USA > Pennsylvania > Erie County > A twentieth century history of Erie County, Pennsylvania : a narrative account of its historic progress, its people, and its principal interests, Volume I > Part 74
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But all the travelers upon those army trains could not partake of the bounty provided. There were occasions when many poor fel- lows were carried through lying upon pallets of straw on the floor of the baggage cars, and the sight was calculated to pierce a heart of stone. Men with a leg or an arm gone; with head bandaged, or a dreadful wound in the body ; some sick and haggard or emaciated with fever, and sometimes, ah! far worse, a prisoner returning from con- federate captivity, a living skeleton with his reason overthrown. Oh! there were sights to be witnessed in those hospital cars, some of them that haunt the women who ministered to the suffering heroes to this late day.
One such is described by Mrs. Rindernecht, who remembers as though it occurred but yesterday the pitiful appeals of one of those returning rebel prisoners, who raved incessantly, "Water; water ; for
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God's sake, water!" living still his horrible life at Andersonville or Belle Isle.
It was in these hospital cars that the women of Erie performed especially noble work. Among the foremost was Mrs. Rindernecht, and it is recalled by one who lent her aid that she made a specialty of blackberry wine that was not only gratefully accepted by the suf- fering soldiers, but was esteemed as of uncommon value because of its properties as a cordial. She made it a practice to bring a basket filled with small bottles of the wine, which she distributed among the sick.
Miss Sarah Reed, then a girl, was nevertheless (as she has ever been) active in good work, and her assignment of duty was among the wounded of the hospital cars. The ladies of that particular detail went provided with broths and cordials, but they were also supplied with other things quite as necessary. First, they would bathe the faces and hands of the patients, and then, having helped them to such food as they could partake of, each was given a clean handkerchief that had been moistened with cologne.
Bravery and humanity were freely combined in these noble wo- men. It was a brave thing to face the sickening sights and smells of those pent-up hospital boxes ; to hear and endure the groans and moans of pain ; to meet, as too often they had to, the forms of the dead, lying upon the straw that covered the floor of the car. It was courageous in the extreme to brave the danger of infection. But there was no hesitation nor manifestation of reluctance to enter upon the work of mercy that had been undertaken. It was better than the work of angels; it was the work of true women; it was woman's part in the terrible strife that brought this nation up through tribulation and gave it a "new birth of freedom." Surely the names of these women who found these "sick and ministered unto them" will be written by the Recording Angel in characters of gold. They are of the army of the patriots and Fame will not omit their names from the roster of the good and the brave. And the happy days that came to them and to all "When Johnny came marching home."
That was a labor of love and of joy, and no occasion was more festive than that which, involve as much labor as it might, celebrated the return home of the Erie boys in blue. Shattered indeed were the ranks. Many that went came back no more and many a heart was too sad to permit attendance upon the joyous feast spread there beneath the trees of the park. But even those felt a measure of joy in know- ing that the dreadful dark days of civil war were over and, pray God, forever.
It was the last service of the Ladies' Aid Society when the soldier boys were all welcomed home again. Quietly they dropped back into the old avocations of peace and in time even they almost forgot the
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strenuous . times they had passed through. But it is not right that services such as those rendered should not be recalled from time to time, for we owe to the Erie ladies of the war period a debt of gratitude we never can repay. They should fully share, with their husbands and brothers and fathers, the credit and glory that are due the patriot.
CHAPTER VIII .- PUBLIC MARKETS.
FIRST ATTEMPTS .- EVOLUTION OF THE STREET MARKET .- ITS REMARK- ABLE DEVELOPMENT .- MODERN MARKET METHODS.
Very many people now living in Erie remember the last days of the street market; but few indeed remember its beginning, and still fewer the market accommodations that preceded the street market. In its time the street market was a noteworthy institution, and it earned a fame that extended far beyond the bounds of Erie, for there was nothing like it anywhere else in the county, and strangers visiting it found a vast amount of entertainment and, no doubt, of instruc- tion by traversing it. Nor was it a trivial matter to "do" the Erie market and do it right, for on occasions it stretched a full half mile along the east side of State street, extending from the Parks to the railroad bridge.
