MARY BRASWELL: Looking Back 104 years ago

Each week Albany Herald researcher Mary Braswell looks for interesting events, places and people from the past. You can contact her at (229) 888-9371 or [email protected].

Issues from the March 1901 Albany Herald included local, area, national and world news. It was a time when people opened the pages of the newspaper much the way folks “google it” today. Here is just a sampling of what was of interest to South Georgians.

— The first Friday in March offered plenty of entertainment for Albanians. Not only was the circus in town, but there was also a performance at the Opera House.

— W.S. Tarver offered first-class repair on all makes and models of carriages and wagons.

— Plans to install the long-awaited statue of a Confederate soldier in downtown Albany were delayed. Upon arrival at the port in New York City, it was discovered that several cracks and breakages had occurred on the trip from Italy. Repairs were an option, but the manufacturer advised that such action would compromise the strength of the statue. A replacement was ordered.

— The electric plant in Albany was seriously crippled by a series of unfortunate accidents and was shut down for repairs numerous times. When bills arrived in March to those fortunate enough to have electricity in the home, the city had given each user a 25 percent discount for the inconveniences caused by the outages.

— Dougherty County’s convict camp held the smallest number of men since the establishment of the camp. Of the 19 confined there, one was sick, and five were kept at the farm to follow the plow and oversee early planting. The remaining 13 were on road duty with picks and shovels.

— For Sale: 50,000 stalks red and green sugar cane and 100 bushels seed yam potatoes.

— The Albany Rifle Range Association was formed. A new range was set to open soon as the county convicts were mostly finished with their part of the project. It was expected that the association would spend an additional $300 to make the range one of the best in the state.

— Salary for the superintendent of waterworks and electric lights was set at $1,500 per year by the City Council.

— The first brick in the foundation of Albany’s new Methodist Church was laid at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, March 19. The growing community of Baconton announced plans to erect a new Methodist Church. Tifton was also building a new Methodist Church, for which the brick was already on-site.

— Ladies needing their spring hats trimmed and remodeled could do so at the home of Mrs. G.C. Palmer on Pine Street. Also ready to do such millinery work was Mrs. H. Farkas at her home on Commerce Street.

— A local resident brought two eggs to the Herald office to show off. One was from a Plymouth Rock hen and weighed 3 3/4 ounces and the other, from a Pekin duck, tipped the scales at 4 3/4 ounces.

— The residence of William Lockett, one of the most attractive homes in Albany, was completely destroyed by fire. A few trunks of apparel and a few pieces of silver were all that was saved before the blaze took completely over. Lockett had insurance policies on the dwelling ($2,000) and on the contents ($1,500).

— The Herald announced it would furnish extra papers for those wishing for the coupons for the Steele Furniture contest in any amount at 2 1/2 cents per copy. The contest was for girls under the age of 14 and the prize was a Buck’s Junior Range, a fully operational child-sized cast iron stove.

— Boys around town were organizing baseball teams. Residents could expect soon that the boys would be going about to collect nickels and dimes with which to purchase balls, bats, mitts and other equipment.

— Dr. White’s Electric Comb, the only patented comb in the world, promised to stop dandruff, hair loss, headaches and more. The gentlemen’s comb cost 35 cents while the ladies’ version cost 50 cents.

— At this time, Coffee County was the largest of all Georgia counties with 1,123 square miles.

— An aggressor in an inebriated state was shot once and died from the wound. A second party was arrested and brought before a judge. Four witnesses were heard and the judge dismissed the charge. The shooting, which took place in front of Farkas Stables, happened at about 6 p.m. on Wednesday and the case was completely closed by Friday afternoon.

— The boiler and engine for the knitting machine arrived in Tifton. It was expected that the cotton mill would soon be up and running, providing quality fabric and jobs as well.

— B.L. Marsh held business at 97 Broad St. He was a graduate optician and watchmaker. Customers were invited to have a free eye exam and broken eyeglasses could be repaired on the spot. As a watchmaker, Marsh sold fine watches, clocks and offered repairs.

— Managers of the Sale-Davis Opera House announced a return performance by Professor Boone, renowned hypnotist, mind-reader and prestidigitator (master of the sleight of hand). Boone promised to “give away” three of his most popular tricks to the audience which included the slate trick, egg trick and chair trick.

— Available at Albany Drug Co. was a miraculous medicine for men. Nervita Pills, 60 for 50 cents, offered cure and/or relief from hysteria, loss of memory, underdevelopment or shrunken organs, fits, varicose veins of the scrotum, slight paralysis, disease of the brain from syphilis, insanity and poor health from the excessive use of liquor and opium.

QUIK QUIZ answer

c) 8,000 … the value continually decreased as expenses for storage and insurance accrued