I enjoy reading the ‘Today in Brattleboro History’ feature. I especially enjoy seeing articles that indicate that the same ol’ same ol’ is going on in our town.
For example, from today’s:
1874 Fisk Finger Filched
A finger was broken from one of the statues on the Fisk Monument, last Sunday, by some person who is either a sneak or a villain. Any human being who will in any way injure, deface, or wantonly tamper with anything which the living having thoughtfully and tenderly placed on the graves of the dead, ought to be banished from a decent society, and is to be himself denied a Christian burial.
1845 Late August Rains
Friday evening, and the following night, the rain fell bountifully. Our streets were thoroughly washed. But the excessive heat that continued, and that still continues (Monday evening) almost neutralizes the otherwise good effects.
1858 Support Local Merchants Over Peddlers
This portion of the state seems to be, at the present time, flooded with peddlers of all sorts of goods. The regular merchant is the man to be patronized. He is one of our own citizens, helps pay the taxes that support our government and its institutions. The peddler is a roving individual. He does not pay taxes nor has he any interest to maintain a reputation for honesty.
Thanks for providing this, Chris and Lise! It’s entertaining, enlightening, and really gives me a sense of history.
Me, too.
Glad you enjoy all the old stories. I spent over a year reading old copies of the Vermont Phoenix day by day, looking for these things. It’s a pretty good sampling from about 1850-1910. I still need to do the 1910-1923 papers sometime. In all my free time. Another addition I’d like to make is old advertisements.
It really is amazing how much stays the same. Read this daily and you’ll start seeing it all play out as you walk around town. Oh, that’s where they tested the fire extinguishing hand grenade… that’s where the stolen feed trail led…. oh, look, I read about that structure being built.
I also like the old prices… : )
One other thought
…part of the reason we do this is to show how a simple little paragraph that anyone can write becomes useful 100 years from now.
Write about the little boring things here! They add up to give future folks a better sense of what today was like. (Hi, people of the future!)