Incidents and Accidents
Cracksmen Blow Manhattan Safe.
Destroy Strong Box of Eberhart Lumber Company But Obtain Nothing.
Cracksmen, evidently amateurs, blew the safe of Eberhart Lumber Company in Manhattan, last night, and effected a successful escape. Their mission was a total failure however, for neither money nor valuable papers had been left in the strong box by the proprietor last evening, contrary to his usual custom and although the robbers took several receipts and other documents of little or no importance, they are no richer for the burglary. […]—The Joliet Evening Herald News, 8. January, 1908.
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Driven From House In Scant Attire. Servant Has Manhattan Woman Arrested On Very Serious Charges.
The case of the State of Illinois versus Mrs. Joseph Lauler [sic., Lawler] of Manhattan, which was to have been heard before Justice Goodspeed yesterday afternoon, did not take place as scheduled due to the non-appearance of the defendant. The warrant has been turned over to the constable, who procured a rig this morning and went to bring in the delinquent.
Mrs. Lauler was arrested about two weeks ago on complaint of an Italian girl whom she had employed to do housework for her. She alleges that the defendant, besides refusing to pay her according to the wages agreed upon when she accepted the position, out her out of the house when she remonstrated, and kept most of her wearing apparel.
The girl told Mrs. Lauler that the latter was not paying her according to contract, and that she was going to leave. She went to her room to change her close and and come to this city [Joliet] with a sister who had driven to Manhattan to bring her in, when Mrs. Lauler entered the room, grabbed up the clothes she had taken off and also the ones she contemplated donning, and left the servant girl in a decidedly undress attire. Then returned and told the complainant to get out of the house. This she did, although clad in only an undergarment, without shoes, stockings, or other clothing and got into the buggy where her sister wrapped her in a cloak and drove with her to Joliet. The clothes were recently sent to this city by express but the complainant will endeavor to collect the wages which she alleges to be due her in addition to having the defendant punished for forcibly expelling her from the house. —Joliet Evening-Herald news, 18. August 1908.
(If you want to guess how this case ends, comment below ).
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Farmer Is Almost Killed In Runaway.
John Warner Has Two Ribs Broken As Result of Accident at Manhattan.
John Warner had a serious accident Tuesday morning while driving a team hitched to a hay rake. The horses became frightened at some object and started off on a run. Mr. Warner fell to the ground and was tangled up in the lines and rake and dragged a long distance, part of the way through a hedge. Two ribs were broken and the greater part the body covered with scratches and bruises. Mr. Warner is in a serious condition and will probably be confined to his home for a long time. […] A son of Peter Heisner fell off a load of hay and dislocated his shoulder. Raymond Baskerville is still carrying his arm in a sling, a small bone in his wrist being broken. —Joliet Evening Herald-News, 16. July, 1909.
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Released On Bail.
Ezra Kurkhamp, of Manhattan, arrested yesterday on the charge of wife abandonment, and who passed the night in the county jail, secured his liberty today on $500 bonds, William Seltzer becoming his surety. —Joliet Evening Herald News, 13. January, 1910.
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Wealthy Farmer Hurt In Elevator Accident.
John Lawlor Crushed Between “Cage” and Floor in Downtown Office Building.
John Lawlor, 60 years old, a prominent farmer of Manhattan, was probably fatally hurt at 1:30 o’clock this afternoon, when he was crushed between the elevator lift in the Young building. Lawlor’s left limb was broken at the hip, his right leg was out and bruised and he was probably internally injured. Mr. Lawlor, it is understood, attempted to leap into the moving car before the guard door on the fourth floor had snapped shut. The elevator was moving and the upper edge of the cage caught him against the floor. John. H. Pierce, operator of the car, says that Harry Schmidt, engineer of the building, was making an inspection of the guiding rail of the elevator and was on top of the cage. It was moving down slowly when Mr. Lawlor attempted to jump in. The elevator was stopped almost immediately. […]—Joliet Evening Herald News, 23. February, 1911.
