"To Do For Myself" - 1886 - The Delightful Mrs. Campbell Builds a Greenhouse

"When President Garfield's body was brought to Cleveland for burial, the streets of the city were to be beautifully decorated with arches" of flowers.  Mrs. Ella Grant Campbell got the commission to design and do the work with the help of her staff.  In 1881 she was a successful woman entrepreneur. 

Starting her future business by building a greenhouse from scraps, Ms. Ella caught my attention when I was looking around the web for ideas for making a greenhouse dug into a bank.I got side tracked and now know a lot about her and nothing about bermed greenhouses! 

ELLA GRANT CAMPBELL.

'Here stands beside me as I write, a bouquet of exquisite flowers;  pink and yellow roses, lilies-of-the-valley, red and white carnation pinks, and, loveliest of all, daisies. I have just brought them from a large and well-kept greenhouse, on Jennings Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, owned and managed by a young woman whose taste and ability make it well worthy of a visit.

The daily press calls this greenhouse "the finest, the best-equipped and the best-managed floral establishment in the city". The business office as you enter, is dainty with pictures and flowers; tall pampas grass stands in this great bay window, and in the reception room or studio, where the designs are made, palms and plants in flower, grow in bowery profusion. There is a womanly home-making touch here, for the business woman has hung among the blossoms a large picture of her daughter, named "Pansy",  a pretty little creature with blue eyes and golden hair, who holds in her arms a pussy-cat nearly as large as herself.

The greenhouses of this establishment are always an interesting study. Plants just set out from clippings which the deft fingers of Mrs. Campbell pull up for us to see if they are rooted, and then set down again in the warm earth, seem not to mind the uplifting. Here are carnations in bud; great beds of lilies-of-the-valley; trees covered with lemons, masses of rich-colored foliage — plants ready for the summer beds in the parks.

And I can but wonder as I look upon this beautiful and successful business, and see how refined and how sunny and happy is the young woman who manages it, whom I have known for years— I can but wonder, I say, that more women do not take up the business of floriculture. There is hard work in it, as in every other calling — patience, care, perhaps even the creation and training of a good market-demand for plants and flowers —but tending upon flowers and developing them, is really work so dainty and pleasurable that it seems especially fitted to the hands of those women who shall be willing to study of the nature and habits of the flowering and decorative plants.

Mrs. Campbell can best tell her own story of effort and well-deserved success:

"When I was thirteen or fourteen years of age my father met with reverses which rendered him penniless. I was obliged to do something to help the family exchequer.

"After trying crochet work, delivering butter to father's customers in his new business, I began to feel discouraged and long for talents and a vocation. One thing I heartily loved to do, and that was to care for my flowers. At this time I read of a young girl who was enabled, through her own exertions, to build a greenhouse. The tale fascinated me. Why could not I be a florist? I would! My vocation was found! Every fibre of my being vibrated in harmony with the thought.

"Fate was kind, and threw just the opportunity desired into my pathway. Passing out Euclid Avenue one bright afternoon (eleven years ago last fall), I noticed that Mr. Jaynes had just built an expensive office. He would want a girl to take care of it!  I entered, found Mr. Jaynes, asked him breathlessly, 'If he didn't want a girl to take care of the office, learn to make up flowers, and do anything that she could to make herself useful?'

"' Yes,' he needed such a girl, and I was 'just the one he wanted. The active way I jumped in and out of the wagon pleased him.' I was engaged to keep books, wait on customers, take care of the office, and make myself 'generally useful.' I had been in my position three or four months, when father met with an accident and I was obliged to go home and help take care of him. Mr. Jaynes told me on leaving that 'in everything I was satisfactory except making up.' That 'my work was too loose and scraggy,' and that 'he did not think I would amount to much as a florist.'

"I went home very much discouraged. But I loved flowers, and plants and flowers I must have. A gentleman (a true lover of all plant forms), Mr. Taintor, deputy post-master of Cleveland for twenty-five years, presented me with some small plants and choice cuttings from his private greenhouse.And at different times mother would invest from ten to twenty-five cents in market plants for me, until by the next fall I had quite a nice collection of choice plants. I secured twenty-six native varieties of hardy ferns from the woods, which I planted on an old table, and in a hanging basket of old hoop-skirt dipped in sealing-wax.

"This fern basket and table were my especial pride that winter, and more than one came to see my collection. Besides, I had one hundred and seventy-five plants in pots and in boxes, old butter crocks, and anything that could be utilized.

"Mother allowed me to have our front room, which has two east windows and one north window, for my plants. I had only a poor apology of a soft coal stove for heating. On cold nights I used to move all the plants into the middle of the room, and wrap them up in newspapers to keep them from freezing or getting chilled. We had an unusually cold, severe winter. I would sleep on the lounge in the room and get up sometimes three or four times a night to replenish the fire, but I succeeded in bringing my plants safely through, while most all of my friends had theirs destroyed. One day as I was looking through Mr. Taintor's garden, I came across a pile of sash and other materials pertaining to a greenhouse structure. I asked him what it was and he told me it was an old greenhouse he had taken down and brought in from his farm. Turning to me, he said: 'I'll sell it to you cheap and you can take your own time in paying for it.' I asked him ' How much?' more for conversation than with any idea of buying it. 'Well,' said he, ' I'll sell it to you for ten dollars and you can pay me when you are able, and there is a quantity of bricks and old lumber out on the farm now which you are welcome to.'

