MickS77 Posted July 30, 2020 Share Posted July 30, 2020 14 minutes ago, Daniel said: You can still buy this at Eric Bodrock's AllOddballAquatics website. This is great video of Eric's vintage aquarium collection, so much cool stuff! 5 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexa Posted July 30, 2020 Share Posted July 30, 2020 Wardley? Not now, not then, not ever! (Thank you for linking that website, I’m seriously considering buying some of those vintage backgrounds...) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 30, 2020 Author Share Posted July 30, 2020 12 hours ago, J. Mantooth said: @Daniel I have 2x 1936 Aquarium magazines and 1x 1934 Aquarium magazine I am more than happy to scan to you if you would like. One is the 1936 Tetra issue in which it talks about how Neon Tetras are an amazing new discovery and is sure to become a huge hit in the hobby. They even discuss how hard they are to breed and how they will likely hold their value at $150.00 a pair, imported. LOL! Oh, how times have changed. 🙂 @J. Mantooth A few minutes ago I just scored the first 3 years of "The Aquarium" at an live online auction (there was real floor bidding and all): I would still love to see what's in the 1936 Tetra Issue. The introduction of neons in 1936 caused a frenzy! 5 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Mantooth Posted July 30, 2020 Share Posted July 30, 2020 7 hours ago, Daniel said: That is so cool that you have the 1936 Tetra issue! And yes, I would very much like to see what is in that issue. If you are willing please upload to here. Does Innes mention how the first neons were originally imported in to the United States from Germany on the airship Hindenburg? Apistogramma, Corydoras, and Elassoma (pygmy sunfish) are mentioned in the 1936 book that I uploaded, but no mention of discus. I haven't seen earlier versions of the book so I don't know what is new for 1936. Is your 1931 version the book 'Goldfish Varieties and Tropical Aquarium Fishes' or the 'The Complete Aquarium Book'? I will absolutely scan it this afternoon and upload it for you. 🙂 He absolutely talks about the import in that issue. It is quite a long article and is packed with really cool information about the import process. I have the electronic version of the original 1917 book, thanks to Cornell University and public domain, so I will load it up for you too. I have the Goldfish Varieties and Tropical Aquarium Fishes book. I have a thing for Goldfish, so I went with that one. Really interesting to see the color photos. Really high quality for the time. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 30, 2020 Author Share Posted July 30, 2020 Just now, J. Mantooth said: I have the Goldfish Varieties and Tropical Aquarium Fishes book. I have a thing for Goldfish, so I went with that one. Really interesting to see the color photos. Really high quality for the time. Innes totally reminds me of @Cory. Very much quality oriented, if he thought the photograph of the fish didn't reflect real life, he would make a painting of what the fish really looked like. Also like @Cory a very wide knowledge base, and very patient in answering questions. And both have/had media empires. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 30, 2020 Author Share Posted July 30, 2020 @J. Mantooth Just downloaded your file for the 1917 edition of the book. This makes my day. I can't wait to see what pre-WWI fish keeping looks like. Thank you, thank you! I used my reactions for the day so this is all I got 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Mantooth Posted July 30, 2020 Share Posted July 30, 2020 6 minutes ago, Daniel said: @J. Mantooth A few minutes ago I just scored the first 3 years of "The Aquarium" at an live online auction (there was real floor bidding and all): I would still love to see what's in the 1936 Tetra Issue. The introduction of neons in 1936 caused a frenzy! How awesome!!! What a great win! That is going to be so helpful for your project. I will break out the good scanner this afternoon and load it up for you. 🙂 8 minutes ago, Daniel said: Innes totally reminds me of @Cory. Very much quality oriented, if he thought the photograph of the fish didn't reflect real life, he would make a painting of what the fish really looked like. Also like @Cory a very wide knowledge base, and very patient in answering questions. And both have/had media empires. I agree. Innes' attention to detail really denotes his passion for aquatics. I appreciate the way he dispels rumors and bad fish keeping advice in his books/articles. He almost sounds like a caring father 'tsking you into doing the right thing for your fish. Like @Cory explaining to someone that water changes really are important, how one should really test their water, and no, you can't put a Goldfish in a bowl. LOL! I was also really impressed by how many of the "rules" for good fish keeping that are still very much considered sound advice today. Some almost verbatim. It seems like more of the equipment and technology has changed, rather than the basic principals. Though looking at the technology used in the 30's, I am really surprised more people weren't electrocuted using some of those heaters and air pumps. "Can be used with AC and DC current." Makes me glad to be keeping fish today. