The Hidden Secrets of New Eden and the Palmer House Hotel in Borrowed Lives

Elise visits two Chicago Hotels in “Borrowed Lives, The New Eden and The Palmer House. The New Eden Hotel is where Elise goes to find her brother Henrick in Episode 1, and where she was staying before waking up in someone else's body. Later, we learn the hotel is run by the Borrowers, and Room 406 has been soundproofed to help them acquire “new envelopes.” Elise visits the much more upscale Palmer House in Episode 3 with Jesse, which is where she first meets Charles Michael. While the New Eden is fictional, the Palmer House was a real hotel in Chicago that opened in September 1870. It was located on the North West Corner of State and Quincy Streets, with 225 rooms and lavish furnishings that cost about $100,000. The owner, Potter Palmer, built the hotel as an extravagant wedding […]

Amanda Caraway August 25, 2025

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The Horrors of Amputation, the Liston Knife, and the Silvester Method

During the grisly scene at the hospital in Episode 5, “A Second Death,” Elise is mistaken for a nurse and forced to witness a critically injured patient undergoing an amputation. This is just one more example of how Borrowed Lives takes listeners back in time to real places and circumstances that were part of life in 1870s Chicago. Although medical science had already made many advances, treatments were still far more barbaric than they are now. The Liston Knife, used by the doctor to amputate the injured man’s arm, was invented by Robert Liston. He was a Scottish surgeon known for his speed and skill, which made a significant difference in terms of pain and survival before the invention of anesthesia. The knife was 6–8 inches long and made out of high-quality metal. Medical amputations were common despite being risky […]

Amanda Caraway July 28, 2025

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The True History of Graceland Cemetery

The Graceland Cemetery has become a bit of a secondary character in the world of “Borrowed Lives.” Elise first encounters the graveyard in Episode 2 when she reconnects with Liberty. Riding in a Streetcar as Jacob Burrows, the driver finds the road blocked by a wagon load of coffins. The driver informs Elise that the gravers are moving the City Cemetery. The City Cemetery was, in fact, moved from what is now Lincoln Park because of health concerns, since the cemetery was located near the city’s water supply. And to accommodate park development, of course. Where the cemetery once resided is the modern-day Lincoln Park. Graceland became the fashionable choice for prominent Chicagoans, perhaps because visionary landscape architects, including O.C. Simonds, designed the cemetery. Simonds was a founding member of the American Society of Landscape Architects. Although he was educated […]

Amanda Caraway July 10, 2025

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Factory Workers in 1870s Chicago Strike for Safety and Fair Wages

In Episode One of Borrowed Lives, “Awakenings,” Elise wakes up in the body of a Textile Factory worker named Mary. Her coworker, Sarah, warns Elise to pay attention and button her sleeve cuff. Otherwise, Elise could lose her hand or even her whole arm. Working in a factory could be dangerous! In the 1870s, technological advances, particularly in making steel, allowed the construction of factories for mass production. Large-scale, well-financed companies came to dominate most industries. Factories no longer needed many skilled artisans or craftsmen, whose work could now be done by machine. Instead, they needed large numbers of unskilled or semiskilled workers to operate the machines. Working conditions in many of Chicago's factories were arduous and hazardous, with employees enduring long hours and unsafe environments. Industrial workers who experienced dangerous or exploitative conditions had little leverage to negotiate fair […]

Amanda Caraway June 9, 2025

Chicago 1870