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Genre: Historical Fiction
Word Count: 100
AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE IN 1854
“Don’t go, Elisha. Please.” Elizabeth grasped his arm. “Don’t make me a widow.”
He caressed her cheek. “Have faith, Lizzie.”
Sweat beading on his forehead and sluicing between his shoulder blades, he stepped onto the platform.
As it rose higher and higher, he gazed over the edge at the hushed crowd and questioned his own sanity.
He called out to the axe man. “Cut the rope.”
A collective gasp erupted from the audience. Elisha Otis’ stomach somersaulted as the platform dropped, then halted. Thunderous applause exploded in his ears. His safety locking mechanism worked, and the modern elevator was born.
Rochelle Wisoff-Fields-Addicted to Purple 
Well that’s going to ruin hundreds of scary moments in films. What was the man thinking of!
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Oh I don’t know, Neil, there are plenty of scary elevator shaft moments in films. Apparently film never occurred to him in 1854.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Youtube is full of very primitive films from those days, though he must not have known of them
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Wonderful!
It is thanks to such enterprising daredevils, we enjoy all the comforts of modern life.
Three cheers to Otis!
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Dear Anita,
Without people like Otis we’d still be on the ground floor, wouldn’t we? Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Oh wow! I thought he was stepping up to the gallows, brilliant stuff!!
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Dear Shrawley,
This might be the best comment I get all week. 😀 Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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No probs, was a great tale, maybe I wasn’t concentrating
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Dear Rochelle,
I was pretty sure I would be seeing the name Otis in this one 😉 I love the way you brought it all to life!
Shalom and lots of safely lifted love,
Dale
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Dear Dale,
As soon as I chose the photo I had to rise to the occasion. 😉 Thank you.
Shalom and lotsa uplifting hugs,
Rochelle
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Tee hee! 😉
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That was quite a major milestone then. He couldn’t possibly have known how much of a difference his invention made
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Dear Larry,
Oh, I’ve no doubt he didn’t know where his invention would lead. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Shalom
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We take a great deal for granted, don’t we? I’ve been in hundreds of elevators in my 74 years, don’t remember EVER being stopped, stalled, or stuck. But someone had to experience it before it could be fixed. His poor wife. She must have expected the very worst news ever.
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Dear Linda,
I made the assumption that his wife might have been scared for him. That’s the fiction part. 😉 I know how I’d feel though. The elevator has always been there during our lifetime, hasn’t it?
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Yes. I remember going on one for the first time when I was about five. I was excited, but it made me a little “car” sick 🙂
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I can see why Elizabeth might be concerned. It takes genius, bravery, and a touch of insanity to accomplish great things. To paraphrase Seal, “We’re never going to progress unless we get a little crazy.”
Interesting and enlightening as always, Rochelle.
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Dear Nobbin,
Thank heaven for the crazies and dreamers among us who invent and make life better for the rest. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Wow, you really had me going there. Nice way to build up the tension. I love it. Those first elevators must have been nerve-wracking to those first experiencing it.
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Stunning research…very interesting, and one feels for her, watching her husband…
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Dear Ain,
Surely she must’ve been anxious. I would be if it were my husband. Thank you for your kind words.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Amazing that elevators have been around since 1854. Even more amazing is the elevators at the old building I used to work at were Otis brand. Really good storytelling, Rochelle.
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Dear Lisa,
We do take elevators for granted these days, don’t we? I’m not sure I’ve noticed an elevator that didn’t have the Otis name. Now I’ll be more aware. 😉 Thank you for your kind comments.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Rochelle, it sounds like Mr. Otis was smart with his patents — and he built them to last! You are very welcome.
Shalom,
Lisa
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Rochelle,
Love these flashbacks in time that continue to be meaningful today. I confess I’m an uneasy elevator rider. I hold my breath until the doors open. But I’m glad Mr. Otis invented the safety lock for those times when I can’t take the stairs!
Shalom,
Dora
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Dear Dora,
For me it’s escalators that make me nervous, especially the long ones. I know for the claustrophobics among us elevators can be a challenge. Thank you for your thoughful comment. 😀
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks to Mr. Otis for the comfort of modern life!
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Thanks to Mr. Otis indeed. 😀 Thank you for reading and commenting, Athling.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Well done Rochelle – wonderfully inventive build-up and “misdirection” too – because as some one else noted, it reads as if walking to the gallows! Great little tale of daring and determination. What a difference a “small thing” like a safety lock could make – who knew? Clearly he did – had a vision and a plan.
Shalom
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Dear Wild Child,
Funny. It wasn’t a conscious misdirect but now that it’s been mentioned it does read like an execution. As Bob Ross would say, “A happy accident.” 😉 Thank you for your generous comments.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Wonderful. One of those things that are all around us but we never stop to think – how did that come about, and who invented it? Great stuff, Rochelle, I’ve missed your snippets of illuminating history!
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Dear Iain,
And I’ve missed you and your imaginative stories. Thank you for your encouraging comments.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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And all these years I thought that sign in the elevators was referring to Otis Campbell, the town drunk, who once spent the night in an elevator thinking he was at the Mayberry jail.
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Dear Abe Vigrodah,
Otis was always a favorite of mine, too. Now you know the truth behind the ups and downs for the elevator. Always happy to enlighten the unwashed masses. When you sober up, remember to leave the keys on the hook.
