about Quelques Fleurs perfume:

In 1912, the Houbigant presented Quelques Fleurs, the first true multi-floral bouquet ever created. Up to that time, floral fragrances had been mostly single flowers or were blended with herbs and other essences. The Genealogy of Perfumes cites Quelques Fleurs as a landmark innovation that established a totally new fragrance classification and influenced other compositions for years afterwards including many of today’s important fragrances.

Old Washington DC Excursion Train Ad

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Tuesday, June 10, 1913: Nothing much doing.

Source: Watsontown Record and Star (May 1, 1914)

$3.00 LOW RATE

Sunday Excursion

Washington

Sunday, May 3

A Rare Chance to Visit the National Capital

SPECIAL TRAIN LEAVES

Williamsport . . . 12:01 A.M.

Market Street. . . 12:05 A.M.

Muncy . . . 12:30 A.M.

Montgomery. . . 12: 38 A.M.

Dewart. . . 12:47 A.M.

Watsontown . . . 12:52 A.M.

Milton. . . 1:02 A.M.

Returning, Special Train will leave Washington. . . 5:40 P.M.

The Trip of a life-time. An education as well as a delight. An opportunity to see “The Heart of the Nation,” a city of magnificent distances, unlike any other city in the country.

An Ideal Sunday Outing

See the New National Museum, Library of Congress, Capitol Building, Concoran Art Gallery, and the varied sights of Washington, “The City Beautiful.”

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Grandma’s sister Ruth left the previous day for a week-long trip to Washington DC.

Today the 200 mile drive from McEwensville to Washington DC takes at least 3 1/2 hours. I have no idea how low the train ride was a hundred years ago.

It is not what Ruth did, but I was surprised to discover that back then there were one-day excursion trips to DC from central Pennsylvania. The train left Williamsport right after midnight—and picked up people in several nearby towns and then raced to DC. The route would be reversed in the evening.

Imagine the excitement of catching a train in the middle of the night—and pulling into Union Station at dawn. . . and seeing the capitol outlined in the early morning sunlight.

Dang—I almost put myself into the story—and was ready to book a seat on the next excursion train; then I remembered that it was 2013.

1913 L.L. Olds Seed Company Advertisement

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Saturday, May 31, 1913: What I did today was far from being romantic. I had to help plant taters this afternoon.

25 Years’

Potato Experience

For a quarter of a century I have made a specialty of growing and handling Choice Seed Potatoes, testing all the leading varieties, retaining and improving the best. This year’s list is the cream.

My 26th Annual Seed Book

should be in the hands of every progressive farmer and gardener. It contains 54 pages crowded full of valuable information. The best in Seed Potatoes, Field and Garden Seeds of all kinds. Write postal today.

L.L. OLDS, President

L.L. Olds Seed Co., Drawer C, Madison, Wis.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Grandma did you dream about doing romantic things? Hmm. . . I guess that’s for another day. In the meantime, the farm work needed to be done.

—

I’m not sure whether the Muffly’s raised potatoes to sell . . or if they just raised them for family use. Either way, they would have planted lots of potatoes. A hundred years ago potatoes were one of the main staples that people ate during the long winter months.

Previous posts about potatoes include:

Planting Potatoes

Harvesting Potatoes

Old-fashioned Fried Potatoes

Old-fashioned Potato Cakes

Women as Farm Workers

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Monday, May 26, 1913: I haven’t got much to write about for today. At present I feel extremely sleepy.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Was Grandma so tired because she’d worked very hard on the farm all day?

Here’s an advertisement for a Philadelphia newspaper which appeared in the May 28, 1913 issue of the Milton Evening Standard that I thought you might enjoy.

Women as Farm Workers

<<picture>>

One Result of the Labor Shortage in Pennsylvania

All of the farm, crop and market news of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware—what progressive farmers are doing.

Every day of the week, as well as on Friday, the PUBLIC LEDGER prints much of special interest to farmers, as well as all the news, local, foreign and domestic, tersely and interestingly told.

FRIDAY’S AGRICULTURAL SECTION

Present Condition of Garden Crops in the territory that feeds Philadelphia

Poultry-Meat Farming vs. Egg Raising by Michael K. Boyer

Making Alfalfa Pay in the East by D.C. Kauffmann of York

Read the PUBLIC LEDGER regularly. By carrier, daily and Sunday, 17 center a week.

By mail, outside of Philadelphia, daily, 50 cents a month, daily and Sunday, 75 cents a month.

PUBLIC LEDGER

News Agents for Milton, Pa.

W.A. REED    B. GALBRAITH

J. BUOY    A.H. KREBS

Independence Square   Public Ledger Company

Philadelphia               Cyrus H.K. Curtis, President

The Public Ledger was a Philadelphia newspaper which apparently hoped to expand its market into rural central Pennsylvania by including agricultural news.

Apparently it was controversial that women helped on their family farms—and articles which addressed these types of issues were seen as selling points for the paper.

1913 Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Advertisement

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Friday, May 16, 1913: Doing nothing of any account.

Why The Motorcycle Keeps Boys on the Farm

Don’t expect your boy to be happy on the farm if the summer season brings only work. When the day’s works is over don’t tell him, the horses are too tired for road work, because it is this tying to the farm, this inability to join his chums in their pastimes or to seek his own pleasures that often makes farm life distasteful to him. Get him a

HARLEY-DAVIDSON

It will let down the bars and take him where he wishes in a fraction of the time he would use by team. It will open up a thousand and one pleasures heretofore denied him. You will find he will return at bed time, happy, contented and satisfied with his lot in life. But when you buy him a motorcycle, be sure that you obtain one that is economical, reliable and durable. Buy him a Harley-Davidson, because

It is the Most Economical

The Harley-Davidson holds the world’s official record for economy.

It is the Most Reliable

The Harley-Davidson is the only machine which has ever been awarded a diamond medal and a thousand plus five score in an endurance contest. The plus five was for its super-excellent performance. These awards were made by the National Federation of American Motorcycles.

It is the Most Durable

The first Harley-Davidson made, over eleven years ago, has covered now over one hundred thousand miles and is still giving satisfaction and today retains even its original bearings.

Seven departments of the U.S. Government use a total of nearly 4000 of these machines.

Over 3000 R.F. D. Carriers daily cover their routes on a Harley-Davidson, a fitting tribute to the reliability of this machine.

Call on our nearest dealer for demonstration or write for catalog.

Harley-Davidson Motor Company

PRODUCERS OF HIGH GRADE MOTORCYCLES FOR OVER ELEVEN YEARS

776 A Street MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Grandma wrote little, but probably was working very hard.—doing housecleaning, cooking, farm chores, etc.

The sons of farmers also worked hard—and this June 15, 1913 advertisement in Kimball’s Dairy Farmer magazine played on the fear that they might leave the farm for the city.

You also might enjoy these previous posts that contained other ads that played on similar fears.

Old Billard Table Advertisement

1913 Victor-Victrola Advertisement