USA > Indiana > Vanderburgh County > Evansville > History of the city of Evansville and Vanderburg County, Indiana, Volume I > Part 11
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These boys went in bands. They often made little excursions into the country when the roasting ears were ripe and the first corn fields gave them a splendid meal. They would build a fire in the woods and really the roasting ears cooked in the ashes were not bad to take. In wild cherry time every tree in the neighborhood was known as were also all the walnut trees and especially the pecan trees. They also gathered the papaw and the early May apple. In fact, anything that tasted good he went for, and it is strange in these days when parents are stricken with terror on learning that a child has actually eaten part of a green apple, to think back and remember that those youngsters would eat the very greenest of apples, green peaches, wild grapes or in fact, anything that did not set their teeth on edge, and a case of cholera morbus was almost unknown. This is something I have never been able to undersand, yet it is a fact as can be proven by everyone who lived here in the olden times. But the great feast days of the Evansville boys were when watermelons were ripe. They had melons every day. Other people might consider them luxuries, though
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good melons could be bought for 5c a piece and musk melons (for the cantaloupe was not very well known then) at two for 5c. But the boys never cared for them. Nobody grows them now.
But to return, the others may have considered them luxuries, but the boys had them every day, and thought nothing of it. There were two schemes that were worked. One was called the "Store" scheme and the other the "running" scheme. The first one was worked about as follows:
A gang of boys would lay their plans and go down below Pigeon creek past the old covered bridge, through which the great Posey county water- melons used to come in open wagons, for many farmers could not afford canvas tops. They would hide in the woods alongside the road and wait for the approach of a wagon. When one was discovered, the best dressed and best talking boy in the lot would step boldly out into the center of the road and the following conversation would occur:
"Mister, do you want to sell that load of melons?"
"Yes, my boy, they are for sale."
"How much do you ask for them?"
"Well, I don't know. I couldn't tell until I knew whether I could sell a few or the whole wagon load."
"Well," the boy would say, "my father keeps a store on the corner of Fourth and Main streets and he sent me down to engage the first load of fine watermelons that came along. He wants a whole load and if you will sell them right, I will get up on the seat with you and show you right where to drive them."
"All right, son, you are the one I have been looking for. I will go right to your father's store and I will sell this load to him right."
So up would jump the boy and he would at once begin entertaining the farmer with all sorts of interesting stories about Evansville. In the mean- time, ever and anon, he would cast an eye to the rear to see that his com- panions were doing their share of the work. This consisted in slipping up to the back of the wagon while the farmer was deeply interested, and slipping a big melon over the tail board. This was quickly hidden in the weeds at the side of the road and several weeds bent down to mark the place. Others would be taken, until a signal would be given to the boy who was doing the talking and then he would make some excuse and sud- denly jump down from the seat and take off through the woods as hard as he could go. Of course the farmer would wonder what was the matter with the boy, but having heard or seen nothing he would only find that a number of his best melons were gone when he made his actual sale at some store up town.
The other scheme was worked as follows: Several boys would go boldly up to a wagon and commence thumping the melons and would be roughly ordered away by the farmer who could see at once that there were no possible purchasers among them. The fastest runner of the boys would then slip to the back of the wagon and in plain sight of the farmer
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pick up a medium sized melon, which he could easily carry, and run off with it. All the other boys would yell, "Stealing melons, Stealing melons. Stop thief." The mad farmer would then try to hand the reins to one of the boys while he chased after the runaway. At any rate, nine times out of ten he would tear around the corner, hoping to catch the thief and the minute he passed it, each one of the others who were in the scheme would gobble a fine melon and run up some convenient alley from whence they would all go to a meeting place which had been arranged and enjoy a regular feast. Of course when the farmer neared the running boy he would drop the melon and climb over the nearest fence and escape by de- vious ways of which the farmer knew nothing.
Another scheme was worked in the evening. A boy would go to the front door of the house where he was unknown and rap boldly and ask if Mr. Somebody lived there. He would attract the attention of the whole house by stating that his mother was sick and he wanted to get this Mr. So and So who was her brother, and between his sobs and questions, would hold the attention of the family, while his comrades jumped over the back fence and got away with as many grapes as they could carry.
