Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, “A morsel of genuine history is a thing so rare as to be always valuable.” To understand where we are today, I believe we must know something of our yesterdays. I think Family History, US History, and World History are vital to our survival and growth as individuals and as a nation. We read and write about history, build time-lines; and visit battle fields, cemeteries, national monuments and re-enactments. All of this enhances the learning of our history, and so does Marshall Publishing.
Marshall Publishing and Promotions, Inc. is a multifaceted media publishing organization whose management team has 30 years of experience, successfully producing and representing television and home video programs written for all ages.
You may already be familiar with their trademarked, AS SEEN ON TV “Lots and Lots of” brand DVD’s and books. In 2011, I reviewed their George Washington Carver DVD and was pleased with their reliability; so I was quite interested in adding the content of the America in the 1880’s – A Decade of Progress DVD to our on-going study of US History this year.
Look at the cover of the DVD, how many people do you recognize? Many are well-known today and several are actually famous over 100 years later. This film is compiled of photographs, historical footage, and re-enactments; for 4th grade through adult. We watched it as a family. We easily recognized Buffalo Bill Cody on the front, but wasn’t sure if that was Geronimo beside him or not. Susan B. Anthony and the Brooklyn Bridge was easy, too. My older son recognized the outlaws because he previously studied their lives independently, and I tagged Sarah Bernhardt and Mark Twain.
After we watched the video we were surprised that there wasn’t a train on the front cover. The 1880’s saw the height of railroad travel. You could get from coast to coast in 7 days! There are fascinating snippets packed into this DVD, and this caused two things to occur for us. First, because the details are few we found ourselves wanting to research our own special interests; secondly, we seem to recall the people, places and events more readily than when we’re bogged down with extra information. The 1880’s was a marvelous, often overlooked decade; with a vast array of remarkable people and major events. The circus, theater troupes, and big music alongside life-changing inventions, gun-slinging outlaws, and outrageous clothing designs! Four states joined the union and while that might have been significant in itself, the fact that the population increased to 63 million by 1890, largely because of the warm welcome given to European immigrants, from its humble 13 million souls in 1880, is astounding!
Using the Study Guide that’s included, our discussion led us to note that although there’s been major changes in technology in the same number of years, and advances in other areas during other time periods, the accomplishments of so many in different areas, all in the same time frame is unrivaled. America in the 1880’s covers History, Geography and Culture through a decade of wonder.
From the website: “What was life like in America in the 1880s? Just like a time machine, this DVD will transport you back to discover the people and events that shaped this exciting decade: the Brooklyn Bridge …Washington Monument …Statue of Liberty …Gunfight at the O.K. Corral …Oklahoma Land Rush …Johnstown Flood …Thomas Edison …Mark Twain …Baby Doe …Sitting Bull …Sarah Bernhardt …John Philip Sousa …Buffalo Bill …Gilbert and Sullivan …Wyatt Earp…Jesse James and Billy the Kid ….Alexander Graham Bell ….John D. Rockefeller ….Andrew Carnegie ….Samuel Gompers ….Susan B. Anthony ….Lillian Russell ….and many others! You will learn about fashion, politics, sports heroes, famous inventors, Wall Street financiers, railroad expansion, buffalo extinction, Indian resettlement, Civil Rights, union organization, urbanization, the music of the times, and much more!”
There is also an archival documentary short film about the life of Alexander Graham Bell, his work with the deaf and the invention of the telephone, as a bonus feature of this DVD. Approx. 60 total min. This DVD, and the correlated Study Guide, is on sale now for $19.95, plus FREE shipping when you use coupon code TOS27 at checkout.
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For more information, questions or comments – Contact:
Marshall Publishing & Promotions, Inc.
123 S. Hough St.
Barrington, IL 60010
(P) 224-238-3530
(F) 224-238-3531
EMAIL: info@marshallpublishinginc.com
CUSTOMER SERVICE: 888-300-3455 9AM – 7PM Central Time
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Marshall Publishing – the place to find “Lots & Lots of…” fun, entertainment, education, and amusement for the whole family! Besides, America in the 1880’s – A Decade of Progress, my Crew mates reviewed the 2 DVD Set – Lots & Lots of Playful Penguins and their Toe-Tappin’ Happy Feet, and Lots & Lots of Penguins in the Wild!, The Historic Expedition of Lewis & Clark – We Proceed On!; and The History of The Oregon Trail & The Pony Express. You can read each of their reviews when you click the banner below and follow the link to the Schoolhouse Review Crew Blog.
Blessings,
Lis says
Great review Penny!
You captured a thought that I felt but didn’t condense into words~ the lack of “Extra” material allowing for better retrieval of information. I guess this is the video version of “bite-size” chunks of knowledge that we are so familiar with in children’s encyclopedia’s and “visual learner” books.
Blessings~