A MATTER OF CONVENIENCE
I’m sharing a couple of my photos and stories of the life in Placerville, California in the gold rush era that began around 1849 and, in some circumstances, is still alive now. These two buildings have quite an interesting history as one gave immediate gratification in the form of a drink and the second in the form of lust fulfilled.
The Soda Works building was constructed in 1852 and is one of the oldest buildings in Placerville. Soda water was bottled using a carbonation machine — which is still on display — and sold to miners as ordinary water was polluted due to the mining. The building is still open today and over the years it has seen many different types of businesses inside its doors. I had the opportunity to enter the tunnel that remains open at the back of the building. It is narrow with cold rock along the edges. I had to stoop over to keep from banging my head. There is a cool draft as you proceed deeper into the dark and I can imagine it might have been an unnerving experience for the men who headed to the other end to find the Chinese bordello. Up until a couple of years ago when there was a rockslide at the bordello end of the tunnel, it was till fully functional. The tunnel started at one end of town and went nearly the entire length of Placerville’s Main Street, inside a mountain of rock. If you didn’t know about it, you would never suspect it was there.
I stepped inside the bordello several years ago to have a video copied.
That was the current business that was operating in the building. The owner showed me their historical holes in the wall. I wish I had taken photos, but at the time didn’t think to do it. Along a hallway there are niches cut into a rock wall that were about five foot long and maybe 2 1/2 to 3 feet deep. Apparently when the men finished with their drinks, they would walk the length of the tunnel from the soda works to visit the bordello. Now, I am not sure how long that walk was, but I’d guess at least a quarter mile. When the gentleman reached the end of his walk, he was expected to shower before spending time with the girl in that small cubby hole cut into the wall. What can I say except that they had to be tough and they had to be a bit desperate. The saving grace of visiting the girls in that manner is that nobody knew you were there, if that is something you wanted to keep to yourself.
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Ace–the best one, or a thing held in high esteem. First used 1840, in The ‘Spirit of the Times’. Contrary to what one might think, however, this word does not appear to be in widespread use, at least in written word, until the 20th century. That doesn’t mean that it wasn’t used in spoken word, though.
Several years back my husband found me a book called the Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, Volume 1, letters A-G, by J.E. Lighter. It’s huge, full of all sorts of wonderful words, and is one of my most prized of all my research books. I’ve been asked by a few people how I made some of my character’s speech sound authentically Victorian. I’ve blogged about this now and again, mentioning combing through Victorian novels and finding words and phrases. This, book, though is the backbone of much of my phrasing. I’d happily advise any one who wants to write in this period to buy this
It’s my turn to post here again and I’ve already done my history post for this month, so I thought I’d share a new excerpt from my novella-length story in the anthology Northern Roses and Southern Belles. And read the newest review! A 4.5 book rating from
Sarah Emma Edmonds was born in New Brunswick, Canada in 1841. She grew up on a farm, so along with her sisters, she participated alongside her one brother to perform the hard physical work of farming. She tended to the animals, chopped wood, milked cows, planted and harvested. She also learned to ride horses, hunted and fished.
On learning that Franklin Thompson was wanted for desertion, she donned women’s clothes, resumed using her real name and returned to the army to serve as a female nurse for the remainder of the war. All the Daring of the Soldier: Women of the Civil War Armies, p. 178
My latest Civil War romance, Confederate Rose, officially released today at The Wild Rose Press.