WORD POWER: Get out your pen and paper for a vocabulary quiz
that’s going to blow your mind.
This is not your average Readers Digest test. It’s from the
Bradford Landmark Society and gauges your knowledge of words with
were in common useage – 100 years ago!
It may take us two days to get through all the questions and
answers so keep the papers on hand.
We must thank the Landmark Society which published this quiz in
its most recent newsletter. It said, “You probably think that you
are well-read, speak concisely and know just about any English word
that you come across in the newspapers, in books or on the
Internet. But what do you know, really?”
Abattoir – In 1915, a man named Harry Graff erected an “up to
date” abattoir on Bolivar Run where he did what?
1. Made French perfume
2. Erected a special chapel for a church
3. Operated a public slaughterhouse
4. Built a type of healthy spa for the wealthy oilmen
Grafonola – J. Kreinson and Sons Store held a grand opening in
April 1915 for its new Grafonola department. What did they sell
there?
1. Health foods
2. A new fashion design of men’s hats
3. An upright 78 rpm record player
4. German-made toys like the Graf Zeppelin
Cenotaph – In 1895, the G.A.R. (veterans of the Civil War) were
photographed in the Public Square with a cenotaph to honor their
fallen and deceased comrades. what is a cenotaph?
1. A descriptive poem about the Civil War
2. A tall stone marker
3. A type of telegraph machine that could send messages in Morse
code
4. A large bound book to write down the names of the dead
Tonsorial Artists – The Bradford Era often advertised the
availability of tonsorial artists on Main Street. What is a
tonsorial artist?
1. A fancy name for ear, nose and throat doctors
2. Very abstract artists who could paint your portrait or take
your photograph
3. Skilled barbers
4. Entertaining singers who could hold a high note for a long
period of time
Piscatorial Artists – These people were also listed in various
editions of The Bradford Era. Who were they?
1. Men who worked in tattoo parlors
2. Traveling “snake oil” salesmen
3. Proprietors of fish markets
4. Loose women of the evening.
More tomorrow, and the answers.
