The Way We Were

Culled by Judy Garrison

From January 1912 issues of The Andes Recorder

100 Years Ago

 WEEK IN AND ABOUT ANDES

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 Events of a Week as Chronicled by

the Man on the Street

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With commentary by Jim Andrews

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M. A. Marx has been taking his inventory this week. [Ed.: the same routine we still follow at Paisley’s during the first week of January, 2012, and we do it the old fashioned way, like they did back then, by counting.]

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Mrs. J. L. Hughes is ill with pneumonia at the home of her daughter in Jersey City. This is the eighth time she has had the disease. [Ed.: This is way before serious antibiotics were developed, so it is amazing she survived eight onslaughts of pneumonia.]

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Mr. and Mrs. Leslie Woolheater on their return from their wedding trip, this week, were given an old fashioned skimmelton. About 50 were present, both men and women. [Jim Andrews: A skimmelton (also referred to as a shivaree or horning) was a mid-night raid on the newlyweds’ residence by their friends (many times only their male friends) where mischief took place such as rearranging cupboards, taking labels off cans, making loud noises—in later years chainsaws made great noise!—all of which would stop when the couple would feed and entertain the revelers.   Alcohol could be involved!!!!  Extreme cases could involve the kidnapping of either or both the bride and groom and separately taking them to some godforsaken remote spot and dumped to find their way home.  Of course this was the extreme and most skimmeltons ended up as friendly get-togethers.  Many couples, however, slept with one eye open until the event had taken place!] [Buffy Calvert: My dictionary doesn’t have this word but I wonder if it’s the same as shivaree or honing which greeted George and me in Sidney Center in 1952. A bunch of young people came by cars after lights out, blared horns and shouted “Shivaree!” We had to get up and feed them. (Layer cake and iced tea) and then we went on to two other couples to do the same. Fun!]

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All in this vicinity who desire to take summer boarders are requested to call at the D&N railroad station AT ONCE and fill out a blank so that your place may be listed in the summer home book. [Ed.: Ah, the good old days before certifications were needed. So simple.]

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The ice harvest was begun Thursday. The ice house of Judge Bruce is the first to be filled, the ice being obtained from Wm. J. Hyzer’s new pond up the Turnpike. [JA: Judge Bruce’s icehouse was located behind his carriage house (now also gone) on High Street between Barry Hilton’s and the former Shaver/Melahn residence.  There was a small ice pond behind the carriage house.  I don’t imagine that a large quantity of ice would be obtained from that small pond which would be why Hyzer’s ice would be sought.  Wm Hyzer owned the farm at the base of Woodland Hills Road on Route 28.  The pond was in existence until just a few years ago when, I believe, it drained naturally.  The concrete dam is still visible at the right of the Woodland Hills entrance.

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The coldest weather since 1904 prevailed Friday night and throughout Saturday in a wide area. Saturday morning in Andes the thermometer registered 22 degrees below zero, and below zero weather continued during Saturday and at 10 o’clock that night it was 18 below. Sabbath morning it was 20 below. In the afternoon it moderated, but twenty-four hours later another cold wave struck town. At Hobart it was from 32 to 40 below zero, at Bloomville 32, at South Kortright 36, at Stamford, 38, at Roxbury 40. [Ed. :This was in the January 19th edition; let’s see how this year’s weather compares. Remember, they didn’t compute wind-chill factors back then.]

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A bill prepared by the conservation Commission for revision and consolidation of Fish and Game Law, is before the Legislature. There are many notable changes. Below are some of the most important [Ed: I chose just a few.]:

– Killing of deer limited to bucks, two deer as before, and season change to October 1 to November 15.

– Bag limit of five on squirrels.

– Use of ferrets in taking rabbits prohibited, but owners of farm lands may take rabbits at any time, in any way

– Close season on quail, except on Long Island.

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John Aitken has moved from Delhi to Whitney block in this village, now owned by his father-in-law, John Connor. It is stated that he will conduct a barber shop, pool room and ice cream parlor. [JA: I believe this to be the Appletree Realty Building.  The block owned by John Connor stood where Hogans now stands and was destroyed by an incendiary fire in the early 1920s.]