Shalom,
Betty (more than a little) Snarky White W(T)F
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Dear Rochelle,
That was indeed a leap of faith. Good for him. Love your frog 🙂
Shalom,
Adele
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Dear Adele,
I can only imagine the things that were really going through his mind. Thus an historical fiction is born. 😉 Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Super dramatisation of what must have been a heart-stopping publicity stunt!
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Yes, I kind of wondered about the gallows as well! Glad it wasn’t! And delighted to learn again through your great retelling of his experiment.
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I love this one. It puts you in his place as he demos his device. I have ridden many Otis elevators in my life and, some were kind of scary. But then (come on-you knew this was coming) life certainly is filled with ups & downs. Good story.
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Dear Jan,
Well your comment certainly gives me a lift. I think most elevators are Otis. I do remember elevator operators. Thank you, m’love.
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Jan, I do remember riding in elevators with attendants. It was quite the experience, too. I’ve also had the fortune to ride an “antique” open air elevator a few times. I couldn’t get enough of it as a little girl when we’d go to COSI- Columbus, Ohio. I don’t know if it’s in the new location or not. Probably deemed to unsafe for modern kids.
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Wonderful Rochelle. Thank you for this historical reminder in podcast form.
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Dear Susan,
Thank you for your lovely comment. Glad you enjoy the podcast feature.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Just imagine having to walk all these stairs in these skyscrapers. We’d all be super-fit. 😉
I never even thought about who invented the elevator, just took it for granted. You managed once again to bring the forgotten/unnoticed story to life.
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Dear Gabi,
I can’t help myself when it comes to inventions. They had to start somewhere. 😉 I can’t really see myself going up 80 floors or so via stairway. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Hey Rochelle,
I didn’t know. Once again, you’ve enlightened me. Thank you.
I usually take the stairs when I’m alone, if I can find them. But what a wonderful device elevators/lifts are for so many of us.
However, every building should have at least two. Because like people, they do wear out and malfunction. They can be a long time in rehab or repair.
Wonderful story.
Peace,
Bill
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Dear Bill,
I’ve noticed that hospitals, at least the ones here, have more than one elevator. I also tend to use stairs as opposed to elevators unless we’re talking more than 5 floors. 😉 Thank you re my story. 😀
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I wonder what he’d think if he came back today and travelled in the elevator up the Burg Khalifa in Dubai, the world’s tallest building? It’s an amazing experience.
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Dear Keith,
I’d hope Elisha would be proud of his invention. Thank you for reading and taking the time to comment.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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What a gripping tale, had me hanging onto the handrail. One can only imagine how scary those first elevators were. I do remember riding one of the “antique” ones at the Children’s museum many decades ago. I’m sure there were safeguards that weren’t original to it… but the experience of an open air elevator even for one floor was still pretty impressive and impressionable.
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Dear Bear,
Elisha took a chance, didn’t he? The tension is something I imagined. History really tells very little about him or his personal life. The joys of writing historical fiction. 😉 I would still find an open air elevator frightening, even with the safeguards.
Thank you for your comments and compliments. 😀
Shalom,
Rochelle
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It’s takes someone willing to take a risk for something to be done… Like the early pioneers in medicine who create the vaccines for polio, etc. There’s been a lot of talk lately about the time when the vacs came out for polio, small pox and how scary that was in comparison to how scary our current times are. This week, my friends, Memaw Charolotte and her little Grand daughter were found in their apartment having succumbed to Covid… Memaw refused the vaccine out of fear and her little one was too young for one. Sigh…
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kudos to the inventor. without elevators, high rise buildings wouldn’t have been possible.
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True story, Plaridel. 😉
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Amazing how far technology has come, and to think every machine has a crude beginning..
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True Tanille. Small beginnings.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Learning should never stop, I enjoyed reading about Elisha
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I agree about learning, Michael. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I checked out the link – he was a daring fella! Fortunately it all worked out for him 🙂
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Daring indeed, Ali. And aren’t we grateful? Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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An entertaining and interesting story. Very well told as always! It’s good to be reminded of the great risks that were taken by those who created and developed these types of wonders for our benefit. Though I don’t like the cramped spaces of an elevator, I am thankful for them, because, much more, I don’t like climbing a lot of stairs. =)
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Dear Brenda,
I don’t mind cramped spaces as much as hate heights. Long, tall escalators make me nervous. I don’t think I’d enjoy 80 flights of stairs, though. Thank you for your validating comment. So happy to see you back here.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Phew! Brave clever man! You told this with great suspense. Bravo!
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Thank you, Laurie. 😀
Shalom,
Rochelle
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A gripping story Rochelle, he was was putting all his faith in the new elevator. A brave man.
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Dear Francine,
He did have a lot at stake, didn’t he? Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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What a fabulous piece of historical fiction story, dear Rochelle.
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How bizarre that I notice this post the day after I watched the 2001 fantasy rom-com Kate and Leopold with Meg Ryan and Hugh Jackman. That story credits the time-traveling English aristocrat character with working on an early prototype of the elevator (his butler’s name is Otis.). Who to believe?😊As usual you picked the scene at the height of tension (so to speak.)
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Dear Andrea,
I believe there is some question over the Otises and the invention. Elisha Otis is the story most widely known. Thank you re my story.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I was just joking. I don’t usually find that romcoms are the best source of historically accurate information, whereas I learn all sorts of things from you. 😊
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😂😊
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