We return to Brooklyn–just about 20 blocks east of the “lacteal orgy” that occurred 14 years earlier in Bedford–for another delightful cat tale that took place on Halloween on Pitkin Avenue in Brownsville. No tricks, only some treats (including some interesting facts about how Pitkin Avenue came about–a group of “Wheelmen” get most of the credit).
In Part 1 of this delightful Brooklyn cat tale, I shared the first half of a story about drunken kitties, which was published in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in June 1907. In Part II, I will complete this feline tale of Bergen Street and also provide a few more historical details about the old hamlet of Bedford, its quaintly named town center, Bedford Corners, and the Lefferts family who settled there.
Read the rest of this entry »When I discovered this Brooklyn cat story while doing research for my story about political cats Lem and Tiger, I couldn’t stop smiling. The story was so colorfully written! And the history of the old Bedford Corners is fascinating, too.
I realized I would have to share most of the old news article word-for-word so that my readers could enjoy it as much as I did. I could not do it justice by paraphrasing the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reporter.
The story is rather long (almost two full columns of newsprint), so I’m going to break it up into two parts. I’ll incorporate a brief history of Bedford Corners into both sections to set the scene and provide additional information for those who are interested in exploring the history of the neighborhood in which this fabulous feline story took place.
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On October 20, 1898–the day the Republican candidate for Congress in New York City’s Fourteenth District opened his headquarters at 263 West 125th Street–many of his supporters thought it was a foregone conclusion that he would defeat the Tammany Hall candidate in the November election. The reason they thought the Republican incumbent had the election in the bag? A large black cat had walked in and taken possession of the Republican headquarters as soon as it opened to the public.
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The night before the police had to break down the door to his room at 139 Forsysth Street and shoo about two dozen cats off his bed, 63-year-old Adolph F. Armreid said to his landlord, “I think I am going to die tonight.”
A few hours after the police chased the cats away, the neighbors began spreading rumors that the felines had been eating the flesh of the dead man when the police arrived. The rumors spread faster than a funny cat video goes viral on the Internet today.
The New York Times ran with the story. The New York Sun and the Evening Telegram sent a reporter to interview the landlord of 139 Forsyth Street, who told a very different story.
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