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John Jacob Astor

A Journey in Other Worlds

John Jacob Astor

Viewing 1–8 of 8

Colorful lithograph showing the "Department of Electricity," a building with electrical lights positioned along the water, with a crowd of people entering

Colonizing the Cosmos: Astor’s Electrical Future

John Jacob Astor’s "A Journey in Other Worlds" is a high-voltage scientific romance in which visions of imperialism haunt a supposedly “perfect” future.

by Iwan Rhys Morus via The Public Domain Review on September 14, 2022

A painting of a Victorian-style room with an ornate bookshelf and books sitting on a table.

A Degenerate Assemblage

How Charles Lamb and his collection of well-loved books inspired a generation of American collectors.

by Anthony Grafton via London Review of Books on April 13, 2023

A top hat with poppies and the words "Merchants of Addiction", and pictures of wealthy American opium smugglers.

The Blue-Blood Families That Made Fortunes in the Opium Trade

Long before the Sacklers appeared on the scene, families like the Astors and the Delanos cemented their upper-crust status through the global trade in opium.

by Amitav Ghosh via The Nation on January 23, 2024

Cover of "Beaver Land," featuring a beaver tail

A Fascinating History of Beavers Shows How the Species Shaped the U.S.

Leila Philip's book is thrilling, both on scientific and historical levels.

by Katrina Gulliver via Washington Post on December 13, 2022

Minnehaha County Courthouse

Seeking the Last Remnants of South Dakota’s ‘Divorce Colony’

How Sioux Falls became a controversial Gilded Age “Mecca for the mismated.”

by April White via Atlas Obscura on June 14, 2022

A still from the 1955 film 'Wiretapper.' The still depicts a man wearing headphones and touching a wire.

When New York City was a Wiretapper’s Dream

Eavesdropping flourished after WWII, aided by legal loopholes, clever hacks, and “private ears”.

by Brian Hochman via IEEE Spectrum on March 25, 2022

The Most Fascinating Riot You've Never Heard Of

The Astor Place Opera House Riot of 1849 combined two of 19th-century America’s favorite pastimes: going to the theater and rioting.

by John Ganz via The Outline on February 11, 2020

Citibank: Exploiting the Past, Condemning the Future

In 2011, Citigroup published a 300-page 200th anniversary commemoration Celebrating the Past, Defining the Future. Is it a past to celebrate?

by Alan J. Singer via HNN on November 3, 2019

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