It was held in the open air, and the accommodations consisted simply of "benches,"-plain, board tops supported by a pair of trusses, set on the sidewalk against the curb, while the wagons of the farmers were backed into the gutters opposite the stalls leased for the business of the day. Standing at the cart-tail the farmer served his customers across the narrow bench upon which his produce was spread, while the citizens who marketed had the use of the sidewalk.
It was a remarkable sight, that street market, and, viewed from the railroad bridge as many a passenger upon passing trains viewed it, was unique among city street scenes. Beginning just below, there stretched as far as the eye could discern, upon a principal street of the city, a line of farmers' wagons standing side by side so closely that there was barely space for a man to move sidewise between them. And such a diversity of goods, wares and merchandise, farm products, garden truck, fish, flesh and fowl, Yankee notions and jimcracks-the famous marts of Damascus and Bagdad could scarcely rival for diver- sity of wares the street market of Erie in its palmy days.
And it was popular. The very fact of its being proved its popu- larity, even if no attempt were ever made to confirm this by a census of estimate of the number of patrons. But a visit of sight-seeing to the Erie street market was only half successful if the crowds attend- ing as purchasers were not duly studied. Often the sidewalk was so
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congested that motion was next to impossible. People were there with a large basket upon each arm ; women attended pushing a baby- carriage before them, a large basket balanced over the baby's feet; children followed their mothers drawing good-sized carts to carry home the purchases, and everywhere the patrons were eager to get forward and secure the best that was offered before it was gone. There- fore there was a deal of strenuous pushing and pressing forward ; toes were stepped on; clothing disfigured by baby-carriage wheels; shins abrased by contact with carts until then unseen, and sometimes tem- pers became peppery hot. But every recurring market day witnessed a repetition of the scene; the same crowd-almost identically so, for the market had its regular attendants on both sides of the stalls, and those interested enough to observe and make notes could identify peo- ple by the scores-by the hundreds-who never missed attending the market.
All classes and conditions of people were to be seen at market, and numerous were the tongues spoken, often the language a curious com- posite impossible of interpretation or translation, for, besides the Eng- lish and German that were the dominant tongues, there were to be heard a patois of Polish or Italian, Scandinavian or Portuguese, while many a curious freak of costuming could be noted during market hours in that grand bazaar.
Not all the stuff offered for sale was to be found on the benches or stalls. In many cases the commodious bodies of the wagons were necessary to hold the stock in trade. This was the case in corn season or when fruit was ripe. The farmers from North East and that direc- tion came with covered wagons piled full with baskets of grapes ; other farmers brought wagon loads of apples; potatoes came in the same quantities, and so did cabbages and many other products, and there was nothing that the farm or dairy produced or the garden yielded that was not to be found fresh and in season on the street market.
But there were disagreeable aspects of the street market. There was no shelter either from sun or rain, and no protection from dust. Street dust is not a nice thing to mix with butter or schmeerkase, and does not improve honey. The hot sun beaming on the meat spread out for sale made it rather uninviting, especially toward noon, and on windy days there was a suggestion of uncleanliness that repulsed. When the weather was wet the market took on a terribly bedraggled appearance, but the baby-carriage and the little cart were there the same as in fine weather and the wheels got their work in even better than when the weather was dry. But, though the attendance was smaller, there was market just the same when it rained. Those who depended upon the market for their supply of butter and eggs, vege- tables and fruit, poultry or meat, were disposed to be philosophical,
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and made the most of the bad weather. Possibly then beef sold a cent less per pound and eggs or butter were not quite as dear.
