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William Rhinelander Stewart

New York City, 1852 – 1929

6 facts1 source

Facts and their sources

  • Born1852, New York Citynot verified1 source
  • MarriedAnnie McKee Armstrongnot verified1 source
  • Died1929not verified1 source

A life in time

  1. 1852

    Born in New York City

  2. 7 Aug 1886

    A daughter is born

  3. 1929

    Dies

Family

See the tree

Partner

Children · 1

During his lifetime

He lived through 8 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around New York City.

General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.

The 1850s · William is born in New York City

Who governed

What people wore

Long men's shirts

In the mid-nineteenth century, men's shirts were cut long enough to reach almost to the knees, making optional drawers unnecessary.

Daily life

Cooking demanded exhausting daily labor

Cooking on heavy cast iron stoves required constant labor, as a woman might spend four hours daily sifting ashes, lighting fires, and hauling wood or coal.

In the news1850

Fugitive Slave Act Passed in 1850

The Compromise of 1850 included the Fugitive Slave Act, which increased federal power to recover runaway slaves while denying them jury trials.

Music

Shape-note singing and The Sacred Harp

The Sacred Harp, a popular songbook during this era, taught music using a shape-note system where different note head shapes represented various pitches.

At the table

Whiskey and cider as everyday staples

Alcoholic drinks were a daily staple, with whiskey being so standard it was often used as a form of currency or barter in place of coins. Many families kept a barrel of hard cider on tap, serving it at every meal even to small children.

In North America1848–1855

The California Gold Rush

Gold found near Sacramento drew some 300,000 people from around the world to California.

Getting around

Long-distance overland mail delivery times

In the 1850s, the Butterfield Overland Mail stagecoaches were contracted to carry mail nearly 2,800 miles from Missouri to San Francisco in 25 days. By 1859, efficiency had improved, with the average trip time decreasing to about 21 and a half days.