September 5

New Garage For Emmitsburg

Glenn and Charles Ohler have purchased a building lot of 60 x 165 feet from Edward Brown’s Trucking farm at the east end of Emmitsburg on which they will build an automobile garage. The building will be one of metal, 50 feet by 70 feet. They expect to have it all ready to operate by November 1.

Automobiles Crash

Mrs. Audrey Barry’s automobile struck Mrs. Howard Smith’s as she attempted to pass her on the bridge near Thurmont on Sunday. Mrs. Audrey Barry was arrested and fined for reckless driving and ordered to pay for the damages she had done. Both machines were crossing the bridge near Thurmont when Barry attempted to cut in front of Smith. She struck the front wheel of Smith’s machine and forced it against the side of the bridge. Mrs. Smith was thrown out and sustained a bruised side. Mr. Smith reported the accident to the sheriff’s deputy, who located Mrs. Barry’s machine at a local garage, whereupon he placed Mrs. Barry under arrest and fined her $15 for reckless driving.

Flames Decimate Adjoining Farms

Smelling smoke for about fifteen minutes without stopping to investigate proved very costly when the barn and all its contents on the farm of Lamenial Bowers, near Thurmont, was destroyed by one of the worst fires of the season. The men were engaged in threshing this season’s crop of wheat and the engine was situated about 50 feet from the building. The men were working in the barn when someone smelled something burning, but remarked that it was probably something that had been put into the firebox of the engine. Nothing was done until a burst of flame was noticed in one of the back corners of the mow.

Since the fire started on the opposite side of the building from the engine, it is thought that if the fire, which is of unknown origin, did start from a spark from the machine, it would have been a freak act of nature. The wind was blowing in the opposite direction and the spark would have had to travel over the barn and fly almost perpendicular between the silo and the barn, where the burst of flames was first noticed.

By the time the fire was discovered it had gained sufficient headway that nothing could have been done to save the buildings on the farm. Workmen hardly had time to get the threshing machine out of the barn before the flames had spread to the entire interior of the building, which was a roaring furnace. The fire rapidly spread and by the time the men reached the ground floor the fire had eaten through the floor and the rescuers barely had time to get out before it collapsed.

The fire quickly spread to the outbuildings. The wagon shed, corncrib, hog pen and buggy shared the same fate as the barn. So quickly was it all over that three hogs in a pen could not be saved. Two small goats in a pen a greater distance from the barn were saved. In the barn, at the time of the fire, were about 40 or 50 tons of this year’s hay, about 200 bushels of wheat that had been thrashed in the morning and about 344 bushels that were to be thrashed, some oats and a small amount of rye. None of the forage crops could be saved.

Sparks from the fire fell on adjacent fields and caught the barn on the farm of Joseph Isanogle and destroyed it, along with his wagon shed, hog pen and all the buildings. It left nothing but the Isanogle residence. Nothing could be done to save the doomed barns on the Issnogle farm

September 12

Another Car Upset

As Isaac Weichert, Of Highland Township, was driving through Fairfield with a load of peaches, he reached back to close the doors on his machine, but in doing so, he ran to one side of the road and overturned. While Isaac was unhurt, his peaches went in all directions and many of them were ruined.

Crime Wave In Emmitsburg

The Grand Jury is busy investigating the crime wave that swept through the northern part of the county, in and around Emmitsburg, during the past several months. One of the local authorities said everything from a shoe button to a Ford machine had been stolen during the past few months in this area. The Emmitsburg robberies are terrorizing the residents in the area. Robbers have attempted to take everything that looks like it could be sold – from eggs, money, stamps, bonds, hay, corn, watches, rings, stick pins, in fact enough things to start a secondhand store - or for that matter a first rate store.

September 19

Injured By Auto

Mrs. Isaac Downey, a well-known colored woman of near Emmitsburg, was struck by an automobile while crossing the Square last Tuesday afternoon. She had just stepped from the curb when a car, which it seems, she did not hear, struck her. She was thrown violently on the concrete street, while the machine passed over her. A small dog, which she was leading, was killed instantly. She arose after being struck by the car and walked to the post office, which was just across the street, and from which place she was taken to her home. Dr. Stone was called and found the woman was suffering from a broken jawbone and a very badly sprained ankle, also a series of lacerations and bruises about the head and face. The automobile was owned and driven by Ashbury Fuss, of Emmitsburg, who offered assistance. Several persons who were witnesses to the accident agreed that it was unavoidable.

Stolen Auto Found In Woods

What is believed to be a stolen automobile was recently located in the jungles, near the Catoctin Furnace Mine, two miles south of Thurmont. When first found, Mr. Reid took little interest in it, as it is a well-known area where moonshiners hid their cars while retrieving their ‘shine’ from local stills, but he became interested in it being that no license tags were on the car. A few days later, two Ohio state tags were found along the Thurmont Deerfield Road, and upon hearing of that discovery, he told the local deputy about the car and they began to investigate. It turns out the car had been stolen earlier in the month from Ohio.

Emmitsburg Girl Wins

John Cramer was found guilty of assault and battery against Goldie Hough of Emmitsburg. The evidence in the case indicated that young Cramer, age 16, accompanied by two other young men, stopped their car in which they were riding and Kramer jumped out and asked Miss Hough to enter the car for a ride. When the girl refused, Cramer grabbed her by the arm, whereupon she called him a name and he retaliated by telling her "to go to hell." The sentence of the court was a fine of $10 and cost, for a total of $55. The judge expressed regret that the time of the Circuit Court was consumed by such a case, stating that he felt that the Justice of the Peace in Emmitsburg should be granted jurisdiction over such cases and that boys like Cramer, instead of being fined, would be more effectively persuaded to not pursuing this type of action in the future by being publically horsewhipped.

September 26

Farmerettes Destroy Boozer’s Still

A silent vigil was held in Emmitsburg Saturday night when word reached the members of the Former Former Boozers that the still of Jack "stinky" Deathridge had been found by Emmitsburg’s new Farmerettes in the woods on their property and destroyed. Word was that the girls had gotten wind of the still by the smell Deathridge would leave as he crossed their property, even when the wind was blowing away from their house. Upon hearing of his stills’ demise, Deathridge broke down in tears, claiming the old land owner had allowed him to locate the still on the property and he saw no need to ask some upstart women folk if it was still ok. "No kin of mine will ever ask a women for permission to do anything, If they do, that rumble you ill feel will be me rolling over in my grave." Said Deatheridge. During the vigil, Boozers drank what remained of the still’s ‘rotgut’ until such time as no one could recall what they were mourning.

Eels Stop Power plant

On several occasions during the last few days, eels have caused considerable trouble at the Thurmont electric power plant. Coming through the big feed pipe to the building, they got into the water gates and stopped the flow of water. The largest eel taken out weighed six pounds and a number of others weighed three pounds.

Newsboy Stuck

Lawrence Porter, of Fairfield, was arrested Monday afternoon in Emmitsburg, and was charged with assault and battery of Richard Irving, our young newsboy. The charge was brought forward by the boy’s father. Locals say that the attack on the little boy was cowardly and the prosecution should take up the advice of the Judge in the Cramer case and called for a public horsewhipping of Porter.

Read Prior '100 Years Ago this Month'