Relic on the Lethe

I was invited to speak at the event unveiling a new historical plaque concerning the Conrad House and the door at the Joint Judicial Center on Friday (part of why the blog has been fairly quiet recently). The presentation will be printed in an upcoming version of the Journal. As usual, I took some questions from the audience at the end of my lecture. That's always a good way to see what I might have overlooked in my first pass through a topic. While I don't know if anyone at the presentation who asked questions will follow up with my blog, here are a few answers to their questions (and others).  Due to the more recent nature of many of the questions and heavy reliance on the Winchester Star, you may need to have your Handley Regional Library card barcode handy and create a free account at newspaperarchive.com to access the full articles linked here. The Property Layout: The property consisted of four lots in total originally: two faced Cameron Street, and two faced Kent Street,...

Mea culpa, most of November and December passed with crafts and writing that was not suitable for the blog, as well as other real-life obligations. The hiatus was not intentional, but it was needed.  As a small gesture to make up for my radio silence, please enjoy selections from a story recounted in the Clarke Courier on December 31, 1959 . The full story is available for free through the link, and is also filled with amazing Mid Century clip art for Christmas and New Years (although they are not yet in the public domain, they are extremely tempting and it's work paging through the newspaper if you enjoy that era's graphic design). . . . A few years ago I wrote a column on resolutions that I would make. I passed the usual, the trivial, and suggested that perhaps it would be a wise idea to try to improve my character. My first thought was that I could be a little more kind. A friend of mine who edits a newspaper in another town wrote that I could have stopped right there and th...

In the early 1900s, reports of animals - primarily dogs - being killed by an unknown creature around Suffolk and Norfolk were attributed to a nebulous Great Dismal Swamp Monster. The first wave took place in 1902, with stories originating in Suffolk. The Times printed a story that ran one day earlier in the local paper of a strange creature that has been attacking people and dogs around Nansemond in February of 1902: The Strange Monster That Eats Dogs in Nansemond. (Special Dispatch to The Times.) The strange Dismal Swamp monster, which one day this week killed seven of Ed. Smith's dogs, ate two of them, and later attacked Mr. Smith, himself, has been seen again. Mr. Smith lives about twelve miles from Suffolk. Last night L. Frank Ames, a merchant, who lives near Bennett's Creek, saw the same thing and suffered from its ravages. Hearing a strange noise, Mr. Ames went out with a pistol. He thought at first it was a strange dog. When he learned it was the much-sought monster Mr....