CRACKER JACKS

In 1871 F. W. Rueckheim opened a popcorn stand in the city of Chicago. The stand was a success and Rueckheim soon started making candy including taffy made from molasses. He also started selling caramels, marshmallows and peanuts. Peanuts became popular after the Civil War when Northern troops brought them back from Confederate territory.

In 1890, Rueckhem came up with a new candy recipe. He combined popcorn, molasses and peanuts to make Cracker Jack. It was basically a variation of a popular recipe for popcorn balls, with peanuts added. The product was sold in a small cardboard box.

Cracker was a popular slang term of the day, meaning excellent or great. Jack was also a popular term of the time, it meant buddy or pal. A friend of Rueckhelm, when he tried the new candy, exclaimed “Cracker Jack” and that became the name of the product.

Cracker Jack was a Chicago favorite, but the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair introduced the treat to a national audience. Cracker Jack was inexpensive and portable and became a fair favorite. In 1913 toys were added to the package with baseball cards starting soon after. These cards are extremely valuable today.

In 1916 Cracker Jack got their mascot, Jack the Sailor was modeled after Rueckhelm’s grandson who died very young. Jack soon got a sidekick, his dog, Bingo and the pair was on all of the packages and appeared in most advertisements. It was so popular that Rueckhelm had the pair engraved on his tombstone.

THE FIRST AUTOMAT

I think of Automat restaurants as a 1950's invention so I was surprised to find out that the first one opened in 1902.By 1912 the owners had a chain of 85 restaurants in several different American cities.

1900 MEAT AND POULTRY PRICES

Even at the turn of the century, many people raised at least some of their own meat. Even if they lived in town, a family might keep poultry and maybe even a pig. Hunting was less common for city residents, but many families still ate wild game, which was available in some stores.

Bacon, Veal and Sausage could be bought by the pound. But the poultry was sold whole, with feathers and entrails removed. In some stores, you could buy poultry that hadn't been dressed, for cheaper prices. It might still be alive and the butcher would kill it, the buyer would do the rest.

Meat Type	Price
Chickens	.07 per pound
Turkey	.10 per pound
Duck	.10 per pound
Goose	.05 per pound
Veal	.10 per pound
Sausage	.13 per pound
Bacon	.13 per pound
Round Steak	.13 per pound
Pork Chops	.12 per pound
Fresh Fish	.12 per pound
Salted Fish	.10 per pound

1900 food prices

The average wage for an American man was about 13 dollars a week. What could a man buy for his family for that amount? What could they afford to eat? Below I have listed some prices typical for that era. Of course there were regional differences and many families still grew their own produce and raised their own vegetables. But these numbers will give you a rough idea.

Keep in mind that the typical families diet had less variety than today, except in the case of meat, where wild game was still sold in many butcher shops. Some fruits such as Oranges were becoming more common in stores, due to the more rapid ships and the transcontinental railroad.

Prepared foods, such as breakfast cereal, were becoming available. But many families still ate last night’s leftovers for breakfast or eggs and sausage rather than corn flakes.

By 1900 bread was usually available for purchase, but many housewives preferred to make their own. A mark of a good wife was the ability to make a good loaf of bread.

Below is a list of some basic foodstuffs, the next posts will concentrate on specific types of food.

Grocery	Price
Macaroni	.10 per pound
Rice	.07 per pound
Tea	.50 per pound
Coffee	.15 per pound
Cocoa	.25 per pound
Hominy Grits	.10 per pound
Breakfast Cereal	.15 a box
Gelatin (not Jello)	.15 per package
Wheat Bread	.05 per loaf
Vinegar	.28 per gallon

1900 MOST COMMON PROFESSIONS

Agriculture was just starting to be mechanized, but many hands were needed to grow crops. Servants were paid little and every middle class family had at least one, so they formed the second most common profession. Telephone operators and nurses were typically women, the other common profession of females was teachers.

About 23 million men were in the labor force along with about 5 million women. The unemployment rate was 5 percent. Most employees worked about 60 hours a week and the average wage was about 13 dollars a week.

Profession	Total workers
Agriculture	10,710,000
Manufacturing	6,340,000
Servants	3,210,000
Trade/realty/finance	2,760,000
Transportation/Utilities	2,100,000
Construction	1,660,000
Mining	766,000
Dressmaking (not factory)	413,000
Blacksmiths/Ironworkers	220,000
Forestry/Fishing	210,000
Barbers/Beauticians	133,000
Doctors	131,000
Bartenders	89,000
Milliners	75,000
Electricians	51,000
Phone Operators	19,000
Nurses	12,000

CHARLES DANA GIBSON'S CLASSIC AMERICAN BEAUTIES

Charles Dana Gibson was an American artist who became famous for his pen and ink sketches that were published in magazines started in 1886. He illustrated many different subjects but he became best known for his tall, elegant American beauties which were dubbed the Gibson Girl.

Currier and Ives 19th century prints

The Currier and Ives lithograph group offered reasonably priced, colorful prints for sale. The factory was in business from 1834 until almost the turn of the century and many of the prints offer glimpses into life in the United States at that time.

These prints are based on views of New York City, which is where the factory was based.