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100 Years Ago This Month

October 1921

October 6

Victory Garage Sold

The Maryland Motor Machine Company of Frederick has purchased the Victory Garage of Emmitsburg. The property will operate as a first-class garage and service station, with a complete stock of accessories and parts for standard make of car. Additions will be made from time to time in a number of nearby towns and will operate in a chain with the main office at the present location in Frederick. The Garage will be handling Noah and Chevrolet cars, and also transport trucks

Civil War Veteran Dies

Joseph Rose, veteran of the Civil War who lived in Liberty Township near Emmitsburg, died Friday evening due to cancer. The veteran who was 77 years of age is survived by his wife and 11 sons and daughter. Funeral services were held at the Emmitsburg Lutheran Church. Interment was in the church’s cemetery.

October 13

Soldiers’ Bodies Returned Home

The remains of Private Francis X. Elder, who was killed in France during the late war, arrived in Emmitsburg Thursday evening. The funeral was held on Monday morning and was organized by the local post of the American Legion, which was named in his honor. The Knights of Columbus also took part as he was a member. High mass was held in Saint Joseph’s Catholic Church. Interment was in the cemetery adjoining.

Mr. John Toms of Thurmont has received word that the body of his son, Stanley Toms, who was killed in France, will arrive home in the later part of next week.

Thieves Rob Slaughter House

An unknown thief or thieves broke into the slaughterhouse of H. C. Seifert in Fairfield Thursday night and secured two dressed hogs, weighing 150 pounds each, two beef hearts, a beef liver and tongue and made off with their booty. Shortly before 2 o’clock in the morning, Mrs. Seifert heard a car start in the alley in the rear of their home and upon going to the window to investigate, saw a man carrying a hog on his shoulder and placing it in the rear of the car. She immediately aroused her husband, but by the time he got ready to pursue the culprits, they had gotten the machine underway and were headed in the direction of Emmitsburg, a hot bed of thieves.

House Destroyed By Fire

The residence of Mr. Fleet Birely, just west of Sabillasville, on the horseshoe curve of the Western Maryland Railroad was burned to the ground on Thursday afternoon. The fire started in the attic. Mr. Birely, assisted by his neighbors, succeeded in saving every article of furniture and even had time to remove all the doors and window sashes from the house. Just about a year ago, Mr. Birely‘s house on the same site was destroyed by fire.

Blackbirds

Last Sunday evening from 5:30 until 6 o’clock, one continuous ribbon of blackbirds, 10 feet wide, passed from north to south and came to rest in the fields below town. At times, there would be a break in the line when a portion of the flight darted Earthwards, and the entire line from that point forward performed the same feat which gave it an appearance of a wave. At other times, the same maneuver was carried out sideways. For the half hour that the birds were observed, people estimated close to 1,000 passed every minute.

October 20

Community Club At Emmitsburg

Emmitsburg has taken steps to see that strangers who visit there have a place to go where they may spend the time while in town. A public reading room will be opened on November 1. Well, it will open primarily for the benefit of people visiting the town; it may also be used by the residence of the town. It will be open every afternoon.

Strangers who are in the town may go there to read daily papers and other periodicals and spend a very pleasant afternoon. The privilege will be open to all. The room is located in former saloon of the Hotel Slagle. The opening of this room is credited to the Former-Former Boozer Association. According to Dr. Glass, their President, in the evening, passersby’s will be invited to join Boozers in partaking in sampling local ‘corn squeezing’ in their super-secret hangout behind Dr. Annan’s barn. Passerby’s will be expected to ‘contribute’ to participate, which will of course add considerably to the profitability of the organization

Work Begins On New High School

Ground has been broken for the new high school building in Emmitsburg. The movement for a new high school building in the north county town began more than two years ago. The Maryland legislature in its 1920 budget authorized $50,000 towards the construction of the building. The work was held up temporary when all the bids were rejected as too expensive. The delay caused considerable disillusionment among the patrons of the school. Now that the work has been engaged, there is hope that it will be finished and ready for use by the first of the next season.

Auto Accidents

The handsome Chevrolet Sedan belonging to Mr. Harry Eyler of Thurmont took fire Monday afternoon and was completely wrecked. Mr. Eyler was driving towards Thurmont when he noticed smoke coming from near the engine. He got out to investigate, and when he aligned with the front of the car, the engine burst into flames. Mr. Eyler is at a loss to know what caused the fire. The chassis is the only part that was not damaged to any great extent.

On Sunday, Maurice Bassler, driving a Chevrolet, and another machine were going south on Carroll Street in Thurmont. The other machine, driven by a woman, attempted to pass Bassler, but in doing so, forced him off the street, causing him to crash through three panels of fence, dropped 18 inches to a vacant lot, and come to a standstill on the lawn of Miss Kate Troxel. The only damage was to the fence. The clueless woman, of course, kept driving, unaware of the accident she had caused.

On Sunday afternoon, Mrs. Maria Roland lost control of her machine while rounding the curve in Lewistown, resulting in the car crashing into a tree on the side of the road. Mrs. Roland was thrown from the car, and in doing so, dislocated her hip as well as suffering other minor injuries. Deputy Shuff said that the number of auto accidents in the county have increased nearly fourfold since the state allowed women the right to drive. "Women," he said, "clearly don’t have the mental ability to operate auto-cars and the roads would be a lot safer for men if the state receded their right to drive and women returned to the rightful homemaking duties."

October 27

Farmer Holds Up Roadwork

The work on the proposed new road from Saint Anthony’s to Motter Station started on Wednesday morning. Work was supposed to begin last week but was held up when Mr. Daniel Callahan refused to permit the road to be built through his land. According to a statement given out by the road engineer, work could not commence until this obstacle was overcome. With work starting on Wednesday morning, it is unclear what means were to be used in putting the road through, as it is understood that up until yesterday evening Mr. Callahan had not given his consent.

The holdup was not only disappointing to the members of Saint Anthony’s in Motter Station communities but also to the contractors who were awarded the job. The contractors have been under a heavy expense every day that the workmen were idle, and they took the contract with the understanding that all the arrangements were completed to go right ahead with the job. It seems it would be asking too much of them to stand the expense of the hold up, when they are in no way concerned and came here with the intention of giving the state good road work.

Wife Deserter Still Missing

According to Mrs. Marritt of Thurmont, nothing yet has been heard from Dr. C. W. Davis, formerly of Sacramento, who after kissing his bride of a few days ago, telling her he was going to Hagerstown to take part in a Red Cross play, disappeared.

Dr. Davis took out a license to marry Miss Ella Sinch, sister of Mrs. Marritt. She said the romance started about four months ago at a resort in South Carolina. The missing man is said to own a large estate in Sacramento. He boarded the 10:30 train for Hagerstown, October 6, and has not been heard from since.

According to Mrs. Marritt, who was in Hagerstown looking for Mr. Davis, he is 66 years old. When he disappeared, he wore a black striped suit, derby hat, a diamond stock pin and ring, and had several hundred dollars in his pocket that he had ‘borrowed’ from Miss Sinch until funds from the sale of his farm could be wired to Thurmont. Mrs. Marritt learned that there was no Red Cross play to be staged at any Hagerstown theater, and that a man meeting his description had been applying for jobs in that town.

Snow Plows Out For The Winter

The County roads commission is already preparing for a hard winter. It has improved the snow fighting equipment 50% and has distributed snow handling equipment throughout the county to ensure against snow blockades. Weather bulletins predicting snowfall will be dispatched to crews throughout the county in which the prediction is made. It is hoped that quicker action will make it easier to keep mountain sections open which in the past choked up easily.

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