170 Results for "history"

Words by Robert Neff   Photos from the collection of Robert Neff One of the earliest modernizations to Seoul was the introduction of streetcars in 1899 by an American company. It was heralded by many people as a symbol of modernization and prosperity. But not all viewed the streetcars with anticipation and delight. Korea was suffering…

During the late Joseon era, Koreans were well-known for their fondness for children—not only their own, but foreign children as well. While many children thrived on the attention, others did not. Annie Heron, who was born in Seoul in 1886, recalled waking up one morning to the sound of her papered door being punctured by…

Living History: 20 Ways to See Korea as it Used to Be A guide to authentic history tourism in South Korea. Words by Matthew CrawfordShots by Matthew Crawford, Chad Geib, and Jared Zehm There used to be an alley in Gwanghwamun lined with gritty drinking joints. Named Pi-mat-gol (or “horse-dodging alley”), it was used for hundreds…

Modern transportation has made travel to most places in Korea, no matter how distant from Seoul, easy and comfortable. However, there are exceptions. One of these exceptions is Ulleung Island. Its distance from the mainland and the fickleness of the local weather often make any trip to the island one of delays and seasickness—but those…

From unwieldy pipes to black-market cigarettes, tobacco has been an important part of Korean society for over four hundred years. The image that best typifies Koreans of the past is undoubtedly that of an old man, dressed in white, with a long tobacco pipe ready at hand. The pipe was an indispensable part of a…

Original words by Robert NeffPhotos from the collection of Robert Neff Joseon Korea was generally perceived by foreign visitors as a land of extreme poverty. Even the Joseon government declared itself unable to establish trade agreements with the West because it had nothing to trade. But there were a lot of things that the average…

Original words by Robert Neff Photos from the collection of Robert Neff In the 1890s there was a gold rush in Joseon Korea. True, there had always been gold mining operations scattered throughout the country, but these were mainly small Korean concerns with limited mining ability. It was only after Leigh Smith Hunt, an American,…

Words BY Robert Neff Photos courtesy of the Robert Neff collection A skirmish between Japanese and Russian warships in February of 1904 was the first clash of the Russo-Japanese war, a conflict whose outcome would determine the fate of Korea. Just before noon on February 9th, 1904, two Russian warships, the Variag, an American-built cruiser,…

Photos courtesy of the Robert Neff collection The anti-Western sentiment pervasive in Pyongyang today has a long history, as historian Robert Neff recounts. Much as it is now, Pyongyang in the late 1880s and early 1890s was pretty much anti-Western. The legacy of the General Sherman in 1866 gives testimony to the residents’ stoic opposition…

Words by Robert Neff With the horrible destruction of the Korean War came abject poverty. People did whatever they could to make money and, unfortunately, many of them were forced to sell off their cherished heirlooms in order to put food on their tables and shelter over their heads. Often these heirlooms were sold to…