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Mantooth Posted July 31, 2020 Share Posted July 31, 2020 @Daniel The Aquarium, Neon Tetra issue from November of 1936 is now in for your viewing pleasure. 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 31, 2020 Author Share Posted July 31, 2020 (edited) @J. Mantooth Thank you for the The Aquarium, Neon Tetra, November 1936! The scan quality is awesome. Better than the original ☺️ Edited July 31, 2020 by Daniel 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 31, 2020 Author Share Posted July 31, 2020 (edited) Many thanks to @J. Mantooth for locating, scanning, and then uploading to our forum the November 1936 issue of “The Aquarium” magazine. The November 1936 issue of “The Aquarium” magazine highlights three fish that are stalwarts of today's hobby. On the cover is the all-time favorite neon tetra and inside there are articles on both Japanese Rice Fish, and Oscars. The first imports of neon tetras into United States in the spring of 1936 were flown directly from Hamburg Germany to Lakehurst New Jersey aboard the very last flight of the airship Hindenburg (its next flight ended in a fiery catastrophe while trying to dock at Lakehurst). Interestingly, the pattern set by that first importation would continue even into this day, that is, five of the first six neons died shortly after arriving. If you think it’s disappointing your Petco neons died, imagine paying the equivalent of $10,000 in shipping and just getting one live fish. That one remaining fish ended up at the Shedd aquarium in Chicago and was referred to by the public as “the last of the Mohicans”. Eventually, Fred Cochu of Paramount Aquarium purchased the first large shipment of 4000 neons and was able to put them on sale for $10 a piece (big money in 1936). Fortunately the neons that had passed away still served good scientific use. The expired neons were sent to Dr. George S Myers at the National Museum in Washington DC for examination and he named the fish in honor of William T. Innes, Hyphessobrycon innesi. It would be like a new species puffer being named for @Cory, something like Tetraodon aquariumcoopi. In 1936 Japanese Rice Fish are referred to as Medakas The author of the article on Oscars generally refers to them by their scientific name of Astronotus ocellatus. But refers to his pair (which, by way of tribute German Aquarist) as Oscar and Lena. Could this be how they got the name Oscars? My favorite quote from about Oscars in the article is "God gave too many brains to the cichlids and didn't have enough left over to go around". Much of the aquarium equipment advertised in the November 1936 issue looks remarkably familiar. Even something that looks a sump or a proto-cannister filter If you haven't had a chance to download this file, I would highly recommend giving it a try. The advice in the articles holds up even 84 years later and the ads are a lot of fun. Edited July 31, 2020 by Daniel 9 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted July 31, 2020 Share Posted July 31, 2020 The price on the air pump and filter are similar to today's prices! Imagine how impossible that would be to afford then. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 31, 2020 Author Share Posted July 31, 2020 5 minutes ago, Brandy said: The price on the air pump and filter are similar to today's prices! Imagine how impossible that would be to afford then. In 1936 the average doctor made $3300 per year, the average lawyer $4200, a farm hand made on average $220 a year and a secretary just over $1000 a year. So that air pump, filter combination that cost just under $70 might have been affordable to the average doctor as it was merely a week's wages. But something tells me that that farmhand could never afford to keep an aquarium. I think the best comparison is a nice decked out 1936 freshwater aquarium is the equivalent to today's high-end reef tank. Most people then kept goldfish in an unheated, un-aerated box of water. And even a schoolteacher ($1200/yr) or a dressmaker ($780/yr) could afford to keep goldfish. On the other hand, in 1936 you could buy a set of four tires for your automobile for $6.35 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dean’s Fishroom Posted July 31, 2020 Share Posted July 31, 2020 I have a whole pile of these from the 30's through the 50's. It's kind of interesting how some products have evolved and the basic principles of fish keeping have stayed the same. 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted July 31, 2020 Author Share Posted July 31, 2020 3 minutes ago, Dean’s Fishroom said: It's kind of interesting how some products have evolved and the basic principles of fish keeping have stayed the same. The laws of biology are kind of immutable like the laws of physics. Air pumps and heaters haven't changed much but lighting has gotten much, much better. Prepared fish food seems to improved quite a bit. