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"A STOLEN FORD": WINDHAM'S FIRST VICTIM OF AUTO THEFT

1/28/2017

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Article which appeared in The Derry News on August 26, 1919
    On Tuesday, August 26, 1919, John H. Trenholm of West Windham, discovered that his early model Ford had been stolen, becoming the victim of what is likely the first case of auto theft involving a resident of Windham. That Tuesday evening, thieves, who were likely never identified, stole Trenholm's Ford car, an unknown model with license plate number 2646. Trenholm had likely motored from his home in West Windham to South Avenue in Derry to shop at one of city's numerous stores, or dine in a nearby restaurant. Fortunately, the auto thieves did not make it far with their newly acquired vehicle, as the car was found just an hour after it was stolen. Two of Derry's finest, Officer Wheeler and Officer Bennett, recovered the stolen automobile, which was found abandoned near a fire hydrant in front of the home of W. F. Neal. 
    The same year Trenholm's Ford was stolen, the Dyer Act, also known as the National Motor Vehicle Theft Act, was enacted, which made the interstate transportation of stolen vehicles a federal crime. With the increase in the popularity of automobiles came increased auto theft, and local police were often hindered by their lack of jurisdiction across state lines. Had Trenholm's automobile been stolen a year earlier, the thieves could have easily motored across the New Hampshire-Massachusetts border, and would have then been outside of the jurisdiction of Windham's police department, as well as state and county law enforcement offices. While few details of the case remain, it is possible the thieves who stole Trenholm's Ford avoided crossing the state line due to the newly imposed Dyer Act.
     Unfortunately, there are no reliable records for how many cars were stolen in New Hampshire in the first quarter of the 20th century. While the first car was stolen in France in 1896, auto theft only became more commonplace around 1910. Even by 1915, there were only 401 reported cases of auto theft in New York City; 338 of the cars were recovered by Police. By 1922, the number of car thefts in New York City had risen to more than 7,100, a trend which occurred throughout America. Certainly car theft in the relatively small city of Derry, and the smaller community of Windham, paled in comparison with that of New York City. The story of Trenholm's stolen Ford likely spread quickly throughout the close-knit town of Windham. ​
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THE ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT GARFIELD

1/14/2017

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September 23, 1881 issue of The Derry News mourns the death of President Garfield with thick black borders on all columns; a typical 19th century practice for newspapers
    On October 7, 1881, William Samuel Harris reported on Windham's mourning of the late President James A. Garfield. In the election of 1880, the citizens of Windham voted overwhelmingly for James Garfield; Garfield received 126 votes, while his Democrat opponent, Winfield Hancock, received just 58. Windham's preference for the candidate was shared by the majority of the country, and Garfield was sworn-in as president in 1881. Unfortunately, his term was cut short at the hands of an assassin just months after he took office. President Garfield had fallen victim to an assassin's bullet on July 2, and ultimately passed away on Monday, September 19 after several months of unsuccessful medical treatment. Harris, reporting for The Derry News, indicated the news of the president's death did not reach Windham until the morning of Tuesday, October 1. 
     When the news finally arrived in Windham, the bell of the Presbyterian church was rung, and the flags at the town center were "draped in mourning and suspended across the street." The following Sunday, the church was "appropriately trimmed with black and white." On Monday, September 23, Reverend Joseph F. Webster held a 2 o'clock service at the Presbyterian church, which was well attended. All of the town's schools were closed that Monday, which may have contributed to the attendance of the church service. A few of the school houses, included school house No. 1, were draped for mourning. 
    In the October 7, 1881 issue of The Derry News, an interesting anecdote is related concerning a shopkeeper in Derry who was the victim of the theft of a cabinet photograph of the late President Garfield. Interestingly, the story was titled "A Case of Female Depravity."
Last Friday afternoon, a young lady entered the office of the Derry National Bank, and asked to borrow two dollars to pay freight upon furniture, as her folks had just moved to Derry from Franklin, N.H., and lacked just this amount of having money enough to pay their freight bill. The cashier kindly referred her to parties at the Depot, who he thought, on seeing the furniture, would lend or give the money, and the girl went away. Saturday forenoon, however, the same female came to the law office of G. C. & G. K. Bartlett, asked for "lawyer Bartlett," and told a story about a rent bill, wishing to borrow two dollars. The editor of the DERRY NEWS overhearing the request, at once started out to note the further proceedings of this impecunious being. After leaving the law office, she went to Mr. Pettee's store, where instead of trying to borrow money, she asked him if he sold alcohol. He answered in the negative, and referred her to the drug store, which she visited. Her purchase here amounted to twenty cents, but she receiving her medicine, threw down ten cents in change, and hurridly[sic] left he store, so that Mr. Bell was obliged to run after her and call her back, to insist upon her paying the whole bill, which she finally did. She then started directly towards the Depot. We followed, and she went into Mrs. Hood's, where we supposed she might be begging. We walked on, past the house, and stood behind a large tree. Soon our maid came along, carrying a cabinet photograph of Garfield, at which she was looking intently, and did not notice us till close by. Being interested as to her errand at Mrs. Hood's, we called and learned that she had asked for a drink of water, and had asked how many lawyers there were in town, and after looking about sharply, departed, never saying a word about her lack of money. Chas. Bartlett's is the only store in town where pictures of the kind we saw her have, are sold. He has them lying loosely on his show case. Our suspicions being aroused, we asked Mr. Bartlett if he had sold any of his pictures of Garfield to a young lady. He certainly had not, but on looking over his stock, one was missing, which he could not account for, and when he told us that he had been busy in the printing office most of the morning, we felt no doubt but that the enterprising damsel had quietly entered and helped herself.
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Inside pages of the September 23, 1881 "mourning issue" of The Derry News. Some Windham residents likely read the story of president's life and assassination in this issue.
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ARTHUR WHEAT SR. AND THE HORNE/FLINT FAMILIES

