In my latest Substack post, I explore what life was like for the average person in the 1850s.

Highlights:

• Slaves escaped north into Canada from the American South
• Canada was still a collection of sparsely populated colonies
• New technologies were making communication faster and providing women with some freedom
• Railroads made travel easier
• The crinoline was at the height of fashion

Join me over on Substack, and let me know what you think.