Lee Finley
Barnum’s Sticklebacks
When P.T. Barnum’s American Museum, at the corner of Broadway and Ann Street in Manhattan (New York City), opened America’s first public aquarium (“The Grand Aquaria”) in September 1857, it ...
William Alford Lloyd, the Aquarist, and His Cat, Mim
William Alford Lloyd is one of the greats of 19th Century aquarists – in many ways possibly the greatest of them all. It feels a bit strange doing a piece ...
DIY – Building your own Aquarium in 1862
As I believe I’ve noted before in this forum my main interest in the history of aquariums is firmly rooted in the 19th century. In the early stages of aquarium use ...
Goldfish – A Written and Visual Overview from the 1700s and Early 1800s
Almost four decades ago, I purchased, at a book and picture/plate dealer in Maine, two hand-colored plates of catfishes, which were accompanied by a single printed sheet of corresponding text ...
HAPPY VALENTINE!
In that it is February, a few Valentine cards came to mind, and I would like to use them herein to wish you and MOAPH a happy Valentine month. And ...
Little Things Mean A Lot: Notes on the William T. Innes Bookmark
When my long time friend Wayne Leibel passed away he, in his will, bequeathed to me his collection of aquarium books. Notable among these was a complete set of the ...
Living History from The Departed – Mervin F. Roberts
I had the initial pleasure of contacting Mervin Roberts (1922 – 2020) following a suggestion from Jim Atz, an old “fish friend” of his. This contact, via a long telephone ...
Book Review
A lot is known about Jeanne Villepreux-Power. But there is also a lot of uncertainty in some areas of her life. Consequently, the author wisely notes that “…you’ll come across ...
Coup’s Aquarium Is Coming To Town!! Redux
In the beginning stages of my interest in 19th century public aquaria I found the following quote from James G. Bertram’s book “The Harvest Of The Sea” (London, Third Edition, ...
“The Aquarium News”
The various publications produced by 19th Century public aquaria offer a good source of historical information relating to various aspects of their management and the variety of aquatic creatures under ...
Henry Bishop’s Columbus Aquarium
Photo of Henry Bishop featured in 1893 "Bishop the Bird Man's Book on the Care of Birds & Aquaria".Photo of Henry Bishop featured in 1886 "Bishop the Bird Man's Book ...
Victorian Trade Cards and the Pet Trade, an Initial Overview
Printed advertising of businesses has over its long history taken on many forms and it is a continually evolving process. Some forms of this have been long lasting (e.g., in ...