The strange thing is that they considered this perfectly legitimate. A boy of the olden times imagined that those things were grown for his benefit and he really did not think it dishonest to take them. In fact, it was considered an honor among the boys to be an expert and their parents of course never heard of their escapades.
During the swimming season the old time boy was happy. To go in at nine in the morning and stay until noon and slip in for dinner with his hair dry and then slip out and spend the whole afternoon in the water, was nothing to him. Early in the season his back was the color of a pair of tan shoes from constant exposure to the sun. They were the most intrepid of swimmers. They thought nothing of gathering at a steam boat lying at the wharf and then with a sudden dash running up on to the boiler deck, back on the hurricane decks to the top of the big side wheels from which they would dive into the river. At that time there was a deep channel di- rectly in front of the city and there was no danger of their striking their heads. Such a thing as walking out from land was a thing unheard of. He wanted something exciting. It is strange, too, that while I know that parents loved their children in those days, there was no such care taken of them as there is now. A mother's worry over a short absence of her son was something unknown. It was presumed that children knew how to take care of themselves. If a boy left his home after breakfast and did not show up during the entire day, provided there was no wood to chop or kindling to split, no one in the family thought anything about it. If somebody asked the mother where little Bill was, she would reply that he had gone off somewhere that day with a lot of boys but would be back for supper all right and if he did not get there in time to eat, he could just go to bed without it, for she did not intend to cook any hot supper for a
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boy that could not get home in time for his meals and that was about the only thought she ever gave it.
Each section of the town had its squad of boys who were held to- gether by some sort of a bond of sympathy, probably brought about by living in the same neighborhood. Where there were say 20 boys living on two or three blocks, they banded together and were great friends, though they had their occasional fights to see who should be leader, for each crowd had its one leading spirit. For instance, a crowd living on First or Second streets would have nothing to do with a crowd living on Seventh or Eighth. They had no interest in common, never went swimming or nut- ting together and never played together.
The "times" of the boys came as regularly as did the seasons. All of a sudden it would be top time and every boy who could manage to get hold of a top had one. I can remember when a top for sale in a store was a thing unknown, as was the painted or dyed top of any color, unless some boy's father or some relative happened to be a painter. There was one old German fellow who made the tops for the entire town and he did it with a simple turning lathe. Most of them were made of very straight hickory wood and were quite heavy and for points he filed off the heads of screws which he set in. The great game with the boys was "Bull ring" in which some adventurous spirit who had a good top would be the first one to spin his. After it was once spinning in the ring it was a mark for every other boy owned a top. The great desire of each one was hit the top hard enough to split it. So there would be at times a dozen tops all spinning in the ring. When a top rolled out of the ring when it "died" as the saying was, the owner could wind it up and "plug" any top that he saw, no matter how close it was to the edge of the ring. But if the top "died" and failed to roll out of the ring, it staid there until it was knocked out by the tops of some of the others. Then all of a sudden some fine morning, marble time would come, and boys would be seen down on their knees on every sidewalk, for there were few even brick sidewalks in those days. The old game was played with what was known as "taws" and "curbs," and a ring in the center in which each contestant placed his marbles. In playing "keeps" there were usually four contestants each one placing a marble in a ring in a straight line between taws and curbs and they "lagged," that is, they shot close to the "taw duck" which was the first marble in the ring, nearest the point from which they all shot. The one who lagged nearest a "taw duck" had the first shot and if he were a good player, he could win the marbles of the other three without allowing them any shot at all. The winner of the last marble in the ring had what was called the "goes," which entitled him to the first shot in the next game. So while one boy might win three marbles while by a lucky shot another would win only one, yet by getting the last shot he would have the first shot in the new game. Everybody played "keeps." It was a light form of gambling but did not seem to hurt any of them.
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Then suddenly hoop time would come on and the boy with the iron hoop was a king among his fellows, for these hoops were generally bought in the shape of rods of iron at the old store of the Orr Iron Company at the corner of Water and Sycamore and taken to the blacksmith's shop of John Griess where the new Vendome hotel now stands, where they were welded together. Nobody thought of a stick with which to hit the hoops in those days. They were worked with an iron "sculler." That is a short piece of iron with a hook at one end and the hoops were driven by being pushed along by this "sculler." They could be run for squares and handled very deftly by these boys.
