File under "men and women, then and now."

Emaciated waifs weren't always the norm. Thanks to DH for the tip.

Photo: 1912's Perfect Woman Was From Brooklyn, Weighed 171 Lbs, Had Pear-Shaped Body, by Jen Carlson (Gothamist)

In 1912 Miss Elsie Scheel of Brooklyn was deemed the “most nearly perfect specimen of womanhood” out of 400 other coeds at Cornell that year. The 24-year-old Scheel had come to Cornell from Packer Collegiate Institute in Brooklyn Heights—she enjoyed horticulture, outdoor sports, and was an ardent suffragette.

Less than 20 years before Elsie made the newspaper, grizzled Union war veterans were coming to Louisville in search of understanding and reconciliation.

1895 catalog of Louisville bordellos, by Cory Doctorow (boingboing)

The Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of union civil war veterans, held its annual encampment in Louisville in 1895. This 'Sporting Guide' advertises the various houses of ill repute wishing to "entertain" the visitors coming to town for the event.

Josh at Flat12 Brewing Company forwarded this link, and both of us noticed the same, seemingly odd aside: Mary Edwards boasted of wine and beer, but not bourbon. Then as now, evidently the hard stuff impedes successful transactions. Nowadays, those scarred, battle-tested veterans would be at 4th Street Live.