"At the supper table that evening I repeated what Mr. Taintor had said, whereupon my younger brother Bert remarked, 1I tell you what, Ella, you take it, and I will put it up for you, if you will only get those plants out of the house.' (Bert used to be called on to help me move the plants.)

"The next day we went to the farm and inspected the debris there, came home, and concluded to try it. I never could endure anything ugly, and though Bert did a large share of the carpenter work, and I set over half the glass myself, I found it had cost for lumber, glass, nails and putty a trifle over one hundred dollars. This included the labor of a carpenter for three or four days to help Bert. My total cash assets to start with were fifteen cents. The lumber, glass and putty I obtained on credit. I told the parties from whom I got the goods that I could give them no security but 'my word.' But they were very kind, and offered to give me what credit I needed.

"Well, I was one hundred dollars in debt, and no heating apparatus in either. I rigged up, with the help of my brother, an old stove that had been stored in the barn, in one corner of the greenhouse, moved my plants in from the house, went to Mr. Jaynes, told him what I had done, and got credit for plants.

"It was then the last of April or the first of May. I went among my acquaintances, told them I had plants for sale, and solicited orders for hanging baskets, plants, or cut flowers. Every day father was not using his horses I would take one and deliver orders, also take out plants and sell them. To be brief, I cleared my greenhouse of debt by my spring work. I did all the work myself with occasional assistance from my brother. That fall we put in a flue and furnace. My first greenhouse was eleven by eighteen feet, with glass on sides and roof, and adjoining the house. I had tried to do all the work well, that was given me to do, but I was a struggling girl, and I had a hard time of it. When I first thought of gaining my living as a florist, I received a great deal of discouragement from father, he prophesying that 'I would not make a two-cent hat or six-cent calico dress.' He has since changed his opinion.

"The next spring my greenhouses were full of fair market plants. I strove to grow only choice varieties, or something that was not grown in profusion by the other florists; I bought plants in quantity from Mr. Jaynes and others, restocking my houses several times. From the first I have always believed in pushing business, and I went after my orders, instead of waiting for them to come to me; though I always endeavored to keep within the limits of good taste in this direction. That fall I determined to make a bold stroke. I would build a greenhouse large enough to grow my own cut flowers. My brother, who had been away, came home at this time, and we built a greenhouse twenty-two by fifty-five, with a shed twelve by twenty-two at the end, where our furnace was located. This cost about three hundred and fifty dollars. It took two years to pay for it. We also purchased a horse. It was during these two years that I commenced to push 'my floral design' work.

"I was craving for a recognition from the other florists, and I could not see any better way than to meet them on their own ground, on their own level. I have always been most anxious that my work should be judged with man's work, or in other words, on its own merits. My first exhibition was at the State Fair at Columbus.

"I arrived before any of my competitors, and found the flowers pretty badly shaken up. My largest piece, a combination of a heart, anchor and Bible, came to hand turned over on its side.

"Bouquets and baskets were in various stages of perfection and imperfection and decay. I looked at my carefully prepared work and felt blue. But I picked up my spirits and went to work. I had taken the precaution of bringing loose flowers with me, and these I soon utilized, repairing what damage had been done as far as was possible. I received many courtesies from the officials and was placed on the awarding committee for amateurs.

"When I viewed the designs brought in by my competitors I began to be sure I had no chance against fresh flowers, and such excellent work. I was agreeably surprised when I received first premium on hand bouquets, and second on display. The first premium was also given to a woman, Miss Maggie Evans of Columbus, Ohio, who has a great native talent in floral arrangement, and I am glad to say she has been a warm personal friend from the day we were active competitors at the State Fair at Columbus.

"I now made up my mind that if I was to succeed professionally, I must get thoroughly well known and identified with my business. Three or four large wedding orders that were placed in my hands at this time, and in which I was allowed to use my judgment, were more favorably spoken of, and our local press gave me many compliments.

"The next year I exhibited at the Northern Ohio Fair. Here I knew I must meet with the sharpest competition with our old, established florists. It proved to be a hot, dry, sultry day, with just wind enough to keep the dust in motion. The flowers and designs had to be transported over seven miles of dry, dusty roadway before reaching their destination in Floral Hall. On arriving at the grounds the Superintendent of Cut Flower Hall met me and said: ' It's no use, your bringing your flowers here. You can't compete with the designs in there,' indicating with his hand the building occupied by the cut flower department.

"My flowers at that moment arrived, and the florists crowded round to see what I had brought. I could hardly suppress my emotions when I found that, owing to the rough pavements, there were places where the flowers were shaken out almost as large as a man's hat. The other florists had their exhibits entirely in place. And I felt indeed as though ' I could not compete with the designs in there.' It was then five o'clock, and I worked until dark, when my brother and the Superintendent took turns holding lighted matches for me to see by. The premiums were to be awarded the next morning; but so discouraged did I feel that I could not be induced to visit the grounds. (I must confess to a good, hard cry.) But mother and brother went out, and I stayed at home and worked, and worked, and chided myself for my presumption in thinking I could compete with those who had so much better facilities in skilled labor and choice flowers. By the time they had returned at night, I had worked myself into a proper submissive mood to receive the news I expected them to bring. Mother came in, and sitting down, said, 'Well,' in answer to my inquiring look, and drew forth from her pocket a yellow piece of card-board and handed it to me. I thought she was teasing me, and said . 'Mother, how can you!' I still thought she had palmed off a bit of useless card-board on me. 'Read it,' said she, and through my tears I managed to read — '1st premium.' Even then I could scarcely believe the good news.  'Mother,' said I, 'you are unkind.' 'Why, it's yours, child. 'Twas on the table design when we got there.'

