Physiology of New York Boarding-Houses

[Trish Hasenmueller]

Whew! I've been holding on to this book I found on Making of America till I could just about burst! This book is an outstanding example of popular culture from 1857. It's funny, tongue in cheek, like reading the repertoire of a stand-up comic, 1857 style. Any of you fellas looking for a civilian 'type' will find a variety of caricatures here. I'm still in the process of reading the book but it is a fascinating look at language and attitudes.

Here's the citation page:
Author: Thomas Butler Gunn
Title: The physiology of New York boarding-houses
Publisher: Mason Brothers Publication Date: 1857
City: New York Pages: 302 page images
Subjects: New York (City) -- Lodging houses.

Go To: First Page
Table of Contents
Title Page
A note on viewing the plain text of this volume
Bookmarkable URL
for this book: http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/moa/moa-cgi?notisid=ANY6384

I'll attach a couple of pages that contain an 1857 review of the book.

Here's the direct link to the book:
http://library8.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/moa/pageviewer?root=%2Fmoa%2Fmono%2Fgunn0157%2F&tif=00001.TIF&cite=http%3A%2F%2Fcdl.library.cornell.edu%2Fcgi-bin%2Fmoa%2Fsgml%2Fmoa-idx%3Fnotisid%3DANY6384&coll=moa&frames=1&view=50

Oh, yes, the illustrations are hilaraious! Alfred Waud is one of the three who made the original woodcuts.

Trish Hasenmueller

[ElizabethClark]

Excellent! Thanks, Trish! This looks like a "must read!"

[Trish Hasenmueller]

This is definitely one to read! I'm still not finished with its 302 pages, but this is my favorite character so far. From page 121:

“He was a downcast Yankee, had traveled over three fourths of the globe, and tried an infinite variety of avocations, including practice of the law, driving an omnibus, peddling stoves, editing a newspaper, selling patent medicines, officiating as a clerk in a dry-goods store, as Mormon preacher and Daguerreian artist, with much more than we can remember or chronicle. He had just returned from California with some money…”

Only one interesting character of many! This fellow is also gifted in the art of revenge.

Trish Hasenmueller