Frank Lloyd Wright’s Autos
In appreciation of the automobiles depicted in Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural plans (although, the Author imagines, they were most likely drawn by someone else in his studio).
Encountered at the Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition ‘Frank Lloyd Wright at 150: Unpacking the Archive’.
Ne’er Suck on Your Ivory Parasol Handle and other Etiquette Edicts
Florence Hartley, author of the 1870 book The Ladies Book and Etiquette and Manual of Politeness, had some rather harsh words for uncouth ladies in her chapter ‘Conduct on the Street’:
What is this business about the parasol? Was it a common sight to see a woman on the street sucking on her parasol handle? Ms. Hartley further warns against matching a scarlet shawl with a green dress (my heavens! A green dress ought to be paired with either a white or black shawl), and against wearing mock jewelry (‘utterly detestable’!), One rule with which the Author agrees most heartily is: “if you do stop in the street, draw near the walls, that you may not keep others from passing’. Many pedestrians in New York City ought to heed this advice.
Ms. Hartley does impart some advice that the Author would not endorse, such as applying muriatic acid to remove corns. Muriatic is more commonly known as hydrochloric acid and used for the pickling of steel.
Dear Reader, if you feel you could benefit from more of Ms. Hartley’s etiquette advice, you may read on here:
“Eliminate / The deflate / So grim”
A certain gripe the Author has with the Holiday Season is the depressing sight of formerly inflated Christmas decorations. The Author’s grandmother shared that gripe but expressed it in a much more charming and clever way, as exhibited in this wonderfully witty poem published in the Lancaster New Era in 2008. 
Diligent Readers might recall seeing this poem six years ago, but the Author couldn’t resist sharing it again.
Getting in the Holiday Spirit
Omama surrounded by mini Santas (perhaps?) circa 1925 (perhaps?) in Vienna (perhaps?). Facts are thin on the ground.
Boo(k)ster Seat
The Author spent Thanksgiving with a charming four (nearly five!) year-old dining companion. This wee one was aided by three cushions stacked on top of her chair to bring her to adult eye level. The seating arrangement reminded the Author of this little fellow sitting atop a tome at the table. A rather high brow booster.
This detail comes from Jozef Israel’s, ‘Village Family at a Meal’ (ca. 1880), encountered at the Milwaukee Art Museum (which the Author recommends visiting, if not just for the Calatrava extension alone).
Speaking of Calatrava and the Milwaukee Art Museum, the building’s ‘flapping wings’ were a highlight. Please enjoy this time lapse the Author took on her visit last year:
For Charlotte Lancaster
Dearest Readers,
The Author regrets her absence the past few months. Please bear with her as she converts to first person narration and gets a tad personal.
I haven’t felt able to post anew without remarking on my Grandmother, who died in September. My Grandmother, known by the nom de plume ‘Charlotte Lancaster’ in her many replies to the Diligent Observer, was my most Diligent Reader. Her witty responses and astute observations these past (gosh!) eight years were always a delight and great encouragement to me.
She mostly replied directly to me via email, not in the comments section, so I would like to share a few that other Readers will not have seen and might enjoy:
- A predicament I had not considered for the spiral stairs I’d like to climb: “would you be carrying groceries?”
- In reply to School of Building: “It is a very sensible title.”
- In reply to Water Fountain Dragons: “Very satisfying dragons.”
- A very logical explanation to the large cigarette in Tokyo: “If it were smaller it would look like a gun.”
- In reply to ‘Matchy Matchy Matchy’: “if you have the fabric, then use it up! Maybe a skirt to match, or at least a hair ribbon.”
- In reply to ‘A Sad Building’: “It only has one eye.”
- She recalled a childhood visit to Whitemarsh Hall for her classmate’s (a Stotesbury grandchild) birthday party, where the entertainment included a ventriloquist.
I will miss receiving her comments. Thank you for bearing with me, dear Reader. I’ll carry on, now, sharing my musing and curiosities.
A Bad Travel Companion
Prussian Field Marshall Count Alfred von Schlieffen sounds like a rather dreary road companion. When an aide pointed out the ‘beauty of the Pregel River sparking in the rising sun’, Count von Schlieffen gave the aide a hard look and replied:
‘an unimportant obstacle.’
