Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Shut Them Out

October 30, 1885
Fulton Journal
There is a number of hoodlums in town who often disturb public entertainments by filthy language, whistling, stamping and making nuisances of themselves generally. They are too large to be spanked, not quite large enough to be arrested and don't know enough to behave themselves without an occasional kick. Monday night John Cossman, a loud mouth big enough to go to meeting barefooted and eat soup with a scoop shovel, and Pete Ryan, another hoodlum, created a disturbance in the Opera House. They were ordered out and away from the building. They went away, returned in a few minutes and got into a row. They were ordered away and told not to come back. Ryan went away and stayed. Cossman came back and refused to leave. He was put in the lockup. There was a couple of bums in the cell and Cossman was left in the hallway. During the night someone handed him a wrench through the opening in the door and he got out. Tuesday afternoon he was taken before Justice Terwilliger who fined him three dollars. If the managers of the public halls would refuse admittance to these hoodlums no matter whether they presented money or a ticket at the door, it would keep them out and prevent these disturbances.

Close It Up

April 14, 1893
Fulton Journal
The hotel owned and conducted by Mrs. Stanwood near the Junction depot in this city, has had a bad reputation for many months. Why the city authorities permitted it to continue to be a nuisance is an unanswered question. It is reported that for several weeks two "soiled doves" have been there, and that it was a very disorderly house. About 10 o'clock Sunday morning Marshal Rush was called there to quell a disturbance. He found nine young men there, mostly from Clinton and Lyons, none from this city. All were in different degrees of intoxication. The young men had been playfully demolishing the windows of the building and some of the furniture. A two-seated surrey and a single buggy had brought the party across the river. They were a well-dressed crowd of young men, and some of them have moved in the higher circles of society in Clinton and Lyons. The marshal arrested the nine men and lodged them in the calaboose. One man who was paralyzed drunk was not put in a cell, but stretched out on some straw. Soon after being left, he revived and got out, but the marshal again captured him and despite his resistance soon had him locked up again. During the day and evening nearly all of the men arrested paid a fine of $10 and costs and were allowed to depart. It would be quite proper for the city officials to close up the house in question, and would have been just as well to have salivated the young men arrested by imposing a fine several times as great.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Chapman Death

Whiteside Sentinel: 10/21/1896

"Edward Chapman of Fulton was instantly killed at Davenport, Ia., last Saturday night. He drove to his sister's house that evening and started home about 7:30 o'clock. In some manner he fell out of his buggy, breaking his neck. His wife conducts a millinery store in Fulton. His remains were taken to that place Monday for interment."
(He was married to Mary Reagan, great aunt of Ronald Reagan. She later married Dr. Clendenen.)