I spent last weekend in Kansas City and discovered the Steamboat Arabia museum. The Arabia was a packet paddle-wheeler that for a time ran from Kansas City to Sioux City, Iowa on the Missouri River. In 1856 it hit a snag and sank in the River. All people made it off but the cargo was lost in the muck. Eventually, the Missouri changed course, leaving the Arabia buried under the water table in a farmer's field.
The anoxic environment preserved everything perfectly except clothing. It is absolutely amazing to see the collection. It's a time capsule into middle class life in 1856 in Kansas and Missouri, at least in the river towns and nearby regions. Sets of china and tableware look like they were bought yesterday. They have thousands of sulfur headed matches that supposedly didn't exist in 1856. The have rubber combs that experts thought hadn't been invented yet. It was definitely not life in a sod cabin. It's pretty amazing when you consider Kansas and Nebraska only opened for settlement in 1854.
The only "dry good" that wasn't in ample supply was guns. According to the guide the master was an abolitionist and had been caught trying to run guns to Lawrence. He was told if he was caught again he would face a necktie party.
Very interesting.
One thing the Leftist revisionists work very hard at hiding is the fact that as a result of the free market economy running with NO federal government interference in the 1800’s, the average American lived better than the average citizen in any other country and as well or better than many rich people in other countries.
In the recorded history of man, America in the 1800’s is one the very few examples of a truly free society.