Better Homes & Gardens August 1934 cover depicts pearling, uses same types of gravel, livestock, plants, and even snails! Love It!
Many of you comment on mineral supplements and ferts. Better Homes & Gardens is based in Des Moines, Iowa. The greater area is limestone as base rock, resulting in very hard water. Most of the area has quite a bit of argile clay, which looks similar to SeaChem Flourite and was used for brick and tile production for decades. The top soil layers vary, depending on neighborhood. The areas that were forested have nice humousy loose course compost, the areas that were grass have beautiful top soil (same as the dirted-tank soil), and there are many old river and wetlands areas that have a lot of sand mixed in with the soil.
If you wanted to emulate old-school fish keeping, you would use local-sourced products from wherever you live. No internet back then for shopping, just local or mail-order. Costs and time would have been considerably lower to find hardscape and plant material from foraging or buying at local nurseries. My dad uses driftwood, rocks, and plants from the lagoon by his house, and pea gravel from bulk supply at a nursery garden center.
I enjoy this thread, so much knowledge and experience, and yet new and exciting adventures foraging and searching for materials!