No. 411
Crime, Eccentricity, and the Sporting Life in 19th Century America.
April 23, 2019

Saloons and Houses of Ill-Fame.

Buffalo, New York, May 1893.
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April 23, 2019
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WILLIAM FALE
alias: BROOKS
HOTEL THIEF, SLEEPING-CAR WORKER

Weekend Link Dump

 Welcome to this week's Link Dump, where it's up, up, and away!Try to sell a house that features art stolen by the Nazis, and watch the fun begin!A brief history of pomegranates.Some remote viewers took a gander at 31/Atlas, and I can't say they came up with cheery stuff.A serial poisoner in Ohio.The princess who chose painting over palaces.The horrors of 19th century merchant service.The (
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Strange Company - 9/5/2025

It’s Almost August

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Lizzie Borden: Warps and Wefts - 7/26/2025
Amen.

A two-letter Manhattan phone exchange spotted in Midtown: what does it stand for?

The East Midtown blocks in the shadow of Grand Central Terminal hold some fascinating relics of old New York City. Case in point is the phone number on this street-facing sign for an elevator emergency alarm at 7 East 43rd Street. “Call ST 6-4300” it reads. “ST” is another long-obsolete phone exchange, dating back to […]
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Ephemeral New York - 9/1/2025

1617: A miller of Manberna, the hangman’s last

Youth With Executioner by Nuremberg native Albrecht Dürer … although it’s dated to 1493, which was during a period of several years when Dürer worked abroad. November 13 [1617]. Burnt alive here a miller of Manberna, who however was lately … Continue reading →
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Executed Today - 11/13/2020

The East Liverpool Borgia.

Daniel Van Fossen and his wife hosted a dinner party for their extended family on January 8, 1885, at their home in East Liverpool, Ohio. Fourteen people were in attendance, including members of the Van Fossen, McBane, and Collins families. Coffee and Tea were served after the meal, and almost immediately, the coffee drinkers complained of a burning, bitter sensation in their throats. Soon, they
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On the Russians.

Soapy Smith's "STAR" notebook, 1883-84, St. Louis, San Francisco, Soapy arrested: Pages #22-23

Soapy Smith STAR NotebookPage 22 - Original copy 1884Courtesy of Geri Murphy(Click image to enlarge) oapy Smith's "STAR" notebook, 1883-84, St. Louis, San Francisco, Soapy arrested: Pages #22-23      This post is on page 22 and 23 of the "STAR" notebook. I am combining these two pages as they only account for a total of seven lines. They are not appearing to be a continuation of
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Soapy Smith's Soap Box - 8/27/2025

Convicts to Maryland, 1773 by Peter Dickson

  [Editor’s note: Guest writer, Peter Dickson, lives in West Sussex, England and has been working with microfilm copies of The Duncan Campbell Papers from the State Library of NSW, Sydney, Australia. The following are some of his analyses of what he has discovered from reading these papers. Dickson has contributed many transcriptions to the Jamaica […]
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Early American Crime - 2/7/2019
The Badger Game | "He Loves Me; He Loves Me Not."

Saloons and Houses of Ill-Fame.

houses of ill repute

Buffalo, New York, May 1893 – Though it would seem to be a conflict of interest, The Christian Homestead Association produced this map of the Canal District in 1893, showing the locations of 75 houses of ill-fame, 108 saloons, 19 “free theatre saloons” and 76 more mundane retail establishments. The Erie Canal, which brought growth and prosperity to Buffalo, also brought neighborhoods like this one, and the clientele to keep them thriving. It is uncertain exactly why the CHA would create a map like this, but it must have been helpful to someone.

Source:

Grosvenor Rare Book Room

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