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The Traveler… Madison Square Garden being sold… big shoes to fill…
April 7, 2011 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
Today I traveled to Boston, Massachusetts, by means of the Christian Science Monitor dated April 7, 1911. I was very surprised to find a photo headline “View In Madison Square Garden, Just Sold” with the article “Dispose of Madison Square Garden for Big Skyscraper Site”. Since I have personally visited Madison Square Gardens in my travels, I had to do some Googling for more information on this matter. I have found that there have actually been four Madison Square Gardens!! This was the second location and was located where the current New York Life Insurance building is located.
A second page article entitled “No ‘Famous Man’ for Princeton” caught my eye. “Princeton University has been searching the country for some ‘famous man’ to succeed Governor Wilson as president, but most of the famous ones ‘are already taken up.'” I guess when succeeding the Governor [and yet to become the US President!] those are big shoes to fill…
~The Traveler
The “experts” don’t always get it right…
March 28, 2011 by GuyHeilenman · 2 Comments
We recently unearthed two different newspapers which scream the reality “the experts are often wrong”. The first report was an early review of “Gone With The Wind” which was not favorable (issue #580564). The 2nd was a statement concerning Babe Ruth which occurred soon after he was traded to The New York Yankees which questioned whether he would be an impact player (issue #581104). Interestingly enough, the opinion was given by Billy Evans, one of the most famous umpires (and member of the Hall of Fame) of all time. Feel free to comment on similar finding of your own. In the meantime, enjoy the reports:
Gone With The Wind…
Babe Ruth…
It never caught on…
March 26, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
This “Novel Hydraulic Railway Locomotive” made the front page of “Scientific American” on Feb. 10, 1877, with a descriptive article which begins: “A new mode of traveling has lately been invented…”. Apparently it never caught on:
The Traveler… Booker T. Washington facing court… “Reach out, reach out and touch someone”…
March 24, 2011 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
A few days ago I traveled to New York City through the New York Tribune dated March 21, 1911 (I’m running a little behind schedule). The front page of the issue carries the report of “Dr. (Booker T.) Washington Too Ill To Go To Court”. I found that this was an interesting assault case between Dr. Washington and Henry A. Ulrich, re: who attacked whom. I had to google this case to find the verdict. What I found was that this case/verdict has become known for extreme injustice due to Mr. Ulrich acquittal. However, he was re-arrested in the courtroom for desertion of his wife!
Also in this issue is the reporting of the funeral for John B. M’Donald, the builder of the subway system in New York… I guess he made his final stop.
Do you remember when you actually were able to talk with a “live” operator when calling information? When Henry McGinn reached the operator and conversation ensued, he found that the operator was his sister whom he had not seen or heard from for seventeen years! A reunited relationship occurred from the “reach out, reach out and touch someone…” archives.
~The Traveler
A proportionate reward…
March 19, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
Sometimes we read things which drive home the futility of human wisdom. Solomon would certainly have cringed at the following verdict which appeared in the “Democratic Watchman” newspaper from Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, dated February 23, 1877:
It’s all relative…
March 12, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
The following item reflects court costs from 1877, fees which are very much in the distant past. But it’s all relative. While the cost may have outweighed the benefit, sometimes things are still worth fighting for – on matters of principle. This appeared in the “Democratic Watchman” newspaper from Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, dated February 16, 1877:
The Traveler… Maine becoming a state?… the horses know the way!…
March 10, 2011 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
This week’s journey found me with the Middlesex Gazette issue dated March 7, 1811. This contained a headline “Another New State” in which the District of Maine (a part of the state of Massachusetts) had held a Convention in Boston and voted 56 to 18, that “it is expedient to take the sense of the people on a separation from Old Massachusetts.” However, they did not obtain their statehood until nine years later as part of the Missouri Comprise.
An amusing story (see below) is of a Coachman, who while fetching some straw for his seat, found his horses leaving without him. They proceeded to the next place (with the coachman in chase) and stopped as they would normally do. A countryman entered and called “go on!” and the horses took off again at full speed to the next place, four miles away. Early auto-pilot?
~The Traveler
Damaged by kissing…
March 5, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
The following, regarding a young woman in Rochester, New York, appeared in the “Democratic Watchman” newspaper from Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, dated February 16, 1877:
A double palindrome…
February 26, 2011 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
While creating and using palindromes can be fun, the following takes the science to a whole new level. This “super palindrome”, found within the June 8, 1877 issue of “Democratic Watchman” (Bellefonte, PA), appeared on our radar just a few weeks ago. While some believe such word play to be evitative, we are convinced it is our civic duty to bring it to light”:
The Traveler… Black Beard, somewhat live… “Wonderful Woman”…
February 24, 2011 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
This journey found me traveling to Boston via The Repertory dated February 22, 1811. I was instantly attracted to the front page of this issue when I spied “BLACK BEARD — The Pirate” front and center. I knew the time frame for his name would not 
be fitting which made me look even more so! I found that this was actually a five-act comedy musical about this monstrous pirate, of which they took some liberty in the story line as stated in the article. Inside the issue is an advertisement of the play.
Two headlines in the advertisements attracted my attention, “The Wonderful Woman!”, which I thought would have been unusual for that time period. The one was of a book being available about the life of Ann Moor, Tutbury, England, who had for more than three years lived entirely without food. The other advertisement was of a correct likeness, in wax, of Mrs. Moor, that was just added to the Columbian Museum. Was this the early beginning of the liquid diet fads or what??
~The Traveler