"Can you imagine my feelings? From one extreme I rushed to the other. I was wild with joy. I hugged mother. I waltzed around the room like a crazy girl. I had been weighed and not been found wanting! I had ideas! I had come out victorious in a fair and square test with those who had every facility at their command. I have passed through other such scenes since, but the most exciting test of abilities would not raise me to such a fever of delirium as that first public acknowledgment of my success in competing with our old and well-established florists.

"Not the least pleasant feature of the exhibition was, that on the following day some of the competing florists came to me and said, 'You have won it fairly! It belongs to you rightfully.'

"All our papers spoke in praise of my efforts, and it was the means of giving me a general introduction to the public as a commercial florist.

"Soon after this I received an invitation from Col. Fogg, editor of the Herald, to go to Cincinnati as a special correspondent to write up the floral features of the Exposition there. Here I was in my element, though in a new field. A floral reporter! It opened up new means for self improvement which I endeavored to improve to the uttermost. I believe there is no better means of self-education than to write on live issues and new ideas; to catch events before they become old. It was a red letter day when I saw my first letter in print, and by carefully noting what errors had been committed, and avoiding them afterward, I found by the fourth or fifth letter that they were printed verbatim.

"Two years afterward my brother went into business with me, and we erected a larger ' forcing house.' This was built running east and west with a long slope facing the south. Peter Henderson's Practical Floriculture, presented by Mr. Taintor, was our text book. At this time we had the pleasure of an acquaintance with Mr. John Thorpe, now so well known as the president of our Society of American Florists. Mr. Thorpe is a friend to struggling young florists: such we found him, always willing to give information, and a walking encyclopaedia of useful information pertaining to floral subjects. Our new house was located on a strip of land we bought next to father's, and is the property we-are now occupying.

"The house was planted to Roses, and Bert had unusual success with them, considering that the heating was done by flues. In fact this house at the present writing is in full leaf and blossom, with not an insect or a speck of mildew to be found. In 1881 my brother left me to enter business in Chicago, and from that time to the present I have given my personal care to all departments of the business. In 1884 I built a long-wished for addition, our new office and greenhouse. This last was built for tropical and decorative plants.

"For some years I have done all the watering of my greenhouses, believing that by so doing I could keep track of all the little things that go to make up the sum total of success. I find, also, that watering is one of the most important operations connected with the practical running of a greenhouse. To give or withhold water from different plants at different times of the year requires experience and the nicest judgment, not only for different plants, but also for the different stages of the same plant.

"In regard to the future of woman in horticulture, I regard it as bright. Any woman can do what I have done, and better if she has capital and experience. For I have worked at a disadvantage in regard to both. Last Christmas I employed eight or ten girls and two young men.

"I must not forget to mention in conclusion the very material aid and help I have received from a lady who has been my true friend. When financial skies looked dark or some very much-needed improvement needed to be made, she has given me help in the shape of loans, at six per cent interest, with the privilege of paying it back in easy payments. And more than this, she has placed liberal orders with me, and so gave me real help — the privilege of earning the money she so kindly loaned me. Would that more would loan from their plenty, not give, to struggling beginners who are straining every nerve to make a success of life."

But Mrs. Campbell has not referred to some of her signal successes. So let me mention one or two. For instance: When President Garfield's body was brought to Cleveland for burial, the streets of the city were, of course, to be beautifully decorated with arches, and all that money and taste could do to make the city worthy to honor its great statesman, was to be thoroughly done. Mrs. Campbell received notice on Thursday noon, that she had been designated to superintend much of the floral work. She began at eight in the evening, with a force of picked men and girls, upon whom she could rely, and slept but two hours each night until the streets were made ready for the passing of the solemn procession. Her designs were original and elaborate, yet with beautiful breadth of effect. Each arch was impressive, all the commemorative lettering distinct and symmetrical. The verdict of the press was: "Every piece is a work of art, and will bear the closest inspection."

Quite recently she has bestowed a pleasure upon the public, in the form of a " chrysanthemum show," having over two hundred varieties upon exhibition. A similar exhibition of choice roses was given last year, some of them so rare and so beautiful as to bring five dollars for a single blossom. At the National gathering of the American Horticulturists, in 1886, Mrs. Campbell carried off many of the honors; she received the first premium for best floral designs, as also the first premium for the best collection of cut flowers; the second prize for the best collection of gladioli, the second for dahlias, the second for geraniums, and the second for begonias in pots. One of her floral designs, much admired there, was a dainty white parasol of carnations with a lining of bright scarlet Lady Emma's. The exterior was decorated with a drapery of Le France roses, and lilies with delicate ferns, the whole supported by a standard of tropical ferns.

Mrs. Campbell is celebrated for her decorations for fine weddings; she is not only an artistic originator, but is also a constant student, experimenting and combining, and also has developed the business tact and talent to "win trade" which she holds by her genuine courtesy and candor, and her painstaking to give satisfaction. No order however small misses of her personal attention.

These are the business-rules framed and hung in her office:

Advertise thoroughly.

    Carry the best stock.

Sell at small profits.

    Improve every opportunity to increase trade.

Her books are kept with system. She is quick to act, and accommodates herself to the taste and wishes and need of her smallest customer.

