1905 - Jell-o Ice Cream Powder

This post is inspired by my recent trip to the Jell-O museum in LeRoy, New York.  In 1905 Jell-O was still a new product, struggling to gain popularity with homemakers.  The 10 cent price was considered expensive in those days, equivalent to $2.50 today.  Housewives did not believe the claims that all you had to do was add water to Jell-O to have a dessert.  The product below is a slightly different product than we are familiar with, that is supposed to be used to make ice cream.

1717 Anodyne Necklace for Teething Children

The purported inventor of the Anodyne Necklace, Paul Chamberlen claimed that the necklace would help children’s teeth as well as woman’s labor. It is no shock that children during the eighteenth century often died as infants, and as many times during infancy the baby is teething, it may have seemed natural that the teething itself was the source of illness and death. The Anodyne Necklace was invented to simply place around a baby’s neck to prevent infant death during teething. Chamberlen deserves the last place on this list for preying and capitalizing on the grief and terror of parents who were more often than not during this period resigned to the fact that their children would be more likely to die in infancy than to make it to adulthood.

1747 Dr. Newman's Famous Anti-Venereal Pill

From the Penny London Post, Jan 2 1747
This ad promised to cure venereal diseases in such a way that " your relations, nay your bedfellow, shall ever suspect you are out of order."

1975 Marine Midland MoneyMatic Machine Demonstration

It's hard to imagine today, but in 1975 most people deposited and withdrew money at the bank, during bank hours.  ATM machines were a new concept, and demonstrations of how to use the machine were given, so that customers would give them a chance (and also allow the bank to employ fewer tellers).

1975 Barbara Moss

This is where I used to shop for all my clothes as a teenager in the '70s and '80s - Barbara Moss.  I remember my mom having a Barbara Moss credit card with me listed as a user, and the limit was $50.  I bought every trendy thing here as soon as it hit the clearance rack.  Even today I never pay retail!  Sasson jeans (bet you didn't know they were the official jeans of the NY Rangers!), Gitano jeans, Jelly Bracelets, Bongo Jeans with palm trees printed on them, day-go tee shirts, punk rock style shirts with zippers.  If it was a fad, they had it sooner or later.  Our Barbara Moss was in City Center plaza in Watertown, NY, along with a few other stores like Music for You, a headshop, and Tops and Bottoms.

1948 Utica Club Beer

$1,000,000 for a glass of any beer is too much, even if you are drinking it ironically, in keeping with your hipster image.

1972 Woolworth Lunch Counter Special