FIRE, FUN & FIASCOES ON THE 4th (1887)
******************************************************************************************************************************** Brownstone Detectives investigates the history of our clients’ homes. The story you are about to read was composed from research conducted in the course of one of those investigations. Do you know the history of YOUR house? ******************************************************************************************************************************** A lot of accidents happen on the 4th of July. While it has been a day of celebration for Americans since its inception, certain citizens have tended to go a bit too far with their fireworks and other dangerous weapons. Back in 1887, a few days after Independence Day, a listing of the damages occurring and casualties effected on that date appeared in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle – once the authorities had had the time to assess the collective destruction. “Pistols and pyrotechnics of every kind were used with absolute impunity by even mere children,” the paper noted, “and the wonder is that more accidents did no occur.” The following list reflects a number of police blotters and lays out the accidents occurring primarily in the Eastern District (Williamsburg and Bushwick areas, and parts of Bed-Stuy). It is partial, but it will 1) boggle your mind, and 2) make you laugh. FIRE CRACKERS AS ASSAULT WEAPONS 8:30 – A boy whose identity could not be discovered threw a firecracker at the peanut stand outside the frame building at 21 Grand street and set it on fire. The building, which was owned and occupied by Sauer Brothers as a saloon, was damaged to the amount of $500 before the flames were extinguished. […]
MATTHEW FOGARTY’S LAST DRINK (1885)
******************************************************************************************************************************** Brownstone Detectives investigates the history of our clients’ homes. The story you are about to read was composed from research conducted in the course of one of those investigations. Do you know the history of YOUR house? ******************************************************************************************************************************** For some, there is no better way to die than while asleep or drunk. For Matthew Fogarty, it was the latter. Leaving a saloon on the corner of Manhattan avenue and India Street on 31 September, 1885, a “Wednesday morning,” Fogarty “fell to the sidewalk and struck his head against a projecting stone, fracturing his skull.” And the papers back then were pretty blunt about the information and its presentation – the headline reads like the title of a poem or popular story. It is difficult to imagine such a piece being published in today’s papers – or a paper taking such a playful tone in the presentation of such a tragic event. But this was what sold back then and people loved to read it. Fogarty was taken to St. Catherine’s Hospital at the corner of Bushwick Avenue and Maujer Street, a distance of some two miles. Had the horse-drawn ambulance been waiting outside the saloon for Fogarty, and had it moved at a good clip of 15 miles per hour, it would have taken about 8-10 minutes for Fogarty to get help. It was likely, though, that it took some time for the ambulance to arrive, then calculating in the 10-minute trip to the hospital, and other factors such […]