In appreciation of unimportant obstacles, the Author would like to share some sparking rivers she’s admired through the years (none with the rising sun, she must admit).
The Tobyhanna in Pocono, Pennsylvania
Newtown Creek, between Brooklyn and Queens, New York
The Rhine at Königswinter, Germany
River Thames at Limehouse, London
*anecdote encountered in The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman.
Book Cover Monday: What Makes Sammy Run?
Look at this important man, making business deals on his two telephones and looking ever so fancy with his colorful cravat, boutonniere AND pocket square.
The Bitburger Connoisseur
This charming fellow was designed by graphic artist G. H. Heimig for Bitburger brewery and debuted on bottles and advertisements in 1929. This character is simply known as the “Connoisseur”. Poor fellow doesn’t seem to have any other identity, but the Author does find him to be charming.
The Author likes the slogan ‘Bitte ein Bit!’, which means, “please, a Bit [Bitburger]”. According to the Bitburger website, the lettering is based on the handwriting of brewery owner, Dr. Theobald Simon.
The Author also likes this beer.
Typography ‘Round the World*
Inspired by Samuel Elgart, here is a collection of typefaces that the Author has appreciated in recent years on her travels. Unfortunately there are no extensive back stories quite like with the devious Mr. Elgart.
Saint-Maurice, France (2014)
Stockholm (2010)
Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House (2015)
San Juan, Puerto Rico (2015)
San Juan, Puerto Rico (2015)
*Well, Europe and the Americas.
Broken Handle? No Problem.
This toddy jug, pictured in a 1917 auction catalog, has a rather thin handle. Wait–what’s that? Did someone draw a handle onto the catalog?
Yes, dear Reader, they did. Was it a bit of tomfoolery or an actual attempt to fool a bidder (the Author expects the former)?
This Lowestoft jug, made in China circa 1800, was ordered by Benjamin Chew Wilcocks and given to his cousin Edward Tilghman. The portrait of Washington was copied by a Chinese artist from an engraving by David Edwin.
A twin jug lives in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Coincidentally, the Author had made a note of this same jug a few years ago, alarmed by how peculiar George Washington looked in his portrait.
The Lowestoft Toddy Jug from the MET’s collection. Photographed 2013.
It Started With the Appreciation of Typography
Some splendid, somewhat goofy, typography on Locust Street in Philadelphia.
The Author had merely taken note of ‘Samuel Elgart’ for aesthetic reasons, but upon some newspaper archive digging, has found that Mr. Elgart was not a savory character, at least not in his business dealings! And here, dear reader, begins a deep dive into Philadelphia real estate history.
Samuel Elgart was a Philadelphia realtor and landlord, whom in his 1972 obituary, the Philadelphia Inquirer referred to as ‘controversial’. As the Author discovered through her research in the Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News archives, ‘controversial’ undersells the criminality and scoundrelry of Mr. Elgart and his companies.
What initially caught the Author’s eye was an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer from in 1957, which reported that Mr. Elgart was accused of attempting to bribe an officer of the Department of Public Property. And here we delve into a six year real estate scandal:
In 1951, Mr. Elgart had purchased a plot of land near the University of Pennsylvania for $21,500. Six years later, the City decided to purchase the lot to build a medical center, offering around $40,000. Elgart declined. After some shenanigans the Author won’t attempt to sparse out, the Board of Revision of Taxes put a $99,500 price tag on the lot—more than double tax assessments and appraisals by city experts and independent agencies.
August 1957: Elgart, allegedly went to the office of Samuel Flood, a real estate officer for the City of Philadelphia. Elgart “gave Flood the impression that he wanted to make a quick sale of the property to the city for a sum in excess of $100,000”. Elgart said he would “make it worthwhile” for Flood to expedite the sale. Elgart denied the accusation, claiming he had never intended to sell the lot in the first place.
September 1957: the Attorney General declined to bring charges against Elgart because the evidence was “too ambiguous”. Suspicion was cast on the AG’s decision by the Republican Attorney General candidate (running against the sitting AG in that November’s election. He lost.), who claimed the investigation was a “whitewash” by Elgart’s “political friends” (the District Attorney was a partner in a law firm that represented Elgart).
