This & That by Jack Coll

This & That

By Jack Coll

11/17/2014

     We’ve put together more than a dozen columns of This & That, (Feel free to go into Conshystuff.com library and look up stories and columns you might have missed) This & That is made up from a bunch of little notes I throw aside because the information usually doesn’t pertain to what I’m looking for, but are quite interesting and or quite amusing.  As I continually research assorted information for our new book due out in 2015, I run across interesting tid-bits and recreate them, usually word for word, and run them in this column.  This week an assortment of notes from thoughts in my own head, newspaper clippings, and a segment or two from one of our many books called, “Tales Of Conshohocken & Beyond,” as a matter of fact, let’s start with a few things from the “Tales” book.

     One of the things I did in the “Tales” book was in-between Chapters was a page or two of these short segments taken from the Conshohocken Recorder Newspaper, some short pieces, others a little longer.  Some of the pieces were funny while other segments were very informative.  No matter, what the piece really did was take you back to a time in the borough’s history and gave you a window into the life of our predecessors.  Un-paved streets, early law enforcement, and what proved amusing to our early residents.

(Excerpts from “Tales Of Conshohocken & Beyond,” By Jack and Brian Coll.)

(Okay, the first couple of pieces are from West Conshohocken, word for word from the Recorder newspaper and word for word as it was written with my comments from the book)

December 18, 1886

A sum of money was found in West Conshohocken on Saturday, December 4^th.  The finder has left the money at this office and the owner can have the same by calling at this office.

(Try losing a sum of money today in either borough; no reason to call the police I’m sure.)

April 18, 1913

(OK this one is worth printing in full, keep in mind that back in the early part of the century tramps and hobo’s were a major problem in small towns along the rivers and railroads, and there was a no-tolerance policy with strangers without money.  This one is brought to you by West Conshohocken.)

William Parker, an armless, one legged man, claiming that he is from West Virginia, came from Norristown to this borough, on Tuesday morning.  He remained in town for several hours imbibing to such an extent that he finally lost all power of locomotion and became stranded in the neighborhood of the Reading Railroad station.  (West Conshohocken)  When Officer McShane went on duty his attention was called to the helpless condition of the crippled man and he placed him under arrest.  The man was powerless to help himself and in order to get him to the lockup, which is situated beyond Cedar Avenue, the officer had a big job on his hands.  The borough is without the services of a patrol wagon but the officer being of genius turn of mind hit upon a a novel plan.   He secured a wheelbarrow and loaded his helpless prisoner thereon and started up Ford Street toward the jug.  (Jug was a slang word for jail)  The entire distance is up grade and the officer being rather corpulent was compelled to exert considerable energy before he finally reached his goal.  He however, successfully landed his charge safely in jail.  He remained as the guest of the borough until yesterday morning when he was given his liberty on condition that he leave town immediately.  A few days previous to coming to this borough, he was arrested and sentenced to sixty days in jail.  He secured his freedom and came to this borough and again got in trouble.  How he lost his arms and leg is unknown.

***********************************************

November 14, 1885

A shooting match for turkeys is to take place at Hushen’s Hotel, Wilsontown, on Thanksgiving Day.

(Wilsontown was located on upper Ford Street)

************************************************

A West Conshohocken child fell into a cess pool on Wednesday and narrowly escaped being killed.

(OK, will all the older readers explain to our younger readers what a cess pool is?)

********************************************

September 15, 1905

Policeman Hastings arrested two horses, a grey and a bay running loose around the streets last night.  They were put up in a livery stable and await the owner.

*****************************************

January 24, 1905

John Mansfield had a live pig stolen on Saturday night.  Constable Stemple made a number of searches yesterday but failed to find the pig.

********************************************

November 30, 1909

(Okay, this is the exact way the Recorder Town Notes read from 1909, you decide)

Stephen Phipps, one of the town’s oldest residents is confined to his home by illness******The Washington Fire Company will give a pie and cake sale and entertainment in the Hose House on Saturday December 11.******Charles Wright, driver for No. 2 Fire Company, found a lady’s rubber.  The owner can have same by calling at the Fire House.