Mrs. Campbell has made a specialty of carpet beds in lawns, and many beautiful grounds in Cleveland and other cities are indebted to her originality in designs for their attractions.

And yet this successful florist, this thorough business-woman, is scarcely yet out of her girlhood, a slight, fragile creature. Other women, too, are succeeding as florists.

Mrs. Harris Jaynes, the widow of the florist who first employed Mrs. Campbell, has, since her husband's death, managed the business with the aid of her two sons. She has seven greenhouses, with fifty thousand feet of glass, cultivates nine acres of grasses and flowers, and employs nearly a dozen persons. Miss Bristol of Topeka, Kans., Mrs. Packard of Quincy, Mass., Mrs. Shuster of Brooklyn, N. Y., and many others are known as prosperous florists. Miss Merriman of Beacon street, Boston, has for seven years been a successful flower-grower and flower-trader, the first woman to engage in this business in that city, I believe. The oldest florists in Boston said, "We will give her six months to go under;" but their predictions have failed. She admits that the working hours are long, the cares of the business many, but she has no thought of abandoning it.

Why is not this an ideal industry for women? The more flower-growing the better, the more lovely our homes, the more refined our nation.

The following book is a masterpiece of advertising for the three contributors!  The engraver was A. Blanc (more about A.B. 1, 2), who specialized in horticultural engravings (and whose work I admire), the editor owned a print shop that specialized in printing horticultural works, and Mrs. Campbell was promoting her business. The examples by her are funeral arrangements. 

Floral Designs: a Hand-book for Cut-flower Workers and Florists; compiled by J. Horace McFarland, Including Practical Hints on Floral Work by Mrs. Ella Grant Campbell    1888

Notice Albert Blanc's thorough attribution at the lower right.

The link above goes to the great full color high quality scan.  However, the poorer scan at Google Books was inscribed by Ella herself!!!!   I love finding inscriptions of interest!! I wonder if this "friend and patron" is the lady mentioned in Ms. Ella's article.

Here are a few bits more from Floral Design, the ads at that back.  There were ads from other people, too.

Jennings Avenue changed name to 14th St. in 1910 I found out,

 so I haven't a clue what has become of her company address.

I found a lovely book by  Ella Grant Wilson, whose passion was knowing everything about her neighborhood, which she considered to be Euclid Avenue, Cleveland.  It turned out this was Ella in her second marriage. I am reading her book and find it very interesting. It is chatty, not civic, in style...much more a gossip over tea than a paean to the Cleveland well-to-do.  The woman had a mind that wove together the lives of all the people she knew into a perfect sample of Cleveland life around the turn of the century.

Here are the facts of  her life that turned up after I knew her name as Wilson.

WILSON, ELLA GRANT - The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History

WILSON, ELLA GRANT (7 Sept. 1854-16 Dec. 1939), florist and author who wrote about EUCLID AVE.'s "Millionaires' Row," was born Ella Lawton Grant in Jersey City, N.J., to Gilbert W. and Susan Lawton and came to Cleveland when she was 6. With $10 savings and $100 borrowed, she started a business of floral decorations. Wilson arranged over 300 weddings and 1,000 funerals, including JAS. A. GARFIELD†'s funeral in Cleveland. Her position as a florist gained her entry into the homes of Cleveland's wealthiest and most prominent citizens. Wilson designed floral arrangements for 18 years for the Chamber of Commerce and HOLLENDEN HOTEL. When a cyclone destroyed her greenhouse on 22 Apr. 1909 and nearly buried her son, she got out of the business. She went to work again in 1918, as garden editor for the PLAIN DEALER, remaining in that position 6 years. In 1929, Wilson began a new career. She had collected and maintained a huge series of scrapbooks of the history of Cleveland, and with them began a series of articles in Sunday magazine of the Plain Dealerdealing with Cleveland and Euclid Ave. The articles became the basis of the first of 2 volumes on Millionaires' Row entitled Famous Old Euclid Avenue. The first volume contained anecdotes, history, biographies, and geography of Euclid Ave. from E. 30th to E. 79th streets. Her second volume, published in 1937, continued the story to E. 105th St. Wilson married twice. Her first marriage was on 25 Dec. 1880 to Jas. A. Campbell; they divorced in 1888. Her second marriage was to Chas. H. Wilson on 29 July 1891. Wilson had 5 children from her second marriage: Pansy, Helen, Carl, Fern, and Earnest.

  

And here is her book, Vol.2:

RECOLLECTIONS BY ELLA GRANT WILSON - FAMOUS OLD EUCLID AVENUE OF CLEVELAND - AT ONE TIME CALLED THE MOST BEAUTIFUL STREET IN THE WORLD 

  

She wrote about everyone on it!  Relying on her 600 scrapbooks of information she wrote this book in 1935.

The Ella Campbell name surfaced once in her writing in the following - 

"Next we come to the elaborate mansion built by Stewart H. Chisholm, originally numbered 957 Euclid, later changed to 1006 and now bearing No. 3730 Euclid Avenue, and occupied by Banks-Baldwin Law Publishing Company, which has cleaned the building outside and left the arrangement of the rooms identically as they were. Let us go back to the days when this home was designated as 957 Euclid and quote a newspaper description of a brilliant affair held there: 

"The elegant residence of Stewart H. Chisholm on Euclid Avenue was thrown open last evening to Cleveland society en masse. Nearly six hundred guests had responded to the invitations of Mr. and Mrs. Chisholm, ..."

