Category: Learn History Through Fiction

WWI era slang was quite colorful. Some of my favorites (and their meanings) stem from typical adolescent preoccupations, namely sex, cars, and booze: Hayburner (gas-guzzling car); iron (motorcycle); iron one’s shoelaces (go to the restroom); orchid (expensive item); skatey (vulgar, cheap); struggle buggy (car for making out); barney mugging (having sex); mazuma (money); and splifficated (drunk). Discover additional bygone slang expressions in BEHIND THE STORY and read more about popular culture during the WWI era in On the Shore (see NOVELS).

(In honor of Halloween) Candy manufacturers began using corn syrup during WWI because sugar was rationed. Corn syrup was so cheap that they never stopped the substitution. Popular confections during WWI (dubbed “war candies”) were Amalkaka (chocolate-covered animal crackers, perhaps derived from a baby’s pronunciation of the popular plain cookies) and GooGoo Cluster (a mound of caramel, marshmallow nougat, peanuts, and milk chocolate). Its shape was harder to wrap than conventional rectangular or square candy bars of the day, and it was the first time multiple elements were mass-produced in a retail candy. Read more about WWI-era history and popular culture in On the Shore (see NOVELS) and go to BEHIND THE STORY (03/06/17 post) to learn about other candies invented in the 1800s that are still with us today.

New York City’s Grand Central Terminal (opened in 1913) has the world’s largest Tiffany glass clock, surrounded by sculptures of Minera, Hercules, and Mercury. It is 48 feet high with a circumference of 13 feet. The four-sided clock has a secret door that leads to the ticket booth. Read more about New York City landmarks at the turn of the last century in On the Shore (see NOVELS) and the city’s historical events and places in BEHIND THE STORY.

On New York City’s Lower East Side in the early 1900s, 2,500 pushcart peddlers haggled and sold every type of goods imaginable, including shirt collars and shoelaces, pots and pans, and vegetables and pretzels. Read more about the Lower East Side at the turn of the last century in On the Shore (see NOVELS).

 

 

Women smoking became less taboo as they took over men’s jobs in WWI. Cigarettes were manufactured and marketed expressly for ladies. One early brand was Milo Violets, which was advertised as “Delicately scented gold tip cigarettes for the discerning woman.” Another was Murad Turkish cigarettes. One ad featured a ringed hand holding a cigarette with the tagline line: “Which is the jewel?” Next thing you know, women would want to vote! Read more about women’s history during this era in On the Shore (see NOVELS).

Because the U.S. entered WWI late (04/06/1917), Navy ships never engaged directly with the German fleet. The first U.S. victory (of sorts), off Mine Head in Ireland, occurred when a German U-boat (U-61) fired a torpedo at the USS Cassin and the crew kept the Cassin afloat, i.e., a “victory” in that, while we didn’t win, at least we didn’t lose the ship. Over the course of the war, German U-boats destroyed 5,000 Allied vessels but only 199 Germans submarines were lost, an alarming 25:1 ratio of losses. Read more about WWI history and its effect on immigrant families back home in On the Shore (see NOVELS).

As women took over men’s jobs in WWI, worries abounded about what women would “threaten” to do next. History evolves but essentially repeats itself in every generation. Read more about women’s history during this era in On the Shore (see NOVELS). Read about the book  http://www.vineleavespress.com/on-the-shore-by-ann-s-epstein.html and watch the book trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXKrHdL59Hs&feature=youtu.be.

In WWI, a sailor’s sleeping gear, consisting of a hammock and a canvas-covered mattress, was called a “fart sack.” The food wasn’t much better than the sleeping accommodations (see 09/28/17 blog post about “iron rations”). On base, they supplemented their rations at the “gedunk” stand, a bar or canteen where they bought soda, sandwiches, candy, and other snacks. There are many ideas about where the term “gedunk” originated. The one I like best is that it derived from a Chinese word meaning “place of idleness.” Read more WWI history in On the Shore (see NOVELS) and learn more historical trivia in BEHIND THE STORY.

At the start of WWI, the Selective Service originally required males 21-30 to register; this was amended in August 2018 to allow men 18-45 to enlist. Read more about WWI history in On the Shore (see NOVELS), about the turmoil in an immigrant Jewish family when their son lies about his name and age to fight in the Navy. Although the story takes place a century ago, it evokes the hopes and struggles of today’s immigrants from all backgrounds.

While writing the story “Undark” (see STORIES) in which a fictional sister of one of Radium Girls paints floral designs on dishes, I researched the symbolic names of flowers. Here are a few familiar flower names (and their intriguing meanings): White Stargazer Lily (innocence restored to the soul of the deceased); Daffodils (a single means misfortune; a bunch signifies renewal and a fresh start); Alstroemeria (wealth, prosperity, fortune); Anemone (fading hope or anticipation); Hydrangea (heartfelt emotions; positive is gratitude, negative is heartlessness); Peony (compassion & good health or indignation & shame). Flower names, like the best fiction, can mean both one thing and the opposite. Read more about the Radium Girls and flower symbolism in BEHIND THE STORY.