An 1889 Marriage Broker Advertisement
A marriage broker, in the 19th century, was a person who helped a U.S. citizen marry another person who wanted to live permanently in the United States. Today, it’s referred to as something a lot less pleasing: a mail-order-bride. And although these kinds of relationships are often frowned upon or joked about, the reality is that they’ve been happening for centuries. The ad for the Halcyon Matrimonial Company started out with the poem,
“Gentle folks, matrimonially inclined,
A mate at Halcyon they shall find
To whom the golden chain will bind.”
In this notice, Halcyon sought to help a widow who took to the stage find a gentleman of some means. There was also the Eastern gentleman of wealth looking to marry “a few” women “of refinement.”