..."This room (which refers to the library) also holds a small but very truthful picture of the 'Stable' by W. J. Vorgaard. A very large and very lovely painting hangs in the parlor, 'Sappho' by Favfanie, and in the library is a realistic design in oil of 'The Mountaineer,' by Edward Young. The ballroom is a handsomely appointed hall, and was, late in the evening, a brilliant scene of beauty. The toilettes worn by the lady guests were exceedingly elegant, and the floral decorations of the room added their charm to the scene. Music was furnished by Germania Orchestra, the floral decorations were the work of Mrs. Ella Grant Campbell, and in the dining room, refreshments were served by Weisgerber."...

To view more photos of her floral work and the people that ordered them go to the Cleveland Plain Dealer slideshow.

I also was interested to read of Garfield's funeral (Euclid Avenue features here as well), and, perhaps, you will be also...the sentence that caught my attention was, "There was no a street or an alley without mourning emblems, and the streets would have been deserted but for the sightseers from the country, who came to see the funeral decorations."

THE FUNERAL OF PRESIDENT GARFIELD.

The funeral of President Garfield took place on Monday, at Cleveland, Ohio. The body remained in the Rotunda at the Capitol, at Washington, till_ the 23rd inst., and was visited by enormous numbers of people, as many, it is estimated, as 200,000 having passed through the room. Among the floral offerings, which were very numerous and beautiful, was a wreath sent from the British Embassy in the name of Queen Victoria, at her Majesty’s request. ‘It was composed of white roses, smilax, and stephanotis, and bore a card With the inscription, “ Queen Victoria to the memory of the late President Garfield, an expression of her sorrow and her sympathy with Mrs. Garfield and the American nation.” At noon on the 23rd, the Rotunda was closed to the public while Mrs. Garfield and her family took their farewell look at the coffin. A funeral service was then celebrated in presence of President Arthur, General Grant, members of the Cabinet, the diplomatic bodies, and senators and members of the House of Representatives. The coffin was then removed to a hearse and conveyed to the railway station, the roads being thronged by large masses of people, who all stood with uncovered heads. The funeral train consisted of four carriages, one for the body, open at the sides and exposing the with to view; the others were occupied by Mrs. Garfield, her family, and the friends of the President, the Cabinet, the cit-Presidents, and physicians of President Garfield. President Arthur did not leave \Vashington. Great crowds were in waiting at all the towns and cities through which the train passed. At some places the line was strewn with flowers. In the larger cities thousands assembled. The stations were draped in black, bells were tolled, and salutes fired. In the open Country the spectators assembled on the sides of the railway with uncnvered heads, some even kneeling. The fact that the journey was for the most part performed by night did not tend to make the demonstrations any less marked and general. Thousands of people remained sleepless, or left their beds, to pay honour to the remains of the President. All the floral decorations were taken off the coffin before its removal with the exception of the wreath ordered to be made by Queen Victoria, which lay on the head of the coffin during the whole journey, and was only removed at the grave. The train reached Cleveland about one o’clock on Saturday morning. On its arrival a. procession was formed, and marched to the square, where the coflin was placed under a magnificent pavilion erected for the purpose. General Garfield’s portrait was placed above the coffin, it being decided that the remains should not be exposed to view. The entire square was illuminated by electric lights. Throughout Sunday and far into the night a constant stream of spectators passed through the pavilion in which the body was placed. Many were in tears, and many women Sobbed. By midnight it was estimated that 100,000 persons had passed. The train conveying the representatives of the press from Washington to Cleveland ran into a car, and six persons were killed by the accident.

The funeral services began at ten o’clock on Monday morning. They were very simpie, consisting of the singing of hymns by the vocal societies, the reading of Scripture, prayer, and an address by the Rev. Isaac Everitt, an old friend of President Garfield. The procession was very long and impressive, and was marshalled in nine divisions of military and civic societies, comprising nearly ten thousand men. 

A notable feature was President Garfield’s old regiment, the 42nd Ohio Volunteers. Among the distinguished persons in the procession were ex-President Hayes, the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, Generals Sherman and Sheridan, the governors of nearly all the States, many United States Senators and Congressmen, the members of President Garfield’s Cabinet, ex-Secretary Evarts, and many army and navy officers. The pall-bearers were chosen from among the intimate and personal friends of the deceased. The funeral car was of elaborate construction, being a platform 8ft. by 16 ft., with heavy black draping expending to the ground, bordered with silver fringe, relieved by folds of white silk. The casket rested on an ample dais, with the Queen’s wreath surmounting the coffin. 

The car was drawn by twelve black horses, and a way had to be cleared for it through the stately trees which line the Euclid Avenue. Minute guns were fired during the march to the cemetery, which is five miles from the city. Nearly the entire distance there were solid masses of people on both sides of the road, who stood with uncovered heads and tearful eyes while the solemn procession passed. At the grave, Chaplain H. Jones, of the 42nd Ohio Regiment, officiated. He offered up a brief but earnest prayer, and after that there was some singing of sacred music by the German singing societies, and the Benediction was pronounced by President Hinsdale, of Hiram College. 

Mr. Garfield’s wife and mother and children attended the funeral ceremonies at the pavilion. They drove to the grave behind the funeral car. The estimates of the numbers who witnessed the procession extend to 250,000. Many in the procession, which was two hours in passing a given point, were totally exhausted by the heat and fatigue. The day was observed as a day of mourning throughout the Union, and services were held in all the churches. New York was as quiet as on a Sunday, business of every kind being suspended. There was no a street or an alley without mourning emblems, and the streets would have been deserted but for the sightseers from the country, who came to see the funeral decorations.