The street market began in 1866, or thereabout. Previous to that, from as early as 1814, the marketing was done under cover. The first movement to provide facilities for marketing took place in 1807, when the borough council took steps in that direction and voted to have a suitable place erected, appointing Thomas Laird, Robert Brown and Ebenezer Dwinnell a committee to carry out the plans of the council. This was done, the market house of frame construction, being com- pleted at an expense of $250, but not until 1814. The demands of the public could not have been very large or exacting in those days. By act of council Wednesday and Saturday were designated market days and continued so until the street market was abolished in April, 1895. In 1819 a hay scale was added to the market, but neither market rep- resented much in a business way, for the records of councils show that in 1832 Joseph M. Sterrett leased the market privilege for a year for $20, and the hay scale for $6.
In the year 1837 the town council decided to erect a better market house and selected a site in the West Park. At that time the court- house, built in 1824, stood about where the soldiers' monument now stands, and it was decided to locate the market house south of that. The building was of brick 100 feet in length by about 40 feet wide and was a really attractive structure, in classic style, ornamented by six columns upon the State street front. It was well lighted, and the in- terior was open, with no partitions or obstructions of any sort. There is no record of its cost; the contract provided that Thomas Mehaffey, the mason, and A. J. Mead, the joiner, should each receive two dollars per day and their help one dollar per day. There was an indefiniteness about this contract that would rejoice the hearts of the present polit- ical contractors who even at the rates given, could no doubt figure out a job that would yield handsome returns.
It is interesting to note among those who held office in connec- tion with that market the names of some who later became much more prominent in affairs in Erie. Gideon J. Ball, then city clerk, was made market master at a salary of $100 per year. Later he be- came a magistrate and still later a representative in the state legis- lature. Sherburne Smith, appointed weighmaster, in time became mayor of the city.
The market house in the park continued to do service until the year 1866. For many years it was the only building that remained in the park. The courthouse had been torn down in the fifties, after the present courthouse had been completed, and with the demolition of the courthouse, the buildings used for county offices were also removed. It was not until eleven years afterwards that it was resolved to re-
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move the market house, but the movement for the improvement of the parks had become well established, and it was resolved to demolish the building. This occurred in 1866.
There is a pretty well grounded belief that the street market came into being without law or ordinance, just grew as Topsy did, Many have believed this and not a few have declared it. But as a matter of fact there was authority of councils for it. Not direct, however, and not with the purpose of establishing any such institution as event- ually developed from the little resolution of permission which was in fact all the action amounted to.
It was in the year 1855 that the market was permitted to occupy the street. The market house erected in 1837 had about it a consider- able space in which the vehicles of farmers collected while the business was in progress inside. In the course of time the market house was not sufficiently large to accommodate the demands upon it. There- fore, in 1855, councils extended the market, giving the farmers and others who had come to town to market their produce permission to occupy the space about the house and the street contiguous and to sell their produce there. It was only natural that they should move across and back their wagons up to the curb on the east side of the street, for that side was under the shade of the park trees in the morning.
Therefore, when the market house was demolished in 1866, the street market had become firmly rooted by the growth of eleven years. At first the street market was barely enough to occupy the space be- tween North and South Park rows, and one that extended as far as to Seventh street was regarded as a very large market in those days. But then the market was a market. Quarters of beef or mutton, sides of pork, baskets of butter or eggs ; poultry, alive or dressed ; fresh vege- tables or fruit, honey, sometimes a load of corn in the ear or may-be live hogs or a calf-these were the staples of the market-the market itself. It was not until many years later that bakestuffs and haber- dashery, clothes wringers and worm medicine, crockery and small dry goods, buttons, thread and yarn, pins, needles and tape, formed a large part of the offerings over the stalls on the street. In the course of time the huckster and the peddler usurped an undue proportion of the space intended to be allotted to the country cousins, who came to. town to trade.
It was in 1866 that the market became distinctly the street mar- ket. It had been turned out of doors literally, out into the street actu- ally. But it seemed to take kindly to the change for it thrived, and every succeeding year witnessed an increase in its growth.