The little girls of course had barrel hoops which they drove with pieces of broom sticks as has been the custom from time immemorial, only I must say that the little Evansville girls did not look like these pictures that we see in the Sunday school books of the little girl driving her hoop. She did not wear her hair all done up in ribbons nor did she wear any panties that came down over her shoe tops. If she had, the girls would have thrown mud at her. She dressed as did the boys, in as few garments as possible and her hair was generally plaited and tied up with a shoe string or was shingled. In fact most of the girls in the old times had their hair shingled just as the boys did, because their mothers claimed that they had so much to do around the house, that they could not forever be comb- ing the kinks out of the hair.
Kite time used to come and wonderful were the displays of the boys' handiwork in this direction. Some of them were born artists and some knew how to make a beautiful kite with light sticks and with such perfect proportions that it would always fly, while other poor fellows some of them, seemed to think that the very heaviest sticks were the best, because they would not break, and therefore weighted down their kites so that they could only be kept up by continuous running. But as a boy thought nothing of a run of a few blocks in those days, he had as much fun as anybody and the more dust he kicked up, the better, for be it remembered that in those days, Evansville possessed only one sprinkling wagon, or rather a barrel with a piece of leather hose and a sieve-like piece of sheet iron through which the water came. This was driven over Main street, which was deemed the most worthy of being kept watered.
The favorite kite was the old three-stick kite and I can remember when the first bow kite ever seen in Evansville was sent up. It was made by Mr. William R. Baker, who has been spoken of as such a great cornet player, and who was also leader of the Crescent City band. He made a splendid bow kite and sent it up from the top of a high building and fas- tened it and much was the wonderment of the boys and men of Evansville for such a kite had never been seen in the Heavens before.
But the greatest game of all was "Hum Bum" or "Old Man." This game was a great favorite in the upper part of the city and was played like the old game of hide and seek. All the players scattered out, leaving one
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at what was called "base," which was generally one of the big trees (that is in speaking of this particular crowd) at the side of the residence of John Ingle. The crowd scattered out over a territory of two to three squares and carefully hid themselves until time was up, when the base man could begin to hunt for them. After that it was a race to the base. If the hid- den boy got out of his hiding place and beat the searcher back, he won, but if the searcher even saw him and called his correct name and then beat him to the base, he lost. This particular crowd were about the wildest in the city and went over roofs and fences like cats. The fences such as would frighten the boys of the present day, but were nothing to them. They would crawl under the most diminutive front steps, crawl under huge piles of hay in hay lofts and were up to every trick that was known to the game. Robert, Heber and David Ingle, the latter now a prosperous grand-father, were the most active of the Ingle boys. Then there were Fotsy Hopkins, Skinner Hopkins, Mush Tenney, poor Bootsie Caldwell, Boots Wilcox, Alf Hughes, Billy Bell, Mort Blythe, Ferd, Eugene and Les Iglehart, Jim Goslee, and a lot of these boys who were ring leaders in that crowd. I never heard of a single accident that befell any of them. But it would be hard to tell how many fences were broken and yards and trees devastated by this crowd. There was a younger generation that grew up afterwards in the same neighborhood, but things had become more civilized and they paid more respect to property rights than did the old timers whom I have mentioned.
CHAPTER IX.
EARLY LOUNGING PLACES WHERE THE OLD CITIZENS USED TO MEET AND TALK-THE OLD RESTAURANTS, CIGAR STORES, AND BILLIARD ROOMS-THE START OF THE LOTTIE-THE FIRST BRASS BANDS-THE COMING OF GEO. W. WARREN-WARREN'S BAND-WM. R. BAKER-HOW THE BANDS STARTED SUNSET PARK-OLD TIME AMUSEMENTS-THE FIRST THEATRE-EARLY MINSTRELS THE QUILTING BEE AND THE SEWING SOCIETY-AMATEUR SHOWS THE CHURCHES WAKE UP-TWO AMATEUR OPERA COMPANIES- THE SECOND PERFORMANCE-OLD MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS-PRESENT PLACES.