No one (the New York correspondent of the Standard says) seems to know how long the period of mourning will or ought to be extended. This may lead to very awkward consequences. On Tuesday night a theatre opened its doors, the justification being that the funeral services were over, and that therefore it was not indecorous to proceed with the performance. The result was that in an incredibly short time a furious mob assembled in front of the building and threatened to burn it to the ground. It was with the utmost difficulty that their indignation was assuaged or that the police persuaded them to disperse...

1894 Imaginative Seed Corn Art - Iowa Seed Co.

How can one not like this!!?     ~1894~

Turn of the 20th Century - Iowa Seed Company Ephemera

I routinely dump interesting postcard images into a folder until I gather enough from one company to become interested.  When I saw I had 3 from the Iowa Seed Company, I took a look for catalogs in the Biodiversity Heritage Library with fair success!  Later I'll post some of their most interesting advertising art from the catalogs...but today here are the postcards and a few snippets about the company.

"8,600 acres in seed growing"

While I'm not sure, I believe this "we pay the postage" engraving was used by printers around this time for many companies...it isn't unique to this catalog.  Sure is wonderful though!!!

below -1893 Market Garden

This is the address on the postcards.

1880s - Mr. Rupp and His Chinese Primroses

 

In 1886 Henry S. Rupp brought his two sons into the florist and nursery business.  

(An earlier catalog at the end of this post, featuring fruits, was before that association.  I included it for the fruit names, something I enjoy reading and thinking about, as I doubt there will be another Rupp post.)

CHINESE PRIMROSES.

Among the best known specialists in the breeding and production of the finest types of Chinese primroses in the United States is John F. Rupp, of Shiremanstown, Pa. He has named his place "The Home of Primroses." Henry S. Rupp, the father of the present head of the business, began the culture of this plant as a specialty at Shiremanstown as early as 1876, and continued it until his death a few years ago, when his son, John F. Rupp, himself a student and artist in this work, continued the business.

The establishment at Shiremanstown consists of six long greenhouses notable not so much for elegance, although they are neat, as for simplicity of construction, and their ability to produce the condition of light and heat necessary to give the best results in primrose culture. The sides are of wood, the roof is of the plain sash bar type, the benches have cement bottoms, and the walks are of concrete. Absolute cleanliness is insisted upon, and no dead leaves or rubbish of any kind is allowed in the houses. All insect pests are kept down by the careful use of cyanide gas. Hot water is the heating medium. Here, under the glass of these six large houses, all the work is done. Thousands of plants are annually grown and sold from 2-inch pots, many hundreds more are brought into perfect bloom and then sold, and still hundreds of others are selected and used in seed production.

The yearly period of seed sowing is from April to the middle of August, and some seed is sown each week in shallow flats containing the ordinary fibrous greenhouse soil to which a little ground bone has been added. In about three weeks after sowing the young plants are 

pricked off into 2-inch pots and in six weeks more these are ready either for sale or for transplanting to the larger pots on the same benches. Some few plants are allowed to mature in the 2inch pots. Fig. 1 shows a fine collection of dwarf plants in full bloom produced in this way. They are contrasted with a standard size specimen growing in a 6-inch pot and placed among them. The three or four flowers on the little dwarfs are nearly as large as those on the standard plants while the few leaves in the picture are very much smaller.

As the plants in 2-inch pots reach salable size, and as the orders come in, they are knocked out of the pots and each, with the ball of earth about the roots, is wrapped in paper. They are then boxed and expressed. Nearly 1,000 packages of these were forwarded last year to all parts of the United States and Canada.

When the orders for small plants have been filled, about double the number required for mature plants and for seed production are then taken. A few weeks' difference in time of seed sowing does not appear to make much difference in the time of blossoming; the-plants will all flower about January. Fig. 2 shows one of the six houses with the plants in full bloom. Some of the varieties Mr. Rupp thinks most of are Delicate Rose, Best Double White, Single Crimson, Double Cristata, and Single Blue. Fig. 3 shows three good specimen plants in full bloom. Best Double White was produced by the late Henry S. Rupp, and won first prize at the Chicago world's fair. Owing to the care in breeding it is still maintained in all its original splendor. Delicate Rose was produced by the present John F. Rupp. Single Crimson is one of the best dark varieties and is an excellent seller.

For the production of seed many thousands of plants are kept to allow for the most rigid selection. Hundreds are from time to time discarded and are not allowed to propagate themselves for faults which the untrained eye can scarcely detect Wrongly tinged or ill shaped petals or petioles, foliage too light or too dark, and lack of vigor are a few of the many points which disqualify a plant for seed production. As the plants are flowered under glass in January, hand pollination is necessary. The ordinary camel's hair brush is used and on the average from 30 to 40 flowers are pollinated per minute. This necessity for artificial pollination permits of the choice of parents in the production of new varieties, and of the employment of the highest skill in plant breeding. A pair of fine plants producing seed are shown in Fig. 4.

Five very important points for which to breed, as stated by Mr. Rupp, are as follows: To get and maintain large size of flowers; to get the flowers thrown up into spikes above the foliage, so as to make a good display; to get the petals well overlapping each other (the best are lapped half the petal or more); to have the edges of the petals perfectly fringed, and, to breed sturdiness and health into the plants.