******************************************

September 13, 1921

Councilman Noblit Has Eye Removed

Councilman Noblit has submitted to an operation for the removal of his left eye.  The operation was performed at his home 216, East Fourth Avenue, and was successful.  A few days ago, while at work at the Schuylkill Iron Works, where he was employed as Master Bricklayer, a particle of fire brick, which he was chipping, entered his eye and destroyed his sight.  The physicians found that the sight had been destroyed and said it would be necessary to remove the eye in order to save the sight of the right eye.  Mr. Noblit is rapidly recovering from the effects of the operation.

(Now that’s a Man, step into the living room, we want to remove your left eye!)

*********************************************

     I think we’ll call it quits right there. There are dozens upon dozens of this little tid-bits throughout the book.  Copies of “Tales of Conshohocken and Beyond” are still available at Coll’s Custom Framing located at 324 Fayette Street.

(Back to This & That)

Fellowship House Basketball Champions Early 1960’s

     Sixth Grad Champions: The “Golden Bears” of the Hervey S. Walker School, Conshohocken, captured the sixth grade basketball championship in the boys basketball division of the Winter’s sports program at the Conshohocken Fellowship House.  Team members were presented trophies at the annual All-Star and Awards night held at the youth hall included Robert Corliss, William Racich, Dean Moore, Richard Morgan, Robert Omar, Thomas Roberts, Richard Herbert, Michael Hatfield, John Ellam and Thomas Deuber.

*******************************

October 2, 1886

John Bitner caught a peculiar kind of worm at Sixth Avenue and Harry Streets on Wednesday, and left it at the Recorder office.  It had a head on it like a pug dog.

*******************************

April 4, 1913

     The driver of Dairyman Grundy’s milk wagon had a thrilling experience on Wednesday morning, on Hector Street below the Lee Tire & Rubber works.  As the team was rounding the corner at North Lane, the horse became frightened and bolted.  The driver also became frightened and after finding he could not control the horse, he left the seat and carefully climbed to the rear of the wagon and dropped to the road.  The horse went towards Spring Mill at a rapid gait and in turning a corner upset the wagon.  The horse fell and was easily captured.  Neither man, nor horse was injured and the wagon was but slightly damaged.

********************************

January 4, 1909

     William Donnelly, of Hector Street below Popular, heard a noise at his chicken coop about 7:30 o’clock last evening, and taking his bird dog with him made an investigation, and found a reddish brown animal, which he believes to be a wolf, trying to force the slide to get into the coop.  Donnelly threw a brick  at the animal but did not scare it.  He set his dog in but the dog, after getting within a yard’s distance of the animal, refused to attack it.  Donnelly went for assistance but upon his return the animal had fled.

*********************************

April 21, 1931

Pump Tires After Band Rehearsal

     Forty members of the American Legion Cadet Band of the John F. DeHaven Post, thought they had finished pumping for the night, when weekly rehearsal was concluded at ten, Friday evening.

     But a less musical form of pumping awaited them.  The tires on seven of the automobiles of band and post members parked outside the headquarters at Second Avenue and Forrest Street had been deflated while rehearsal was in progress.  Among the victims were Seth K. Mitchell, commander of the Post, Calvin W. Rigg, deputy of the Ninth District and Vernon Wynne.  The other automobiles belonged to players.

     “Well ain’t that sumpin’” cried one of the victims, when the seventh car was discovered, with flattened tires.

     “One, two three,” cried another.  “Let’s go,” and seven pairs of arms simultaneously operated seven automobile pumps.  Some of the pumpers thought they caught an echo of boyish laughter carried on the breeze from nearby shadows.

