1. A small town that escaped destruction by New York City
“The doom of Katonah is sealed,” began a column on the front page of The New York Times on April 8, 1893. The town of Katonah, New York, about 40 miles north of Manhattan, was slated to be demolished—washed away, really—to make way for New York City’s expanding water system. The system called for a new dam to be built—the Croton Dam—and with it, a new reservoir. The town of Katonah stood directly in the reservoir’s path….
But the residents of Katonah weren’t so easily defeated. Instead of losing their town, they chose to move it…
The track that houses were moved along
“They jacked up the houses and put them on rails lubricated with ordinary laundry soap,” says Ryan. “They then used horses to pull the houses along the tracks, stopping periodically along the way.”
Even more incredible was the fact that many of the residents continued to live in their houses as they were being moved. “Children would go off to school, return home, and find that their house would be in a different location.”
A hundred years on, the village of Katonah still thrives today, easily accessed by train from New York’s Grand Central Station…it feels like a time warp to 1897… As for old Katonah? … “If you go out in a rowboat onto the reservoir, you can go up onto the land and find the old foundations.”
2. The US Postal Service is making accessories out of retired U.S. Mailbags
For sale on it’s website.
3. Jane Austen Playing Cards
Currently on Kickstarter.
4. Lovely Soviet era tea labels
Browse the full collection here.
5. What Kind of Cocktails were people drinking 150 Years ago…
Even before the speakeasies of the 1930s, there existed a budding culture of mixology. How to Mix Drinks: Or The Bon-Vivants Companion by Jerry Thomas (1862) is one of the first books on how to make drinks and the entire thing is available online if you fancy a go.
How to Mix Drinks: Or The Bon-Vivants Companion by Jerry Thomas (1862) is here.
Found on Dusty Old Thing.
6. A collection of over 9,000 beer cans amassed over 42 years
Nick West, who even converted his home to store his haul, is now trying to unload them so he can downsize. Article found here.
7. Stock Photos from the 1970s
Find more from this kitschy batch of photos on Mashable.
8. Retro Lego Kits
Chris McVeigh puts together guides for how to build unique LEGO sets. You can buy the kit with the necessary parts here.
9. These Vintage Cigarette Ads
More crazy vintage cigarette ads here.
10. Candy Cigarette Bank by Minor-Matic (1960)
Found on Old Soul Retro.
11. The grooviest radio/ toilet paper holder ever
Found from the Deep End Club.
12. This neat DIY Gardening Idea
Always a sucker for fairy lights. Found here.
13. The Shell Garden, 1965
If you were to go to see the attraction on the south coast of England today, you would be greeted by a very over-the-top modern apartment building still sporting the name ‘Shell House’. (Thanks for the tip Robert).