Possibly it was because it was fostered by old Doug Tinkcom. He certainly had a winning way with the farmer people-he had with everyone. Doug was sergeant-at-arms in the council chambers, and it seemed as though the post of market clerk went with the sergeant-
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ship. At any rate it did in Doug's case. No one ever thought of ques- tioning his right to the place; no one ever knew when he was ap- pointed to the position or whether he was appointed at all-at least at the start. He came into official being with the street market, and for the rest of his life he was not separated from it.
Doug Tinkcom was one of the most genial souls the city ever knew. Always cheerful, he had an especially courtly bearing while dealing with the farmer folk. A humorist of no insignificant degree, it was one of his humors to make himself popular with the country people. Doubtless it had its effect upon the market business. At any rate, the trade of the street grew, and the duties of the clerk grew with it, until both Doug and his assistant, old "Tom" Dillon, found market day to be their busiest.
It was another of Doug Tinkcom's humors to convey the impres- sion that the office of market clerk was a sinecure and its fees a per- quisite, and nothing would bring a broader grin to his face than to hear someone declare belief in his peccability and suggest an investi- gation of his official affairs. As a matter of fact he made regular re- ports of his collections of market fees, but there never was any audit (for what was there to audit) and his report was the end of the busi- ness, and the members of council never seemed to think it worth while to question Tinkcom's honesty or integrity.
Poor fellow, he many times smiled while suffering the keenest anguish, and bore without complaint or even manifestation of pain, pangs calculated to test the endurance of an aborigine. For he suf- fered from an incurable disease and bore its pain uncomplainingly, his gritted teeth the only evidence of a secret suffering. Douglass Tink- com was market clerk from 1866 to 1880.
With the passing of Mr. Tinkcom there came about a change in the policy of councils respecting the market. From that time forward the market privileges were sold to the highest bidder. There were a number of market masters but Mr. V. D. Eichenlaub held the post for the longest term of any. For eight consecutive years he was the successful bidder, paying each year an increasing sum, up to $3,000 per annum, and yet making, or appearing to make. a handsome income besides. The largest sum paid in a single year was that of C. W. Brown, in 1893, $3,612. The bid of the Central Market people in 1894, of $4,250, was probably not a bid in good faith, but for the pur- pose of winding up the affairs of the market out of doors and giving a start to that of the new market house. But that is another story.
Thus far this sketch has had to do with the market on State street. It was so long the whole thing that at no time until its demise would the term "the market," be taken to apply to anything else. And yet there were others. Parade street was ambitious. As the oldest thor- oughfare in the city it was time it should stand forth for its rights.
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It did so when there was a market to be got and won out March 28, 1890, an ordinance having been passed creating the Parade street mar- ket and appointing one day in the week when that street was to have the monopoly of the business in that line. The triumph was short lived. It went down when the ordinance of March 21, 1895, was adopted, abolishing markets upon the public streets.
But they were not abolished without a struggle to retain them in existence. For many years there had been complaints and protests. The dirt and discomfort of the open market in the street; the litter and untidiness that it left ; the obstruction of the thoroughfare and the generally objectionable nature of such an establishment in the princi- pal business streets of the city, all were presented from time to time in communications to the papers. The people were represented as crying out for a market house, and more than once benevolent citizens came forward with plans-to be carried out at the public expense.
At last private enterprise supplied the declared long felt want. But immediately upon the declaration of a purpose to abolish the mar- ket, people forgot the unpleasantness of the old institution, they ceased to remember the street dirt on the butter ; the stream of water running down the back of one's neck from the umbrella of a near-by fellow- marketer during a rain storm while both had stopped to dicker; the blue and sickening appearance of the rainsoaked meat as it lay ex- posed on the rough market bench; the muddy wheel of the baby car- riage propelled regardless through the crowd; the snow and sleet and biting cold of winter and the stinging fingers with which we tried to pick out the necessary change; in short, the thousand and one things objectionable were forgotten, now that the market was about to be lost, and instead of the vigorous demand for reform and improvement there was the vociferous cry against its removal.
