Sunday, February 26, 2012

Old Newspaper tidbits

Well, it has been too long since I wrote something.  Mainly because the research has been heavy and other things have gotten my attention.
Was not sure what to put out here next, but here goes.    Currently proofing the deaths in 1897 that were typed by a member of the society.   There are other items on the pages I copied for her so I scan through them to see what else might be interesting.   Found a couple of things that might make you chuckle.  In the 3 Feb. 1897 paper there are the usual liquor stories.   One man was before the Justice for keeping liquor with intent to sell.  His bartender also appeared, claiming the liquor and paid the fine.   Hmmmm..  so the man keeping it got off free.
  Another man was sentenced to jail for 30 days, for intoxication.  He requested officers to take him there, where he would feel at home during the winter!!!!     Well, the state (tax-payers) took care of him for the winter.   Good deal for him.   
  Is this beginning to sound familiar?  
 In the 27 Jan. 1897 paper..   In Putnam a single lady died aged 38 years at the home of her father.  Two young children were ordered to watch the body during the night, and the parents lighted the candles around the corpse before going to bed.  About morning the children fell asleep, but were awakened by smoke and heat.  In some way the candles had been upset and the corpse was on fire.     Oh my, bad enough that two young children had to sit with the corpse but then to find the corpse on fire!    I really didn't know that children sat with the deceased.  I knew adults did.   Well, something else I learned today.
    In the 13 Jan. 1897 was an interesting tidbit.  It was the Prison Statistics for the year ending 31 Dec. 1896.  The Prison being the Brooklyn Jail.  There were 390 commitments, only 4 of which were female.  The shortest term was 10 days and the longest 1 year.  The youngest prisoner was 16, the oldest 78.  Sixteen claimed to be "strictly temperate," 7 owned to being "habitually intemperate," and the rest "moderate drinkers."  Married 105, and 145 have been in prison before; 50 cannot read or write, and 2 can read only; 35 were "bound over" parties; 119 were committed from Putnam, 118 from Windham (including Willimantic), 83 from Killingly, 20 each from Plainfield and Thompson, 8 from Brooklyn, 3 each from Woodstock and Pomfret, 2 each from Ashford and Eastford, and 1 from Scotland.  The nativities are given as 85 from Connecticut, 109 from other states, 39 from Ireland, 19 from England, 18 from Canada, 7 from Scotland, 5 each from Germany and Sweden, 1 each from Russia, Arabia, Australia, Italy, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, 2 from Poland, 1 unknown.  The crimes for which they were incarcerated are as follows:  Drunk, 175; theft, 40; vagrancy, 34; assault, 23; breach of the peace, 23; breaking and entering, 15; breach of liquor laws, 9; escapes, 6; cruelty to animals, 3; fraud, 4; desertion of wife, 3; trespass, 5; resisting officer, defrauding hotel, fornication and riding on railroad, each 2; disturbance, circulating obscene literature, false pretences, statutory burglary, threatening incendiary, abuse of wife, abuse of child, and contempt of Court, 1 each.  The prison now holds 68 inmates.
   The word "inmates" is also used in describing children who lived in the Children's Temporary Home, and it could also be used for people working in mills who are boarding in the boarding house.  Somehow before I got into all this old history stuff I figured the word "inmates" was used to describe prisoners or people in insane asylums.  Hmmmm... just goes to show what I didn't know.
   One of the first things I learned from the old papers is that the word "saloon" did not mean then what we have all known it to be since I was a kid in the '40's and '50's.    There was the Hair Saloon, Daguerrian or Daguerreotype (Photograph) Saloon, Eating Saloon, Shaving, Hair Cutting Saloon, Bowling Saloon, Ambrotype Saloon (photograph).
Here's an ad from 4 Nov. 1869 paper:  Keech's New Saloon is already attracting customers.  It is neatly fitted up, and our young friend has for sale fruits, confectionery, stationery, toys, etc.  He intends to have a place for persons to visit free from the taint of liquor, and ladies and others can purchase articles there without being annoyed with the disgusting fumes of rum and tobacco.
  And another thing I learned was that in 1856 there was a Young Men's Library Association.    No young women.   Glad that has all changed!
  That's it for this time.   Hope you get some enjoyment and knowledge out of my ramblings tonight.


No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.