November 1957: Although Elgart was never charged with bribery, the valuation of the price of the lot was put to a jury. The jury set the price at $68,818, a fair step down from Elgart’s most recent offer of $150,000. Elgart pleas for new trial but is denied.
We move on:
January 1967: Elgart is accused of racial bias. The manager of one of his buildings asked the prospective tenant “if she had any Negro or Puerto Rican friends” and told her they would not be allowed in the apartment. After the prospective tenant paid a $50 deposit, she was informed that the apartment had already been rented out. Shortly after, the same apartment was listed as available. The manager testified that she was instructed by her superiors “not to rent to Negros”.
October 1967: Elgart is ordered to end his discriminatory housing practices. Elgart did not change his ways. He was charged with violating anti-discrimination laws yet again in 1970 and 1972. The City sought to revoke his real estate license.
But, dear Reader, even if you were so lucky to be permitted to reside in an Elgart property, here some of the discomforts you’d encounter:
November 1942: Elgart tried to evict tenants of his property that had been without heat, hallway lights, hot water and bed linen. The eviction was unlawful and stopped by the Office of Price Administration.
August 1946: Elgart brought to court in a fire hazard case.
September 1953: Mr. Elgart’s management company was held responsible for fire damage at one of his hotels (which the judge called “a fire trap”, with oil on the ground, old furniture in hallways and other fire hazards). Guests were awarded thousands of dollars for loss of property and injuries.
January 1964: Mr. Elgart tried to evict a tenant who testified against him at a magistrate’s hearing about a “chronic lack of heat in [the tenant’s] apartment”.
May 1967: Elgart owes more than $2,500 in fines to the city but ignores the fines and subsequent summonses.
August 1967: An Elgart apartment building was declared ‘unfit for human use’ after nearly 100 complaints from tenants and 22 electrical code violations and a faulty heating system.
January 1968: Fined $100 for insufficient heat in his “swank center-city slum”. Donald McDonough of The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that “four attractive women tenants detailed the conditions” (a necessary detail?) of the building’s lack of heat or hot water, trash-filled corridors, vermin, non-operative elevator, inadequate hall lighting, filthy laundry rooms and emission of heavy smoke on the rare occasions when one of the two heaters was working.
February 1968: Pipes burst in one of his buildings. The building was flooded with water, which quickly froze, and the building was declared a “disaster zone”. Elgart did not make necessary repairs and in an effort to force him to do so, the city withheld tenant’s rent in an escrow account.
June 1970: Elgart settles with the City for $15,000 for 250 violations dating back to 1967.
October 1970 – September 1971: fined at least four more times for violations.
Obviously Elgart was fed up with being dealt these code violations, because in February 1971: Elgart is convicted of assault and battery after spitting on a Human Rights Commission representative who read him a subpena. The sentence was suspended.
Elgart died of a heart condition in June 1972, but the misdeeds of his real estate empire didn’t end there: in December 1972, his company was accused by PA State Attorney of using illegal leases which were “unlawful, unconstitutional, unenforceable, unconscionable, unfair, unclear and deceptive”. One clause in the leases permitting landlords to breaking into tenants apartments and sell their property if the landlord merely suspects that the tenant will break the lease.
And there, dear Reader, if you have gotten this far, is the story of Samuel Elgart and his business dealings. It started out so innocently: the Author merely admired a typeface, and descended into a lengthy research project into the depths of Philadelphia real estate politics.
School of Building
The Author used to live around the corner from the London County Council School of Building in Brixton. The Author was amused by what seemed to her to be strange phrasing, but the School of Building was, quite literary, a school for building.
The LCC School of Building opened in 1904 and provided courses and degrees on stone carving, reinforced concrete, plaster modelling, drawing, and more. As the archival photos below illustrate, trainees learned how to construct brick fireplaces and brick clocks!
Camo Column
Cleverly camouflaged Doric columns in Delphi. Or: a rather patchy repair job.
Delphi, Greece (2010)
Trygg
The Author rather likes the Trygg building in Stockholm, which she encountered in 2010 and recently rediscovered in her photography archives.
The Trygg building was designed by Erik Lallerstedt in 1910 and was headquarters for an insurance company. ‘Trygg’ means ‘safe’ or ‘secure’ in Swedish. Sensible name for an insurance company.
Stockholm, 2010
Stockholm, 2010
the Diligent Observer 