The Gibson Girl

                 The Gibson Girl was probably one of the most influential drawings in America ever. She was a character created by the satiric artist Charles Dana Gibson in the late 1890's. Nothing more than a series of pen and ink drawings, this iconic character weaseled her way into to the lives into many of the Americans who lived during that time periods. Though she was popular in other places as well, the Gibson Girl mainly affected the lives of those Americans who lived in the city.

                 In this time period, women's places in society was already set in stone. Women were meant to stay at home, maybe have a simple job, but for the most part they were meant to stay prim and proper. The Gibson Girl, however, pushed the boundaries on these kinds of stereotypes. She made women seem strong and independent, and even like they could do what men were doing. Some drawings of her depict her playing sports without even a crinkle in her clothing. She really showed the evolution of women's roles in society.
     

Eyewitness History

                 The phrase, "the woman every girl wants to be and every boy wants to be with," easily summarizes what the Gibson Girl was to the people of the city. She governed women's fashion so much that the Charles Dana Gibson, the male author who considered himself nothing more than a satire artist, was considered a rival to some of the popular fashion designers including Butterwick Dress Patterns. An interesting quote from the World newspaper from that time period was, "As soon as the world saw Gibson's ideal it bowed down in adoration saying: 'Lo' at last the typical American girl.'" One man from this time period was quoted to have said, "You can always tell when a girl is taking the 'Gibson Cure' by the way she fixes her hair." This man was probably also just as obsessed with the Gibson Girl as the woman were. The fictional suitors of this woman were always clean cut men so what did the men in this time period do? They shaved their beards all due to a few drawings. Merchandise for both men and women were made with the images of the Gibson Girl on them including wallpaper china plates, silverware, dresser sets, pillows, whisks, broom holders, shoes, spoons, tiles, and more.

                  The Gibson Girl also dictated manners and opinions of those who followed her life. She had an air of aristocracy about her. She weaved her way through social layers and showed a new way of thinking for everyone. Popular images of the Gibson Girl show her branching out into new hobbies and talents including the violin or even rough "manly" sports. She was not a woman to be ignored as she charmed the men that happened to cross her path. She was quite the character.

Gibson Girl with a Violin

                  The author Charles Dana Gibson himself was shocked as to how many people followed tried to emulate his drawings in real life. He even created the perfect man to go with the Gibson Girl, the Gibson Man, but he never reached the popularity of the wonderful Gibson Girl. And although so many Americans copied her look and her attitude, they may sometimes forget, she was never given a name.

Eyewitness History

     PBS      American Beauties     This Fabulous Century 1900-1910    Smithsonian Library 

     Gibson Girl Her America

2      

Immigration to the US

          Watching Faces of America has really taught me about the family history's of some very important people. It also has shown me how a lot of famous people actually knew very little about some of their family members. It was really interesting when the host made them turn the page of their family book to a page with pictures of family members who may not have had the oppurtunity to get to the states. The main thing, I think, the show is trying to get across is how it is possible for more recent immigrants, or the families of these immigrants, to be very successful in the United States. I really enjoyed watching the show and will definitely watch it in the future. 

        

     Being a "nation of immigrants" can mean a lot of different things depending on who you would ask but I believe it's a phrase describing how the USA has been shaped by all sorts of cultures because it's a country where large groups of "immigrants" have come to to start anew or for oppurunities. These people have brought not just brought themselves to this country but their cultures and beliefs  I can sort of relate to the people from the film since my parents migrated here when they were in their 20s but it's not like I have any ancestors that came to this country. Oh and my parents story actually is quite boring, the way they tell it is at least, so my family story is a lot less interesting then the ones from the show.

Andrew Carnegie

         Andrew Carnegie's life was full of the oppurtunity and success that people dream of when they come this country. He was born in Dunfernlime, Scotland to a linen weaver and a shoemaker, both of whom were big on civil rights. His family emigrated to the the US, more specifically Pennsylvania, in 1848 and that is where his life in business began, sort of. He got his first job at the age of 13 working as a bobbin boy at a cotton factory. He gained most of his education from reading which he enjoyed doing. A local man had opened up his library to the boys in that area, I thought that was quite fascinating considering later in life, Carnegie actually donated many many libraries to communities using the wealth that he had obtained. From being a Western Union messenger boy to a telegraph operator, and many other small positions along the way, Carnegie slowly went up the ladder until he found himself as the superintendent of the Western Division of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Though all of these jobs here and there played a part in his carreer, I'd like to think that this last one was truly one of the most influential.
 