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Asleep On Track; Tossed In Creek.
Farm Laborer Has Serious Tilt With a Wabash Railroad Train at Manhattan. Was On His Way To Work. Has Been employed through a Chicago Agency by Phillip Carey, Symerton.
William Brookline of Birmingham, N. Y., while sleeping on the Wabash railroad bridge over Mud Creek [by Hoff Road], one mile south of Manhattan at noon yesterday, was struck while asleep by a freight train, and thrown to the creek, ten feet below. A slight scalp wound and bruised right arm are the only injuries sustained. Otto Heyden, near whose farm the accident happened, saw the man hurled into the air and immediately ran to his assistance. Members of the train crew stated that they had not witnessed the accident. The man was taken to Manhattan in a hand car and treated by Dr. G. H. Brannon. It is expected that he will recover in a few days. […] Brookline, when he came to the bridge, according to his own story, sat down to rest allowing his feet to dangle over the guard board of the open trestle. He didn’t know anything until he found himself lying on his face, upon the bank of the creek, with the train thundering by and the supposition is that he fell asleep and not hearing the approach off the train, was struck by the pilot as he dozed. —Joliet Evening-Herald News, 20. March, 1911.
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Cuts Artery While Preserving Fruit.
Manhattan Woman Hurt in Unusual Accident.
While canning fruit Tuesday morning, Mrs. Jos. Baker, who lives four miles east of town, met with a very painful accident. In adjusting the cover on a bottle it broke and her wrist came in contact with the sharp edge, severing an artery. Dr. Kessler was called to treat the wound. —The Joliet Evening Herald News, 30. July, 1911.
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Manhattan Store Is Entered By Robbers.
H. H. Lichtenwalter Loses $50 and a Quantity of Valuable Cutlery.
Burglars entered H. H. Lichtenwalter’s store during Sunday night and took $50 in cash and a quantity of valuable cutlery. Entrance was made through a rear window and the robbers made no noise and attracted no attention, and thus were able to get away with their booty. Mr. Lichtenwalter has no idea as to the identity of the miscreants. —Joliet Evening Herald News, 7. August, 1911.
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Considerable dissatisfaction among the citizens has been aroused of late by the continued large number of “hobos” that infest the village. In some sections of the town, it appears unsafe to leave doors unlocked in the day time. The same “turnpike sailors” have been known to apply for food, three successive days in the same neighborhood and to assume a very insulting demeanor if their requests were refused. —The Joliet Evening Herald News, 16. April, 1913.
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Police Magistrate Has First Case.
F. M. Fahey had his first case as Manhattan police magistrate this week. Two men were fined $3 and costs for being drunk and disorderly. One refused to pay until he was committed to jail. Then he “came across.” —Joliet Evening Herald News, 25. July , 1913.
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Trainmen Spill Joliet Heralds.
An apparently unavoidable accident last night prevented the Manhattan subscribers to The Herald from receiving their “money’s worth,” when large bundle of papers were run over by the Wabash Banner limited. The train goes through Manhattan sixty miles an hour. In throwing off the bundle of Heralds the express messenger dropped them too close to the rails and as a result they were scattered over the country for a distance of several hundred yards. According to the reports of some of the residents of Manhattan and vicinity, some of the readers were so anxious to get the papers that they repaired to the corn field bordering to railroad south of Manhattan and collected some of the fragments. The accident was reported to The Herald office soon afterward and half of the edition was printed to supply the demand. Owing to the fact that part of the forms were destroyed it was impossible it was impossible to furnish the entire copy. —The Joliet Evening Herald News, 10. November, 1913.
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Tractor Victim Improves.
The condition of Leo Barnhardt, 25 years old, victim of a tractor accident Thursday on the Manhattan Road southeast of Joliet, is slightly improved today, according to reports from St. Joseph’s hospital. It was believed the man whose limbs and ribs were crushed when he was run over by the machine, would not live Saturday night. —The Joliet Evening Herald News, 13. September, 1920.