Evansville is a sociable city and always has been. In these days when we have our beautiful Elks' home, the Crsecent club, the Press club, the fine hotels and the various similar clubs, each with their attractive little homes, billiard and pool rooms scattered all over the city, the Y. M. C. A. which has done so much for the youth of Evansville, the German singing societies, the splendid quarters of Prof. Doerter and others too numerous to mention, there is every opportunity for a young man who happens to have no sweetheart to go and enjoy his evenings in good company and where his morals will be uncontaminated. But back in the old days these places were few and far between. With the exception of the Masons and the Odd Fellows, there were hardly any benevolent or fraternal organiza- tions and they met only once every two weeks. Therefore the young man as well as those of more mature years, were confined of an evening, after work was over, to a very few spots. One of these was the old Pavilion hotel which afterwards was known as the American house, and here in the office the genial Col. Drew was always ready to entertain his friends. Near him was the boat store of Philip Hornbrook, one of the quaintest humorists who ever lived here. It was here that the old river men and trappers would flock of an evening and the fund of anecdote was inexhaustible. Up Main street the cigar store of the late Herman Fendrich, the father of Mr. John Fendrich, was always filled after supper. Here again was the cheerful stove in the winter and it seemed to be a regular meeting place for many of our old staid citizens. Just this side of the Citizens' National Bank Sam Grammer opened a restaurant with a billiard room in the second floor. This was about the first affair of the kind started in Evansville and great crowds of young men could be seen there every night. Later on Mr. Pres- cott, a brother of Mr. Fred Prescott, who for many years was with the late
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William Schellhorn, opened a fine billiard room in the building on the alley between First and Main streets, now occupied by the Catholic book store, and this place for a long time was nightly crowded with young men. About the first club started was the Diamond Club, the remaining members of which are all old gray-headed men. It had rooms in Chandler block and was considered quite the thing in those days. In fact, if a young man came here and was taken up by the Diamond club, that was all that was necessary. His social future was assured. The Germans built a hall called the Turner hall where Marsh & Scantlin bakery now stands, and it was there that they met nightly to drink their beer and sing the songs of the Fatherland. There was also a place near the E. & T. H. depot, the name of which I have forgotten. But it was at this place that all the railroad men congregated when they were off duty at night. There were quite a number of Englishmen among them and there are many who will remember old Polly Hopkins, as he was called, who was a great bird hunter in his day. Down below the creek they all went to the Belle View beer garden which was kept up for many years, while those who cared to go still further out, went to Kron's Vineyard up to the Babytown hill. When the new opera house was built, where the Orpheum now stands, Jim Hicks opened a nice bililard room, which was also quite a resort for many years, until it was eclipsed by the St. George billiard room, which formerly occupied the entire space under the dining room, the bar being back next to the alley. Many big matches were played here and of course the rotunda of the hotel, from the very time of the building of the place, was also a great place to sit in the evening and meet one's friends. About this same time Simon Kohn opened a large place where the Acme hotel now stands. He had a fountain in the center and the place was quite pop- ular for many years. A very popular place was the Apollo Garden, which was opened by John Albecker some thirty-five years ago. This was at first an open garden and was afterwards roofed and turned into a variety show and it was a good one. Mr. Albecker bought out his partner, Mr. Seiffer, and for a number of years made money very fast. But after he gave it up, it was many years before a variety show again became a money maker in Evansville. In fact, what is known as the vaudeville show of today and which is perhaps the most popular show in America, is simply an out- growth of the old-time variety shows. It was on the old Apollo stage that such men as Hugh Fay, who afterwards showed all over this country, and Charles Gardner, who also put on a play of his own for many years, made their first appearances and it was at this show that the great Pauline Mark- ham, who years before had set New York wild at the time of the advent of the "Black Crook" on Broadway, gave one of her farewell performances. It was hard to realize that the very fleshy, passe woman who appeared there was once the dashing Pauline Markam on whom thousands of dol- lars' worth of flowers were thrown away in New York city. Here it was that McIntyre and Heath once performed, and many others who are now
RIVER FRONT, EVANSVILLE
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shining lights in the vaudeville profession. Another quiet little place where the boys used to congregate, was the cigar store which stood where is now the rear part of the Good Clothes Shop at Main and Second streets. This was kept by James S. Goslee, who afterwards became interested in mines.