The general requirements of the Chinese primrose are also given by Mr. Rupp, as follows:

Sunlight.—Not too strong sunlight should be given for foliage and flowers, but for seed development much sunlight is required.

Moisture.—Plants should be kept rather moist except in cloudy weather.

Temperature.—From 55° to 60° F. is best, but the plants will stand much lower temperatures without serious injury.

Soil.—Any good greenhouse soil will do. W. H. W.

 - Gardening, Volumes 15-16 - 1907 

While you may have to be primrose-centric to enjoy reading the following, there is a charm in the delight Mr. Hill takes in describing the display!

Chinese Primroses at the Columbian Fair.

To the Editor of GARDEN AND FOREST:

Sin—The principal midwinter attraction in the horticultural department of the World's Fair has been the Chinese Primroses. About five thousand specimens were shown, filling two greenhouses, each one hundred feet long by twenty-two wide. They have since been placed in the Horticultural Building, and are more accessible to the public. Though awards have been made, the names of those receiving them are not yet given to the public. Seventeen houses competed, six from this country, five from England, four from Germany, one each from France and Italy. The largest lots from America were those of Peter Henderson & Co., New York, R. & J. Farquhar & Co., Boston, and Henry S. Rupp 8:Sons, Shiremanstown, Pennsylvania. The exhibits from England were also large. Those from Germany were from Erturt and Quedlinburg. Four hundred varieties, so called, were said to be shown, but many of these differed more in name than in fact. and half the names would apparently designate the real differences. There was, however, a great variety in the plants as a whole, both in the color and size of the flowers, and in the foliage and general appearance. All were labeled Prim ula Sinensis fimbriata, and flowers without fimbriate margins were exceptional, the greatest number of these being on plants with crisped leaves. As the plants were started from seed sown about the middle of April last, and cultivated under the same conditions, they came into flower essentially at the same time. It was a brilliant display of colors, mostly of the red, white and blue series and their combinations, and caused many exclamations of delight from visitors.

From so much that was excellent it is not easy to choose. The plants from R. H. Cannel & Sons, of Swanley, Kent, were remarkably thrifty, with large flowers and well-developed trusses. Cannel's Pink impressed one as the finest of the lot. It resembled the Queen, with flowers about as large on the average, but of a more decided pink. The leaves are of medium size, arranged so as to set oil‘ the flower-cluster well. The stems were very strong at the base of the cluster of leaves, with no tendency to fall to one side when the pot was tilted. The scapes are not tall nor the flowers umerous, but they rise far enough above the leaves to show e ectively, and offer a charming mass of delicate pink, though the petals are a little multiplied ; they lie so nearly in a plane as to give the flowers the simplicity which is liked by most persons in the blossoms of the Primrose, for those much doubled by the crown of leaves at the throat looked somewhat disheveled even when at their best. Some flowers of the Queen, in‘ the same collection, were the largest noticed in the whole exhibit, measuring fully two and a quarter inches across. Fine flowers of the Queen were also shown by james Carter & Co., High Holborn, London, and by other exhibitors. Other good plants from Swanley, were Swanley Giant, a large rose-colored varietv, White Perfection, Princess Mary, :1 large white with leaves of extraordinary size, Lilacina, exquisitely variable in color, with

delicate tints of lilac-blue. This and White Perfection were of the long-leaved kind.

The purest white seen was in the exhibit of Vilmorin Andrieux et Cie., Paris. It was appropriately named Purity, being perfect in its tone of white. The flowers were of good size, though not of the largest, the truss well placed amid green leaves on purple stems. Many flowers of Mont Blanc, in the same lot, were nearly of as pure a white, but some were faintly blushed with pink, as were some good ones of this name in the exhibit of William Bull, Chelsea, England. The Avalanche, from Mr. Bull, was a large and beautiful white, one of the best. Another good white, Filicina alba, was in the exhibit of Henry Metle, Qiiedlinburg. The plants were tall and strong, abundant bloomers, flowers of fair size, and fern leaved foliage. Other good strains in the sets from Paris were Grand Rose and Grand Blanc Carne, both large-flowered, the pale corolla of the latter with a flush of pink. In the exhibit of Mr. Bull may also be mentioned Pink Beauty, a very handsome pink, with flowers of medium size, those on the lower branches too much covered by leaves for the best effect; Comet, a showy red ; Fulgens, a bright red, with the margins of the petals a little dotted with white,and slightly of the punctate order.

In the exhibit of John Laing & Sons, Forest Hill, London, were a number of good double-flowered kinds. Macros alba plena showed pinkish white flowers and long leaves. Marmorata plena was a double reddish white, the flowers prettily splashed and colored with red or dark pink. The best red in this collection, Chiswick Red, carried very large flowers of a rich dark red, inclining to purple, the greenish eye encircled with a narrow band of white. They were fine, thrifty plants, with large leaves and prolific umbels. The same strain in the lot of Farquhar & Co. was about as good. Crimson, sent by Kelway & Son, Langport, England, was another very bright red, and Vermilion, from Carter & Co., red, and a little punctate. 

The Dark Red of Rupp & Son showed well. There were several reds of the Kerrnesina sort, some quite coppery, and with slight metallic reflections. These, with the salmon reds, carmines, scarlets, purples and other shades, showed the multiplicity of tints into which the color of the original stock had been varied. Dainty flowers of the punctate kind were frequent, with two or three rows of white dots quite regularly placed near their margins, but occasionally scattered. The flowers were generally small, but abundant.