But it went, just the same. Progress was in the air. True enough the farmers do not now come in in such numbers to attend market as they used to. There can be little doubt, however, but that the pro- duce finds its way into Erie just the same.
The first market enterprise to be realized was that of the Central Market Company, the result of which is the splendid market house at Sixteenth and State streets. The capacity of this house, in stall room is almost equal to that of State street from the Park to the railroad. If, therefore, at times it is not filled-if there are some stalls unoccu- pied .- let those who remembered the street market consider how often it occurred that the attendance was but small ; how few times in fact the market reached the bridge. Those days of the greatest markets were autumn days; they were harvest markets that were of such re- markable extent.
The opening of the Central market set the fashion or started the craze. Parade street followed quickly with two similar enterprises.
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A fourth, and architecturally perhaps the finest of all, was located at Fourth and State streets.
Now there are but two doing business. The Parade street mar- ket, at the corner of Tenth and Parade streets, has been remarkably successful. It has paid dividends regularly, proof that a large amount of business has been done there, and within the year an important en- largement has been effected.
The Second Ward market at Twelfth and Parade, and the People's market at Fourth and State have been devoted to other purposes, the latter having in 1902 been leased to the Modern Tool Co., now one of Erie's principal industries.
But there is another market, and one has to think twice before being sure he can locate it, for it has had many a flitting in its time. It is like the dray stand, everywhere by turns and nowhere long. That is the hay and wood market.
The market of wood is not now what it was in the olden time. It used to be that wagons or sleighs by the score sought the market, there to patiently await a customer. But the advent of fuel gas ruined this agricultural industry, if indeed it may be lawful to call it agri- cultural.
The marketing of hay is, however, carried on on quite as large a scale as ever before-no pun nor play upon words intended here, not- withstanding the scale goes with the market. Originally it was a part of the general market, located in the rear, in West Park, and a little later, established on the south side of East Park opposite where the postoffice and library now are. At length it was voted to be a sort of nuisance, and was got rid of by sending it to Seventh street near Peach, opposite where the city hall now stands.
In 1876 it was moved to Twelfth street, at first occupying the square between State and French, but later the other side of State street. On August 22, 1893, it was moved from Twelfth street to Parade between Thirteenth and Fifteenth streets, and on June 10, 1897, to the northwest corner of Parade and Eighteenth, finally re- moving it from the street. There is nothing of sensation or horror attaching to Erie's haymarket as was the case with Chicago, nor is it especially picturesque or romantic. It has not ever attained the dig- nity of being a landmark, so fugitive has been its character. But it has nevertheless a place in public affairs and its share of attention from the city's lawmaking powers.
Erie lost a picturesque civic feature when the street market went out of business, for it had long been one of the sights and a leading object of interest here. It had its uses to the householder who ob- tained the family supplies from its benches. It was useful to the seek-
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er after amusement in a sight-seeing way. It was valued by the poli- tician for the opportunities it presented of meeting friends from the country. It was of benefit to various lines of trade for the facilities of trade it presented ; and not a few of the merchants on the principal street regarded it as an important aid to the trade and business of the stores.
But it was not an artistic institution in any sense of the word, and never suggested a full grown, well developed city. No matter how much of interest a stranger might find in a tour of the market he would not pronounce it a feature worthy of adoption by his own home city.
It left the street in a state of sad disorder, and at least two days in the week it could not be said that State street was looking its best. It had therefore, a bad moral effect upon the city as a cultivator of un- tidiness. Viewing the State street of the street market days and the State street of today, even making due allowance for the difference the pavement effects, the change is so radical that it may well be doubted whether anyone desires a restoration of the old order of things.
Vol. I-44
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