Skip to main content

Jenny Lind Was a Rock Star, and I Never Knew

When Eustacia was a baby, she slept in a Jenny Lind crib, but I never thought to investigate who this Jenny Lind was. Now I know.

Last week I interviewed this elderly couple—retired missionaries—who refurbish antique trunks. They find crappy looking trunks at flea markets and auctions, and they sort through what's junk and what's worth saving. Given their skills, they can save just about anything, but Jenny Lind trunks are their favorite, and that led me to read further.

Jenny Lind was a famous opera singer in the mid-1800s. She was from Stockholm and sang all over Europe. Mendelssohn was one of her biggest fans and wrote with her in mind, even the final high note in Elijah, oddly enough. I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't have a little crush on the girl.

Dive probably knows all about this, but Lind discovered Norwich, England and loved it so much that she gave concerts there a lot and donated some of the ticket proceeds to local charities. The children's wing in the Norwich hospital is still named for her.

And that's just one example of how the woman was a rock star. P. T. Barnum discovered Jenny and brought her to the States. He acted as sort of an agent for her, and she gave concerts all over the country. She was a huge hit, and people expressed their admiration for her by naming everything they could think of after her.

Here are just a few examples: cribs, changing tables, sewing machines, China patterns, a water treatment plan in California, soup. Yes, soup. It's made with mashed rutabagas, broth, Gruyere, and cream. Lind traveled with a cool set of trunks made in Europe, and American luggage makers were impressed. They made something similar and called it the Jenny Lind trunk, and the things sold like anything. You can tell if a trunk is a Lind trunk because it's sort of shaped like a loaf of bread when you see it from the side.

There was a Jenny Lind steam locomotive built for a company in London. And there is a tower near the beach in Cape Cod. It's just a tower—not attached to anything like a castle, nothing in it like a light, just a tower.

Like I said, Jenny Lind was a rock star.

Comments

dive said…
Yay! The Swedish Nightingale.
Yes, we have the Jenny Lind Hospital here. She certainly got around a bit.
9:35 AM
Mark said…
That's fascinating. I just thought she made beds. Thank goodness there were no tabloid shows, or all we'd remember would be the embarassing photos.
11:47 AM
Neponset River Bridge Dig said…
And I thought Jenny Lind made chocolate.
1:18 PM
MmeBenaut said…
Makes you wonder how some people can pack all of that into one life doesn't it? Fantastic story Robyn.
7:15 PM
Cheltenhamdailyphoto said…
How interesting, Robyn.
My mother is in Norwich hospital as we speak. Hip replacement. She is recovering.
5:33 AM
Miz Minka said…
I once lived in a small town in the California foothills that used to be called Jenny Lind and even had its own ZIP code before it was gobbled up by another town. I never knew where the name came from; thanks for such an interesting article!
11:31 AM
Unknown said…
I worked in the pharmacy dept with Miss Talbolt in the early 70's
Graham
1:38 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Classic Green Bean Bake

In anticipation of Thanksgiving, I feel I must post a recipe with plenty of good old American tradition. The classic Green Bean Bake was invented in 1955 by Dorcas Reilly, a home economist who worked for the Campbell's Soup Company. A study was done determining that 50% of all Americans have eaten the classic Green Bean Bake, and 38% of those believe it is best served during the holidays, mainly Thanksgiving. So, for the other 50% and for those in other countries where this dish may be unfamiliar--my treat: The Classic Green Bean Bake serves 6 to 8 1 can Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup 1/2 cup milk 1 teaspoon soy sauce Dash of fresh pepper 1 20-oz. bag frozen cut green beans, thawed* 1 2.8 oz can French-fried onions -Preheat the oven to 350 F -In a casserole dish, combine the soup, milk, soy sauce and pepper. Stir in the green beans and half of the onions. -Bake until bubbling, about 25 minutes. Top with the remaining onions and bake for 5 more minutes. Serve hot. *Or cook 1 ...
7 comments
Read more

Bring On the Bombs

In today's edition : I generally try to keep on top of cultural trends even if I don’t adopt them, but there is a growing movement that I have only just discovered. Not long ago, I was walking along in Berkeley, California while visiting my daughter, and I saw a signpost that had been covered with yarn, like someone had sewn a knitted scarf to it. It was colorful and randomly striped, and I pointed it out as if it were the most unusual thing in the world. That’s when my daughter explained the nature of what is known as yarn bombing. It’s when knitters attach something they’ve created to a public object, most often doing their deed stealthily and anonymously. They leave a “bomb,” so to speak, for no other purpose than to brighten up the place and to bring a little cheer to those passing by. Their work has been equated with graffiti, except that the woven yarn is not permanently installed and does no damage to the object it covers. And instead of signifying the territory of a street ...
2 comments
Read more

Cindy Loo Who In October

What is it with people and Cindy Loo Who? Of my last one hundred blog hits, forty have been direct visits from regular readers, and fifteen have been as a result of people searching for "Cindy Loo Who," the little pixie from Seuss's How The Grinch Stole Christmas . A couple of years ago, I posted an image of the original Seuss illustration as compared to the TV cartoon image, and for some reason, that post is bringing in the crowds, relatively. Maybe it's the weather. It isn't even November yet, and already we've had frost and have had to dust off our winter coats. When it gets cold like this, I start to think about Christmasy things like listening to Nat King Cole and decorating the tree. It's ironic because I am offended when retailers start pushing holiday stuff early, but I don't mind my own private celebrations. When my sister and I were much younger and still living with our parents, we would pick a day in July, close the curtains to darken the ...
8 comments
Read more