Everyone knows that despite its nine lives, curiosity kills the cat. For the sea-faring cats in this story, it was curiosity and a war-time ban on ship whistles that left them stranded on the Chelsea Piers ship terminal during WWI and WWII.
Archive for April, 2013
1893: Wallace, the Lion that Caused an Uproar on the Site of Pete’s Tavern
Posted: 21st April 2013 by The Hatching Cat in Animal AttractionsTags: Animal Tales, Coney Island, Frank Bostock, New York History, Old New York, Pete's Tavern, Wallace the lion
On October 27, 1893, thousands of people gathered on East 18th Street near Gramercy Park for what may – or may not – have been a well-orchestrated publicity stunt for a traveling menagerie. Apparently, a giant circus lion named Wallace had escaped his cage inside the small, 12×20 stable at 129 East 18th Street and was eating a prized trotter horse that he had killed. Today, we know 129 East 18th Street as the site of Pete’s Tavern, the oldest continuously operating restaurant and bar in New York City.
1925: The Heroic Irish Terriers that Saved a New York Heiress
Posted: 16th April 2013 by The Hatching Cat in Dog TailsTags: Charles W. Oakes, Irvington, J.H. Whitehouse, Mary Elizabeth Donnet, New York History, Old New York, The Larches, Woodlands Lake
Jeff and Major were two very large Irish terriers owned by Frederick Trevor Hill, a well-to-do attorney on Wall Street and a prolific author of novels about politics and the law. The dogs were trained as police dogs. On February 20, 1925, the two Irish terriers came to the rescue of Mary Elizabeth Donnet, a […]
1932: Ditmars, the Pomeranian Who Stopped a BMT Train in Astoria, Queens
Posted: 4th April 2013 by The Hatching Cat in Dog TailsTags: Astoria Line, BMT, Joseph J. Krankoff, New York History, New York Women’s League for Animals, T. J. Oakley Rhinelander
To slow his train down and save the life of a loyal Pomeranian or continue at full speed to stay on schedule. That was the decision 38-year-old motorman Joseph J. Krankoff had to make one morning during rush hour in the summer of 1932.