       Carnegie's first big venture into a company was when he invested in a company that wanted to manufacture sleeping cars for railways. He then ventured out even further into the world of building bridges, locomotives, and rails. After all of this investing he decided to make his own company and in 1865 he finally did, the Keystone Bridge Company. Though I'm sure his bridge company was quite successful, most people know him for his successes in the world of steel which he started about eight years later in 1873. His companies were always formed as partnerships and never stocks corporation which I thought was pretty fascinating. He did end up selling his super successful steel company to JP Morgan in 1901, his company was valued at 400+ million dollars at the time. He did not just sit down in a big house and endlessly count his money though, he ended up becoming a philanthropist donating libraries and institutions to help the future business leaders. He wrote a book in 1889 and officially retired from business in 1901. By the end of his life, he had built up a huge legacy of generosity and had donated or given away 350 million dollars of his own wealth. What an inspirational life he had.

Carnegie's About Our Founder

Native Americans and the Rainbow




The Creator and the Rainbow Bridge

 

        I decided to focus on the Native American's relationship and beliefs with and about the rainbow. Though all Native Americans seemed to have different ideas about what the rainbow represented or how it came to be, they all considered it sacred. I will be talking about a few of the myths that I have uncovered and then what I believe the rainbow meant to Native Americans in general.

        

       The first myth I will be discussing is the prophechy of the "Warriors of the Rainbow." The propechy was first told by a Cree woman named Eyes of Fire. She told of a time where the earth would be ravaged due to the American's Yo-ne-gis, greed, and mankind would start to fade. Rivers would turn black, streams would be poisoned and deer would die unexplainably. She told of how right before it all ended that the natives would have to teach the white men what was right and together they would become the Warriors of the Rainbow. These "warriors" job was to spread the message of justice, peace, and freedom and of the "Great Spirit". After they succeeded them elohi, the way of the earth, would be restored. It was also told that not any one could be a Warrior of the Rainbow, but that they would have to be just and pure in their intentions and would be chosen for the duty by the Great Spirit themself.

         

      Though this propechy is quite old, it is actually not dead. While searching for more about it I found one of those, "the world is ending in 2012" websites that actually posted an article about how some Natives believe that the time for the Warriors of the Rainbows is arising and all of the natural disasters that seem to be occuring is a sign. I did not particularly like how the site was using these people's beliefs to further their goal of convincing all that the world is ending because it seemed like they honestly did not think much of the prophecy as more than another symbol pointing to how we knew the end was coming for quite a while.




Rainbow Crow

       Another interesting myth I found was the story of the Rainbow Crow which has been adapted into multiple children's books. The story talks about this beautiful rainbow crow who was part of this group of animals. Where it lived there had been great snowfall and though the animals seemed to enjoy it at first, they soon began to start getting sick due to the intense cold. The council of animals met up to see who would go to the Creator to tell her about what was happening and since no others could go due to their personal faults, the perfect rainbow crow decided to make the three day long journey. When the crow made it there the Creator asked the bird to sing and sing it did with the most beautiful singing voice of all of the other birds. After it sang, the bird told of how the animals were unable to withstand the cold so the Creator gave the bird a branch with a fire on it and told it to hurry becuase if the branch burned out, so fire would too. The crow flew as fast as it could back to save the animals but on its way, the bird's tail caught on fire and it inhaled smoke so as it fell back to earth it's rainbow feathers became black and its singing voice turning into unappealing cawing. The bird looked upon itself in despair but as it saw the animals surrouding the fire it decided it was worth it. The Creator then came down and told the crow that she had made it so that no one would want to eat the crow due to it tasting of smoke and no one would put it in a cage and make it sing for them. The last gift the poor crow got was that on the inside, its feathers shined the colors of the rainbow as a symbol to show what it had given up for the other animals. This myth uses the rainbow as a medal of honor connecting it to the other side where the Great Spirit (aka The Creator) is located.






Rainbow Bridge



     The final piece of information I found is not exactly a myth but is a rock formation that a few Native American tribes that lived by it believed it to be the sacred "Rainbow Bridge". The rainbow bridge is literally a bridge made of a rainbow that the Natives believed led them to the other side and in an area of isolated canyons at the base of Navajo Mountain, there happens to be a rock structure that resembles a rainbow that the Natives believed to be this bridge's form for the living's eyes. This formation had been though of as sacred for centuries for the tribes that lived near there including the Hopi and the Navajo Indians. Through the years the Natives have had to fight to keep this formation preserved and respected and today it is a protected monument and the National Park Service just asks visitors to be respectful of the people who have considered it sacred for a few years. 



     I believe the Natives believed the Rainbow to be something that connected them to the other side, the Rainbow Bridge was literally just that. The Rainbow was not just a light prism that reflected off of something to make pretty colors in the sky after rain but a true symbol of their beliefs. The Natives believed that the Rainbow connected the earth to their beyond and everytime they saw one it was meant to be an honor to have recieved a gift from the Creator.



 The First People  IlHawaii's Native Lore     Manataka Official Council  American Folklore

2012 Rising    National Park Service  Native Languages