There were blues and lavenders in most of the exhibits which attracted much attention. It is‘barely ten years since the blue race of Chinese Primroses with fringed corollas was established, but the display here made shows that the color is fixed, and comes true from seed. Carter & Co. showed two excellent kinds, London Blue and Porcelain Blue, both large flowered. Haase & Schmidt, of Erfurt, had fine ones labeled Coerulea. Another was the Blue of Vilmorin-Andrieux & Cie., with purple foliage.

A few sets were seen of a different character, the flaked or striated. They were mainly white-flowered, with lines and spots of various shades of red, in form and size varying from dots and lines to spots covering a petal or even half of the corolla. The colors were mostly too irregularly placed to be harmonious and pleasing, but may point the way to some striking variegated forms. Some plants in the exhibit showed possibilities of yellow flowers by enlarging the yellow of the throat. One in particular was noticed, Oculata lutea (Laing & Son), a singular form of this character, having a large yellow spot enclosed by a border of white or white tinged with red. Even the foliage had a yellow cast.

The most peculiar exhibit was that of Hillebrand & Bredemeier, Italy. They were very distinct in foliage, with leaves remarkably crisped, their lobules having the parenchyma very full, so as to be formed into a frill or ruffle. To some extent this characterizes the calyx also. The leaves are symmetrical in form, from oval to oblonge in some cases, their color varying from pale green to dark purple. They are beautiful-leaved plants, as handsome and decorative in their way as are the fine-flowered kinds. The flowers are generally single, mostly small, and often without the fimbriated margin. One of the most crisped was Candidissima, white-flowered and with purple foliage. Carnea has flesh colored corollas, the yellow eye enlarged and star-shaped, and the foliage green. A view of these plants led one to think that the perfect Primrose would be one combining the crisped leaves of the Italian growers with the fine flowers seen in the collections from northern Europe.

Too much praise can hardly be given to Mr. John Thorpe for the cultural skill which has brought forward this immense collection in such uniform health and vigor. 

E. J. Hill, Englewood, Chicago, Ill. (1893)

Eat Serpent Radish Seed Pods!

I was looking up "new vegetable" in the 19th century documents for fun and this popped up.  It actually sounds like something that would be a standard for anyone liking salads and stir frys.

Looking it up in modern references to see if it is still around and worth eating I found the Missouri Botanical Garden gave it the thumbs up!

“ RAPHANUS GAUDATUS”

A New and Delicious Vegetable.

This valuable new vegetable belongs to the Radish tribe, but unlike that esculent, the seed pods (not the root) are eaten; these are very curious, attaining an immense size in a wonderfully short time. sometimes growing as much as three inches in a night. It is native of Java, where it is known under the name of Mougri, and is much used in some parts of India  for salading, &c. 

It has been introduced into England from Saharunpore, and although coming from so warm a country it succeeds admirably in the open ground, and can be easily cultivated in any ordinary garden, which has been fully proved during the past year.   It can be sown in the open air or sill pots and then transferred to the ground, and will grow in almost any soil, care being taken that the plants stand two to three feet apart to allow room for the growth of the pods. No artificial heat is necessary in raising the seed. This vegetable can be used in various ways; indeed it may be regarded as one of the most useful that have been introduced for many years.

 The seed, when sown easily vegetates. and in about eight weeks the plants flower profusely and then produce extraordinary siliquas( pods) which are very remarkable from their attaining the enormous length of about two feet. These pods have a most agreeable flavor, and when about half grown can be eaten in the same way as roots of the common Radish, which they greatly resemble in taste. but are far superior in delicacy of flavor; in salads they will be highly estimated. for added to their other merits. the possess the excellent advantage of being easily digested; they also make a good pickle, for which purpose they are well adapted. 

It is, however, when the pods are boiled that they are most delicious eating. like marrow, and having a very delicate flavor; they should be served on toast, and will form a most agreeable addition and novelty for the table. When the plants are tied upright they have a very singular appearance, for each plant produces from 15 to 20 pods, some hanging quite straight, others twisted or whirled into fantastic shapes. 

This Radish received a first class certificate, the highest award that could be made to a new vegetable, at the celebrated International Horticultural Exhibition held in London last Spring. It must be observed that the pods. either cooked or uncooked, should be eaten “when about half grown; if allowed to attain full size they become stringy and tough, and like Peas, Beans, or any other vegetables too old, worthless. 

The seeds of this remarkable and interesting new vegetable are now being supplied in small quantities at 25 cents per packet. 

Descriptive Catalogue of a Choice Collection of Vegetable,

 Agricultural and Flower Seeds  - B. K. Bliss & Sons, 1869

One of the first seed sellers I found was CottageVines.com.

John Henry the Tulip, plus Doc Watson

1870 -The Florist and Pomologist: A Pictorial Monthly Magazine of Flowers, Fruits, and General Horticulture

Did you notice the word bybloemen above?  Here is what it means -"Bybloemen, then, is also the name of a flower. Specifically, bybloemen are a variety of old English tulips that are “mauve to dark purple/black on a white base and generally appear elegant and restrained”. Whereas the color is often “broken” into feathered patterns,...the base cultivar is a solid, sensuously dark and rich violet." https://bybloemen.wordpress.com/

Wondering who the John Henry was that lent his name to this tulip I looked around and found this reference.  If John Hepworth had read tulip history this might be the answer.

An American folk song is how I knew John Henry before this!  That's why the tulip's name caught my attention :-)  The great Doc Watson sings this version...