     “It looks as thugh (yes! That’s how it was spelled, “thugh”) someone has finally discovered how to get revenge on a band for practicing,” said a passer-by as he watched the victims pumping.

*******************************************

April 23, 1915

Special For Friday And Saturday Only

SUIT CASE FREE WITH EVERY MAN’S OR YOUTH’ SUIT.

Snellenburg..$12.50 Suit……………$8.50

                                                                                    $13.50 Suit……………$9.00

                                                                                    $15.00 suit……………$10.00

                                                              Special   $1.25 Percale Shirts…..65 cents

                                                                               $2.00 Satine Shirts…….$1.25

                                                                                  50 cent Silk Ties……….25 cents

William Katz

Guarantee Shop.

53 Fayette Street

(We Give Trading stamps)

(A little off the beaten path)

     A little detour in our This and That column, I rarely write these columns all at one sitting, meaning I write a little bit, go on to another subject, come back to it and add a piece or two and so on, until I have enough for a column.  So I was just running through some music notes and was just wondering if anyone remembers a song by John Phillips after he left the Mamas and Papas called “Mississippi.”  The song hit the charts in 1970 and was actually a pretty catchy tune, “And the Mississippi River runs like molasses in the summertime.”  Okay, how about this one, in 1968 Mary Hopkin had a hit song with “Those Were The Days,” c’mon, you sang along with it!  Somehow I just pulled out this odd-ball list of songs, how about “Indiana Wants Me,” by R. Dean Taylor and “Take A Letter Maria” by R. B. Greaves.

     Here’s a blast from the past, remember the big hit record that was the Alka Seltzer jingle? Well The T-Bones had a hit that went to number 3 on the charts with “No Matter What Shape” (Your Stomach’s In)

Isn’t it funny how everyone remembers this one hit wonder sung by Mike Brewer and Tom Shipley, known as “Brewer and Shipley,” and their one big hit was “One Toke Over The Line.”  Believe it or not I saw them perform back in 1980 when they were the opening act for the Beach Boys.  All right let’s get out of the music category but just one final note:  I already knew this and sort of forgot it, but it’s a little shocking every time it hits me, the Grateful Dead only had one song to hit the Top 100 Billboard Hit charts, “Touch Of Grey” back in 1987, when I think of all their songs that’s pretty amazing.

(Sorry, I got a little off track there)

However, since we are on the music thing, sometime ago, I ran the theme song to the old TV show “Car 54 Where Are You” and got a couple of comments on that, (sorry if it’s stuck in your head now, at least it’s out of mine) but I thought we would continue in that vein with another little ditty that popped up in my head, don’t ask me why or how, but I take great pleasure in passing it off to you so you can sing it as you go through your day:

A horse is a horse, of course, of course

And no one can talk to a horse of course

That is, of course, unless the horse is the famous Mr. Ed.

Go right to the source and ask the horse

He’ll give you the answer that you’ll endorse

He’s always on a steady course

Talk to Mister Ed

People Yakkity-Yak a streak

And waste your time of day

But Mr Ed will never speak

Unless he has something to say!

Oh, a horse is a horse

Of course of course

And this one’ll talk ‘til his voice is horse

You never heard of a talking horse?

Well listen to this:

“…I am Mr Ed!”

A few Mr. Ed Show quick facts:

The show ran from 1961-1966

The voice of Mr Ed was that of Allan “Rocky” Lane, a former western film actor.

Alan Young played Wilbur Post, owner of the horse.

The show was based on the fact that Mr Ed would only talk to Wilbur.

Ed’s ability to talk was never explained on the show.

There was dozens of guest stars on the program over the five year run including:

Mae West

George Burns

Clint Eastwood, (in Clint meets Mr Ed)

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Leo Durocher

Jon Provost

Alan Hale Jr.

And many more:

For those of you who might remember watching the show, well it always started with”

HELLO, I’m Mr Ed.

This week’s This & That has been brought to you by:

Knucklehead Productions &

Tone Zone