BOUND VOLUMES, January 31, 2013

200 YEARS AGO
We consider the American Navy to be indivisible; and we hope the same attentions will be paid to all our squadrons. The officers who discharge their duty to their country with zeal and fidelity, though the evidence of it may not be so conspicuous, are equally entitled to the grateful notice of their fellow-citizens, with their more fortunate brethren.
January 30, 1813

175 YEARS AGO
Died at the Mohawk village, on the Grand River, Catherine Brant, relict of Capt. Joseph Brant, the celebrated leader of the Six Nations, aged 78 years. She was the third wife of the distinguished chief, whose name during the war of the American Revolution carried terror into every border hamlet, and was moreover, in her own right, by birth, the head of the great Indian confederacy of the Six Nations.
Important Patent Decision – The plaintiff claimed the exclusive right of dressing feathers by certain machinery, called “Reynolds Patent Feather Dressing Machine.” The defence rested on several grounds, among others that the plaintiff had invented nothing, as his machine had been known and used more than twenty years ago as a coffee roaster, and the application of an old machine to a new use was not patentable, and that the machine used by the defendant was entirely unlike the plaintiff’s. The jury found for the defendant.
January 29, 1838

150 YEARS AGO
Death of Elihu Phinney – Another of the aged men of Cooperstown, whose family name has been identified with the place from its early settlement, has passed way. Mr. Phinney was born at Canaan, Columbia County, New York, July 1, 1785 and was therefore in his 78th year. Judge Phinney, father of the deceased, came to this county in the winter of 1795, bringing his family with him. As he stated in his own newspaper, “he penetrated a wilderness, and broke a track through a deep snow, with six teams. He established a book store and printing office, and was the pioneer editor and publisher of the country west of Albany – a man of sound judgment and sparkling wit. He was succeeded in business by his sons Henry and Elihu; and after the death of the former in 1850, the book store was continued by Elihu who retained an interest in the business until his death. Elihu was a man of great industry and untiring energy, as the fruits of which, he left a handsome estate to his heirs.
January 30, 1863

125 YEARS AGO
Does it pay to keep up an efficient Fire Department, and to furnish it with necessary accommodations and apparatus? These facts and a recent occurrence answer the question. The Union School building, its apparatus and library, are estimated to be worth about $28,000, all belonging to the taxpayers residing on this corporation, and which they would be obliged to replace had the same been consumed by the fire of January 27th. The insurance on the same is $15,000. The property was saved from destruction by the village fire department – and that puts about $13,000 to the credit of the latter, now aided by a good supply of water. Yes, it pays! Keep up your fire department.
February 3, 1888

75 YEARS AGO
The senior division of the Fenimore Troop Girl Scouts selected dramatics as the project for the first half of the year under the leadership of Miss Marjorie Wicks and under the coaching of Mrs. Angelo Pugliese. Now, after several months of study, they are presenting a one-act comedy, “A Little Mistake” by Elizabeth Gale. The presentation will be on Friday, February 4 at 8 p.m. in the Girl Scout room at the Second National Bank building. The public is cordially invited to attend. There will be no admission charge. The cast of characters includes Betty Davidson as an elderly woman who is Ray’s Aunt; Jerry as a “Little Mistake”; Betty Winne as Helen, a young girl of 18; Helen Baily as Elsie, a very shy young lady; Sally Thompson as Ray, a boisterous, athletic girl and Kay Thompson as the cook, a foreign hybrid. Make-up artists are Christie Mortensen, Louise Campbell and Dimples Campbell. Fanny Parillo and Alice Campbell planned the costumes and stage settings. Jane Freeman will produce the strange and exciting sound effects. Elizabeth Wedderspoon and Helen Eggleston will play the overture.
February 2, 1938

50 YEARS AGO
Sgt. John L. “Jack” Cunningham died suddenly Thursday night of last week at 8:45 at his home on Main Street at the age of 80. Sgt. Cunningham was a legendary figure in the State Police. He and his twin brother, the late Sgt. James Cunningham, were among the original members of the constabulary when it was formed in 1917. Sgt. Jack’s colorful career spanned three and a half decades during the formative years of one of the top police organizations in the country, from the days when lonely patrols were made on horseback to the contemporary motorized patrol with its instant communication through two-way radio. He retired in 1952 at the age of 70.
January 30, 1963

25 YEARS AGO
The Otsego County Tourism Bureau’s Board of Directors voted recently to ask the County Board of Representatives to take steps toward the implementation of a lodging tax. The bureau’s recommendation will specify that the tax rate be two percent and that the revenues be allocated solely for tourism planning and development by the bureau under contract with the county. The tax would be paid by individuals occupying rooms in hotels, motels, or any facility having five or more rooms which provides lodging on an overnight basis.
February 3, 1988

10 YEARS AGO
A popular local brewery that has received accolades from coast to coast for its line of meticulously crafted beers has changed hands. Former owners Don Feinberg and Wendy Littlefield of Cooperstown, have negotiated the sale of the business to Duvel Moortgat, a Belgium-based company whose ale the couple have been distributing along the eastern seaboard of the United States since 1982.
January 31, 2003