1/7/2017

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Four unidentified children sitting on a bridge (likely in the vicinity of Cobbett's Pond). At least two of the boys are nephews of Arthur F. Wheat.
    In 1883, Clara Belle Horne purchased the "Red House" located a short distance from the shore of Cobbett's Pond; the property included waterfront property on the "big pond" near the flume. With the acquisition of the "Red House" property, the Horne family became the first people to purchase land along Cobbett's Pond for the purpose of spending summers on the pond, away from the busy and crowded conditions of the city. According to "Rural Oasis," the family did not immediately build a cottage near the shore of the pond, but instead opted to stay in a tent. While there is no extant account of why the family chose not to simply move into the "Red House" for the summer, it is possible the family wanted a more rustic summer experience, or Clara did not want a large family taking over her house for the summer. Several years after the family pitched their first tent along the shore, they decided to abandon the tent altogether and build a cottage. However, this was not the first summer cottage on Cobbett's Pond, as by the time the Horne family began construction on their cottage, Ayers had already completed his cottage, giving him a permanent spot in the history of Cobbett's Pond as the builder of the first cottage. 
   The property on the pond was eventually acquired by a niece of Clara Bell Horne, Rachel Flint Wheat. Rachel was the daughter of Clara's sister Frances Horne Flint. Prior to becoming owner of the property in 1919, Rachel married Dr. Arthur Fitts Wheat of Manchester, NH; the wedding took place on Saturday, July 19, 1913. The couple had three children: Arthur, Parker, and Irene. Irene, the youngest child of Rachel and Arthur, was born around 1925, but there are few public records of her life. Parker Wheat became a doctor, like his father, and died at the age of 70 in 1988. The oldest child of the family, Arthur Jr., was born on August 15, 1915 and died on April 21, 1991. Although he never owned property in Windham, Arthur Jr. is best known in Windham for his collection of postcards, which were generously donated to the Nesmith Library following his death. The collection can be viewed at: http://nesmithlibrary.org/sites/nesmithlibrary.org/files/arthur/index.html. 
   The Horne family spent many summers on Cobbett's Pond for several generations, until the original cottage burned on Labor Day in 1971. Although the property continued to remain the Horne family for a few years, it was eventually subdivided and sold as four lots. The "Red House" had been inherited by a niece of Clara Bell Horne in 1937; the home remained in the family for decades longer. 

A Brief Genealogy of the Horne/Flint/Wheat family
  • Mary Horne
    • Frances Horne Flint: born March 21, 1852. Married Joseph Almy Flint. Died on July 9, 1943 in Windham
      • Edith Flint Burtt: born July 10, 1879. Married Walter N. Burtt. Died on January 10, 1965. 
        • Catherine N. Burtt: born January 5, 1917 in Lowell, MA
        • Richard F. Burtt
        • J. Frederick Burtt
      • ​Rachel Flint Wheat: born May 7, 1885 in Lowell, MA. Married Dr. Arthur Fitts Wheat of Manchester, NH on July 9, 1913. Dr. Wheat began studying medicine in 1890 and was listed as a physician in Manchester as early as 1915, though he may have opened his practice earlier. Wheat was born on August 8, 1871, to parents, Thomas Wheat and Irene "Jane" A. Hunt Wheat. Dr. Wheat died before 1928; records show Rachel as a widow in 1928. Rachel resided in Manchester until at least 1958. 
        • Arthur Wheat: born August 15, 1915 in Manchester, NH. Died on April 21, 1991. 
        • Dr. Parker Wheat: born on May 9, 1918 in Manchester, NH. Died on July 5, 1988.
        • Irene Wheat: born circa 1925 in Manchester, NH.
    • Clara Belle Horne: born in Lowell, MA in September of 1858; died circa 1937.
    • Kate Horne: born in August of 1860; records show she was living in 1930; likely died between 1930 and 1940.

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Reverse side of a postcard mailed to Arthur F. Wheat by his wife's aunt, Clara Bell Horne
    The postcard shown below (left) was sent by Edith Flint Burtt to her mother, Frances Horne Flint, in 1913; Flint was residing in Windham at the time. In her postcard, Edith asks for eggs to be brought to "Aunt Kit's Store." Refered to as "Aunt Kit," Kate Horne operated her store in West Windham on the property known as "Haverest Farm" (shown below at right). The Mrs. Smith mentioned in the postcard was likely a resident of Windham, although it is difficult to establish exactly who she was. ​
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    Derek Saffie is an avid Windham historian who enjoys researching and sharing his collection with all those interested in the history of the New England town.
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