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Ed's Aquatics Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 2 hours ago, Dean’s Fishroom said: I have a whole pile of these from the 30's through the 50's. It's kind of interesting how some products have evolved and the basic principles of fish keeping have stayed the same. How cool that you have so many. I bet between everyone we could get the whole history of fish keeping scanned and uploaded. I like the vintage photos, I bet they were super difficult to get good pictures back then. How do you tell fish not to move for a couple minutes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Mantooth Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 5 hours ago, Dean’s Fishroom said: I have a whole pile of these from the 30's through the 50's. It's kind of interesting how some products have evolved and the basic principles of fish keeping have stayed the same. I know @Dean’s Fishroom! It was your mention of them that sent me down the rabbit hole to find them, and a wonderful treasure trove of other cool stuff, in the first place. LOL! Thanks Dean! Well, I thank you. My bank account does not. 🙂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Mantooth Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 (edited) 2 hours ago, Edward Steven said: How cool that you have so many. I bet between everyone we could get the whole history of fish keeping scanned and uploaded. I like the vintage photos, I bet they were super difficult to get good pictures back then. How do you tell fish not to move for a couple minutes? I'll say! At least they had graduated to film by the 1930's. Would have been murder, or impossible, with older plate cameras. I think Kodak came out with the Brownie, one of the first real 'portable' cameras in the late teens. @David Humphrey, does that sound accurate to you? Or at least close? Edited August 1, 2020 by J. Mantooth spelling at night again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tre Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 I'm absolutely loving this as a science nerd. Biologist and Chemist. I feel like we're going naked without all of our new contraptions..... like skinny dipping for aquarium hobbyists. Oh how riskay! It will also be very interesting to see what plant life you choose. Balancing plant and fish needs shouldn't be too difficult but I imagine species selection of plants would have been rather limited to the Americas, Europe and common specimens from other regions. This should be a blog from start to finish! Video or written form but would be awesome to see and look over. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted August 1, 2020 Author Share Posted August 1, 2020 2 minutes ago, Tre said: This should be a blog from start to finish! Video or written form but would be awesome to see and look over. I thought about putting this over on the blog, but the traffic in thin over there. I may start putting more of this on the blog as I imagine this is going to take a while, and this thread could get cumbersomely long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tre Posted August 1, 2020 Share Posted August 1, 2020 Just now, Daniel said: I thought about putting this over on the blog, but the traffic in thin over there. I may start putting more of this on the blog as I imagine this is going to take a while, and this thread could get cumbersomely long. Yes. Even photos with a short description of how things are going along. Then here we can discourse like mad scientists. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted August 3, 2020 Author Share Posted August 3, 2020 Thanks to Eric Bodrock at All Oddball Aquatics I think the literature search phase of 1930s Historically Accurate Planted Aquarium is drawing to a close. Here are approximately 50 issues of various early 1930s tropical fish magazines Eric just sent. I can't wait the read the 'Live Foods Number' and the 'Daphnia Collecting Number'! 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted August 7, 2020 Author Share Posted August 7, 2020 I am starting to make basic choices on the 1930s Historically Accurate Planted Aquarium. Light will mostly come from a window with supplemental light from a 1930s era standing lamp The aquarium will be supported on a board across a 1930s Singer sewing machine wrought iron base So the placement will look something like this: No plans to run CO2 8 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Posted August 7, 2020 Share Posted August 7, 2020 You appear to have adequate supervision on this project. 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted August 8, 2020 Author Share Posted August 8, 2020 I haven't heard back from the aquarium glass restoration people so I am going to assume (without any malice) that the restoration might be a 'Universal Rocks' situation and it might take a while. So what can I do? I can put water in the tank in the photo and see what the average temperature is. I can throw some plants in and see if they grow. How much algae will grow given how close the tank is to the window? I can throw some guppies in while doing all of the above, because hey, what doesn't go better with guppies? And I really, really agree with @Cory that basically everything goes better with an airstone, but my plan is not to have an airstone so as to recreate the conditions of an early hobbyist tank. This will give me a chance before the final build to see just how stagnant the water will or won't be. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted August 8, 2020 Author Share Posted August 8, 2020 Just found a 1934 movie where a key scene revolves around a Betta fight! Dragon Murder Case 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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