In the news1860
Petroleum lamps replaced candles for lighting
Starting in 1860, petroleum lamps replaced candles and tallow lights in German households, significantly improving home lighting.
Paris, 29 Jul 1860 – Besson, 10 May 1932
5 facts1 source
29 Jul 1860
Born in Paris
23 Mar 1898
A daughter is born
10 May 1932
Dies in Besson, aged 71
He lived through 8 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Paris.
General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.
In the news1860
Starting in 1860, petroleum lamps replaced candles and tallow lights in German households, significantly improving home lighting.
Getting around
Travel between Sardinian towns by road
A diligence service connected Sassari and Cagliari in 30 hours, while horse-drawn carriages could also be hired for travel between towns at a cost of 5 francs per day per horse.
At the table
Daily Meals Based on Soup and Bread
Ordinary families typically relied on a single daily meal, often a soup (minestra) made of vegetables, potatoes, lard, or salted pork, frequently served with bread. For many, meat was an exceptional treat reserved for Sundays, holidays, or celebrations like weddings.
In Europe · 1859–1871Italy is unified. Garibaldi, Cavour and Victor Emmanuel joined the Italian states into one kingdom, with Rome its capital from 1871.
What people wore
Costumes as social and marital indicators
Sardinian folk costumes acted as indicators of social status, with wealth signaled by the quality and dye of the fabric, the number of buttons, or the type of metal used for finger rings. Marital status was often signaled by the color of a dress, the type of hairstyle, or a man's vest color.
Music
The ballu tundu national dance
The ballu tundu, a circular chain dance, was the quintessential national dance of Sardinia, involving complex, secret hand pressures to coordinate movements.
Daily life
Modest homes and contaminated water supplies
In homes before electricity, families often lived in just a few square meters, using a ground floor room as a kitchen and an upstairs room for sleeping. Lacking public water pipes, residents relied on wells or public fountains, and their drinking water was often contaminated due to the absence of sewage systems.