Gisella's School

This week in history I learned about condensed milk, the sleeping car, and toilet paper. The first thing I learned about this week was condensed milk. Gail Borden invented condensed milk after seeing children die from ingesting contaminated milk and his wife dying led him to get interested in medicine. Condensed milk is heated to kill bacteria, evaporate water, and sugar is added as a preservative. It was an important part of the rations of the union soldiers, and they spread to the world over after the war ended. Nestle got started making condensed milk, resulting in a variety of sweet treats made by them today.

            The second thing I learned about this week was the sleeping car. Chicago was built in the swamp and grew out of old Indian territory to become a major hub in the 19^th century. George Pollman invented the sleeping car in 1865 with the help of savings he earned working as an engineer in Chicago. The sleeping car provides a comfortable but compact sleeping area for passengers taking long train rides. Pullman advertised his car as a way for the middle class to experience upper class living at low prices. The large number of well paid porters gave way to the first black middle class and the Civil Rights movement.

            The third thing I learned about this week was toilet paper. The US was industrializing quickly in the 1840s. Toilet paper was invented by Joseph Gayetty, ending the primitive methods for wiping yourself that had existed up that point. Toilet paper is a clean and hygenic way to clean yourself after using the bathroom and for other purposes too. Gayetty appealed to the public’s sense of fear by not using poison on paper like other companies did. He also promised health benefits for people who did use his toilet paper. Toilet paper has improved over time, and we have much better sanitation with this cheap commodity than without it. 

             The most interesting thing I learned about this week was toilet paper because it helped with cleaning yourself without having to go to a public restroom, for example, and use a sponge on a stick that everyone else used as well.

             The inventions I learned about this week helped with eliminating bad bacteria in milk, gaining comfort on a train, and cleaning yourself in the bathroom.