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History's Mysteries Part One

11/8/2010

4 Comments

 
Did you ever wonder why we call one of the rooms in our homes a "Living Room?" It always seemed strange to me. The room's not alive. Yes, we live in it, but we live in all the other rooms as well. The story behind the name is an interesting one:

Traditionally, when a family member died the family would display the body in the parlor for services. In Detroit in the early Twentieth Century, if you were rich enough or well-connected enough, you could get the Detroit United Railways Funeral Train, via the streetcar rails, to pick up the body at your house to transport it to the cemetery. If you were like most of us, you would have your mortician provide a wagon or carriage to do the job.

But on to the Living Room.

"Professional Mourners" had been around for a long time, but they really became popular in the early 1900's. By 1910, the year in which The Detroit Electric Scheme is set, these "Funeral Parlors" were popping up all over the place. People wanted the bodies out of the house. As  the funeral parlors grew in popularity, the word "parlor" became associated with funerals. Since "parlor" was associated with death, a new name caught on for the parlor that was everything "parlor" was not. It was . . wait for it . . . wait for it . . . the "Living Room." (This one turned on a light bulb over my head.)
4 Comments
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7/2/2012 05:24:45 pm

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9/17/2013 12:29:52 pm

Just wonderful writing! I must say i loved looking at the concept, you happen to be a fantastic publisher. I am going to be sure that I take a note of your blog post and come back later here. I wish to inspire yourself to carry on your current best wishes, have a good day! :)

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5/17/2016 11:50:44 pm

Well done!

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6/14/2016 08:23:55 am

Very interesting, great job. I also have always wondered why it is called so. In fact, many items are called because of some traditions and I find this fascinating. Every nation has its own traditions and it is a wonderful job to investigate them.

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    D.E. Johnson:
    Author of the Will Anderson Detroit Historical Mystery Series

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  • Home
  • Blog
  • Books
    • The Detroit Electric Scheme >
      • To Buy The Detroit Electric Scheme
      • Literary Reviews
      • Goodreads Reviews
      • Chapter One
      • Characters
      • Detroit Electric
      • Scenes
    • Motor City Shakedown >
      • To Buy Motor City Shakedown
      • Literary Reviews
      • Goodreads Reviews
      • Chapter One
    • Detroit Breakdown >
      • To Buy Detroit Breakdown
      • Literary Reviews
      • Goodreads Reviews
      • Chapter One - Detroit Breakdown
      • Eloise Hospital
    • Detroit Shuffle >
      • To Buy Detroit Shuffle
      • Chapter One
      • Literary Reviews
  • Bio
  • Contact