Lucien Durrieux

Getting around

Walking as a primary means of transport

Ordinary people commonly traveled between towns on foot, with journeys often measured in leagues, where one league equaled approximately one hour of walking.

At the table

Cheap and Fast Street Food

Fried potatoes were a popular and affordable street food, often described as a hunger stopper for workers on the go. Vendors also sold soup, with the seller providing the bowl to customers eating on the street.

What people wore

Alsatian folk dress used on political parades

In Alsace, traditional Tracht was tied to religious occasions like weddings and first communions, but it later became common at political rallies; when Kaiser Wilhelm II visited Strasbourg in 1877, women were greeted in Tracht. The text also describes how the costume’s symbolism shifted with politics over the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Music

Instruments of the Paris Bal Musette

In the early 20th century, the cabrette, a small bagpipe, was the signature instrument of Parisian bal musette, but it was gradually joined or replaced by the accordion introduced by Italian immigrants.

Daily life

Lighting, water, and cooking at home

In 1900, many families still used oil lamps for lighting and drew water from communal pumps or wells, while city apartments often featured small charcoal furnaces for cooking at a low cost.