Themes in American History

Lost Museum isn’t only a simple website which allows users to get an idea about New York during 19th Century. There is a very interesting story about “Lost museum” which explains what the purpose to navigate on line exhibitions is. In 1865 there was a fire which burned P.T Barnum’s American Museum.  The Lost Museum is sort of replication of that place and gives an opportunity to discover who is responsible for the fire. Unfortunately I couldn’t figure out who commit the crime but I found many interesting pieces of art which gave me a great overview of cultural history in New York City.

On the ground floor I found a poster which announces Baby Show Contest. According to the website the poster is a composite of text and images from primary sources, which provides with great details about this popular culture. This simple ad, points of the importance of family life and role of motherhood in those days. Also the idea of having a baby contest proves that people from 19^th century wanted to be entertained and the social life was very important to them. They didn’t worry about their privacy and they were ready to share their private life with no doubts. I won’t judge them because it reminds me a little bit of today’s Facebook but instead of publishing pictures on line, New Yorkers presented their babies during social events. Because mothers had to explain how they feed and take care of the baby so children had to be treated very well. But those were perceived as controversial, depending on contestants’ motivations. Probably some of they were introducing their babies to the public just to improve and entertain their simple domestic  life.  I believe that they were also individuals who were motivated by the awards, in this case money, which presents lack of morals and great desire to generate the profit. Besides the money the winner parent also gain prestige and respect in the society. It seems a little bit like “using a babies” for entrainment. In addition, according to the website, children who were looking foreign or poor in appearance couldn’t participate, which introduces discrimination and racism.

The 19^th century was very interesting time for American popular culture. People were seeking new attractions and entertainments which already suggest that New York population will be known from their unconventional ideas.

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My visit to the website of the Lost Museum was like a walk through a carnival maze with eyes closed and hands reaching forward. I suppose it is appropriate for P.T. Barnum’s museum. After opening the home page, I clicked “explore the museum”, music blaring through my speakers, Flash animation rotating images of what the museum floor plan popped up. I clicked on each image, as my cursor turned into a question mark. I click the question mark and VOILA! Another page opens which provides further information on the image. It took me quite some time to navigate the website and find particular information. I would have much more appreciated a simpler table of content and clearer instructions. There is literally a web-page dedicated to how to use the website, and that’s never good. What I did learn from the Barnum museum, is the elaborate forms of entertainment that were available in the 19th century NYC. This was a time before movies were even invented, however PT Barnum found ways to use technology and stagecraft to entertain people. These included “lantern slide shows, cosmoramas, and panoramas that presented images in new ways.” As seen in this image- in his program of amusements, Barnum listed a company of dwarfs, a mammoth fat infant, a beautiful circassian girl and glass blowers.

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1) Complete Reading
2) Visit http://www.lostmuseum.cuny.edu/home.html, choose “Explore the Museum,” and spend about 15-20 minutes exploring.
Write a post explaining your experience on the Lost Museum website. Be sure to categorize and tag your post. Include an image (don’t repeat what already used) that represents something you learned from your visit and at least one paragraph addressing one or more of the following questions:
-What does the Barnum museum tell you about entertainment in 19th century NYC?
-What does the museum tell us about cultural history of NYC or the U.S.?
-What is your opinion about the strengths and weaknesses of the website as a historical tool?

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Welcome.  I look forward to our class on Themes in American History this semester.  If you haven’t already done so, please consult the about page for basic information about the course and the schedule page for a list of topics, readings, and exams.

In our opening class, we will discuss the purposes to which we will be putting this website.  I will give you instructions for using the site.

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