The age of aquaria: the aquarium pursuit and personal fish-keeping, 1850-1920

Abstract

The parlor aquarium, as defined by both a particular physical form, and by a specific set of human/non-human relationships, was an object unique to the era from 1850-1920. At the height of the aquarium pursuit, a strong fish-keeping community and industry developed around it. But just as the aquarium arose from a set of intertwined circumstances, its presence declined when such discussions and excitement waned. The brief manifestation of the aquarium pursuit, as reflected in the objects associated with it, illustrates the ways in which English and American cultures utilized fun, experience, and experiment as a didactical approach for developing moralistic notions of human and non-human welfare in the uneasy historical moment of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. So often historians attribute conservativism and rigidity to the Victorian era, but the results of this study illustrate a vivacious, experimental, and even messy day-to-day experience. ☐ In order to explore how personal aquaria straddled the realms of decorative adornments, natural history collections, and precious pets, this thesis utilizes material culture perspectives and historiographical frameworks previously applied to objects of a similar nature, including: pet supplies, cabinets of curiosities, and natural science museum displays. By employing these frameworks and by converging the print and visual culture which surrounded the aquarium pursuit with the extant objects – parlor aquaria, their outfitting, and the tools to manage them – this study revealed the ways in which seemingly unrelated aspects of Victorian life were deeply entangled. Additionally, the application of theories regarding the social lives of objects highlights the logistical concerns of managing a life collection. By investigating the nature of the obstacles these objects presented and the ways in which these challenges were mitigated by networks of individuals, this study exposes the active role aquaria played in shaping day-to-day routines and even communities of people. As a result, the aquarium, and all it embodied, illustrates a Victorian life which was anything but dull and dismal. In fact, both were quite literally full of life.