Another place was what afterward became the Tribune building and is known as the B. & B. Laundry, the cigar store which was run by Billy Stockwell, a brother of Mr. Charles Stockwell who is now in the cigar business here. One of the old restaurants was kept by Peter Burke and while one would naturally assume from the name that he was an Irishman, this was not a fact. He was a German born. I can remember that when I was a mere child he had the reputation of being able to turn out the best restaurant meals in Evansville. I do not remember where he kept at that time, but later on his place was where John Byrnes' barber shop stands now, next to the Acme hotel. It was here that I remember my old friend, Gus Glesige, as a mere boy, and Joe Burke, whom everyone knows, as a youngster. This was a favorite lounging place of an evening and in those days it was a peculiar fact that ladies hardly ever visited a restaurant. Their meals were either cooked at home or they went directly to a hotel and to see a lady sitting in any restaurant in Evansville in the early days would create more or less talk. This probably arose from the fact that most of them had bars connected with them and in such a manner that they were not as perfectly screened as at present. The Lottie, which was started by Joseph Myers, commonly known as Joe Boots, was also a great resort. But in those days it was never frequented by ladies. He built up a mag- nificent trade there and the building was greatly improved until it is now a strictly first-class European hotel. But I can well remember when all the business was conducted in only one room on the alley. It was here that Mr. Rudolph Geiss served so many years, though I remember him first as a bright-eyed little boy who first began working for Mr. Hicks in the first opera house and billiard room. The place of Captain Ellis on Third street just this side of the old Apollo theatre, and long before the latter was thought of, was a great resort for the German people and there was always music and singing every night, except on drill nights when Captain Ellis looked on everything else as a secondary consideration.
Evansville was always a musical city and this can be well proved when it is stated that she had a brass band as early as the year 1837. During that year an organization known as The Evansville Band was formed. Floyd Bullock, an old citizen, who lived here a great many years, played the bass drum. Geo. W. Amory who owned much real estate, played the B flat clarinet, William Feleston, the trombone, T. N. Stinson, the bass drum and Charles Tileston, the tenor. The music of course was not up to the standard of the present day, but they were all good musicians by instinct and the band remained in existence until 1846, some changes of course hav- ing taken place. In 1850 William R. Baker came here and was the first man in Evansville to play an E-flat cornet. He was locomotive engineer
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for the E. & T. H. and from 1853 to 1857 he used to come off the train and without stopping to even wash up, met with the band boys and played until II o'clock and then go home. Prof. George Warren, one of the great- est musicians this section of the country ever knew, lived at that time, in New Harmony, but he thought a great deal of the Evansville boys and frequently came over to play with them. W. R. Baker gave up railroading and went into partnership with Samuel E. Gilbert in the wholesale grocery business. He was one of the most tireless workers ever known and spent every moment of his spare time in writing down band music, for in those days the notes were not printed at all but were written by the pen. Per- sonally when a boy I have even seen Mr. Baker go without his dinner, simply to get ahead on band music. At 12 o'clock he would get his little band books together and retiring to some secluded part of the store, he would get behind a pile of boxes where he would not be interrupted and work like a trooper until one o'clock, when he was supposed to be on duty again. I never saw any instrument that he could not play. He soon went on the road for S. E. Gilbert & Co., and was soon one of the best salesmen that ever lived in this city. He seemed to have a line of customers whom nobody could get away from him and it was not until long years after- wards when I became a man and took my turn over the road, that I found that Mr. Baker held a great portion of his trade through being able to play the violin so sweetly. When he would get to a little country town every- body looked for an evening of music and of course he played in the stores where he sold goods and he was shrewd enough to generally get his order before playing, giving as a reason, that he could play a great deal better when his work was all done. He remained with the store for a good many years and kept up his music until close to the time of his death. Just after the war began Professor Warren organized the 15th regiment band. This consisted of 24 members and many like Charles Tileston and George M. Gates, had belonged to the old band. They went out for some reason in 1862 and then the famous Warren's Crescent City band was incorpo- rated. This band made a wonderful reputation and won numerous prizes whenever it came into competition with other bands. I played the snare drum in this band for a time, but was afterwards superseded by John Mes- sick, who went into the army and his place was taken by a tall German boy, John Kauffer. At this time I was the drum major of a sheepskin band, under the auspices of the Evansville Rifles and being at their call, had to give up my place in the band. I remember how badly I wanted to go to the war with them, but my father was so forcible in his objection, that I stayed home especially as he told me in a decided way that the war was all right but it did not need any boys and if ever I ran away and joined the army, I never need darken his door again. This was about enough for me.
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