BOUND VOLUMES

Jan. 30, 2020

200 YEARS AGO

Excerpt from an essay on “Education of the Indians” – Although partial advances may be made, under the  present system, to civilize the Indians, I am of an opinion, that, until there is a radical change in the system, any efforts which may be made, must fall short of complete success. They must be brought gradually under our authority and laws, or they will insensibly waste away in vice and misery. It is impossible with their customs that they should exist as independent communities, in the midst of civilized society. They are not in fact an independent people – I speak of those surrounded by our population – nor ought they to be so considered. They should be taken under our guardianship; and our opinion, and not theirs, ought to prevail in measures intended for their civilization and happiness. A system less vigorous may protract, but cannot arrest their fate.

January 31, 1820

175 YEARS AGO

Meeting of Hop Growers – A meeting of the Hop Growers of this county was held in this village on January 23, pursuant to notice, and an Association of that interest formed – John W. Tunnicliff of Richfield, President, and G.W. Ernst of Cooperstown, Secretary. An invitation was extended to all persons engaged in Hop growing, to call upon the Secretary and join the Association, which adjourned to meet again at William Lewis’s Tavern in the place on the first Monday in June next at 1 o’clock p.m. G.W. Ryckman, of New York, was appointed Corresponding Agent of the Association for Foreign Countries, with a view to ascertain the prospect of a market, and was also recommended for support as Inspector for Hops for the City of New York.

January 27, 1845

150 YEARS AGO

Local – Old Mrs. Bice, for many years one of the tenants of “Bull’s Head,” died there on the fifteenth. She had always been a hardworking woman and was supposed to be quite poor. She had received aid from individuals and $40 from the Town during the past three winters. But after her death near $300 in gold and silver was found secreted in her room. It is suspected that a small tin box, which she always kept by her, and which could not be found, contained other treasures. Her effects were taken in charge of the Overseer of the Poor.

January 27, 1870

125 YEARS AGO

The Literary Association – Those who attended the regular weekly meeting of this Society last Saturday evening felt that they were well-rewarded, as the paper read on “Dentistry” by Dr. E.I. Pitcher was one full of interest, showing that the ancients had a practical knowledge of dentistry, which in these days is brought to great perfection. Those who would enjoy good, general health, will not avoid the dentist’s chair when circumstances seem to call them there.
There are a number of persons in this village sick with the grip. Most of them are children. They are first taken with a sore throat or partial congestion of the lungs. All need to be on guard against taking cold. If you think a physician is needed, send for one before night.

January 31, 1895

100 YEARS AGO

Plans for the new fireproof theatre to be erected on the site of a portion of Carr’s Hotel by William Smalley, proprietor of the Village Theatre, were received by this enterprising picture exhibitor on Monday. The plans were prepared by J.C. Cummins of Norwich, a specialist in theatre architecture. The blue prints of this new building show a modern and up-to-date theatre of which any city ten times the size of Cooperstown would be proud. The main floor of the theatre would have a seating capacity of about 1,000, in addition to which there are to be loges and boxes at each side of a stage on which a road show can be easily accommodated. The stage would be twice the size of the stage in the Village Theatre.

January 28, 1920

75 YEARS AGO

Local: Among the Flying Fortress pilots graduated recently from the Army Air Force station at Hendricks Field, Sebring, Florida, is Second Lieutenant Arthur T. Peevers, Jr., son of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Peevers, of River Street, Cooperstown. Lieutenant Peevers, a graduate of Cooperstown High School and a former cadet at Syracuse University, entered the service in 1942, receiving his wings and commission last September at Columbus Army Air Base in Mississippi.
The operators at the Cooperstown telephone central office attended a sleigh ride on Wednesday night of last week. Following the ride they enjoyed a delicious chicken dinner at the home of Mrs. Harry Winnie at Fly Creek. Guests at the ride and dinner were Mrs. Edwin Tipple, formerly of the local office, and Miss Glennis Talbot of the Richfield Springs Exchange.

January 31, 1945

50 YEARS AGO

The George H. and Minnie Marsh White Foundation of this village has been dissolved, effective last December 31, 1969 after more than a quarter century as a moving force in the field of religious, scientific, educational and charitable activities. John McKnight Brown, president of the Foundation, said that during its 27-year lifetime, the Foundation had made a total of 238 grants amounting to nearly three-quarters of a million dollars. The Foundation was established in 1943 by the late Mrs. Minnie Marsh White, whose husband, the late George H. White, was a former president of the First National Bank of Cooperstown. Mr. White had died in 1936. One of the Foundation’s unique activities was the support it gave to the Native Sons of Cooperstown which was founded by Mr. White in 1935. Unaffected by the dissolution of the Foundation is the $100,000 George H. and Minnie Marsh White Scholarship Fund, a trust set up under the terms of Mrs. White’s will from which scholarship grants are made only to graduates of Cooperstown Central School.

January 28, 1970

10 YEARS AGO

Beginning with the edition you hold in your hands, The Freeman’s Journal is shifting its publication day from Fridays to Thursdays. That means it will be available on newsstands Wednesday afternoons and should arrive in local subscribers’ mailboxes on Thursdays. Our hope is this change will allow you to better plan your weekend activities.

January 28, 2010