Vintage Advertisements

As we are perusing newspapers and other old periodicals in our family history research, it can be great fun to take a moment to read the advertisements of the day. These vintage ads are a great glimpse into life in the past and can provide insights into popular fashions, products and trends of the time.

Check out these advertisements throughout history:

Image: Library Company of Philidelphia

In this 1849 advertisement, Dr. George Stuart’s botanical syrup and vegetable pills are said to help treat consumption, dysentery, chills and fevers, colds, coughs, bronchitis, general and nervous debility, and much more.

Image: Library of Congress

Hovey’s Cocoa Glycerine for preserving and dressing hair, 1861.

Image: Library of Congress

This early ad from the 1890s shows a well dressed young women with pearls drinking a glass of Coca-Cola.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Here’s one that is still a breakfast favorite, Kellogg’s Toasted Corn Flakes, 1910.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Squire’s Pure Leaf Lard, 1916. Makes a tempting pastry!

Image: Bored Panda

7 Up for babies? This 1950s ad for the popular soda even offers tips on how to mix the beverage with your baby’s milk.

Have you found any amusing vintage ads from the past?