1906: Fred Sauter and His Stuffed Menagerie at 42 Bleecker Street, Part 1

Posted: 15th April 2017 by The Hatching Cat in Animal Attractions
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New York City taxidermist Fred Sauter was renowned for his realistic stuffed animal skins, like this lion that appeared at the annual Sportsmen's Exhibit.
New York City taxidermist Fred Sauter was renowned for his realistic stuffed animal skins, like this lion that appeared at the annual Sportsmen’s Exhibit at Madison Square Garden.

Part 1: Fred Sauter’s Stuffed Menagerie

Lions, and Tigers, and Cats and Dogs, Oh My!

One early spring day in March 1901, several pedestrians in lower Manhattan were startled by a 12-foot Bengal tiger which had emerged from the door of 3 North William Street. No one ever expected to see a tiger on the streets of New York, so you can imagine the surprise when a giant buffalo and mountain lion entered the sidewalk, followed by a gorilla, an elk, and some jaguars and lions.

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1895: Taffy, The Laird, and the Clowder of Town Topics Office Cats on Fifth Avenue

Posted: 1st April 2017 by The Hatching Cat in Cat Stories
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Taffy Town Topics Office CatsIn May 1895, the first official cat show in New York City took place at Madison Square Garden. More than 200 felines ranging from humble street cats (such as Brian Hughes’ Nicodemus) to the high-society cats of Mrs. J.J. Astor and Mrs. Stanford White were all on display at the first National Cat Show.

Although they did not take home any ribbons, a trio of black cats belonging to Colonel William D’Alton Mann, publisher of the Town Topics society magazine, were the center of attraction that year.

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1911: Buster, Topsy, and Yaller, the Police Mascots of NYC’s Lower East Side, Part 2

Posted: 11th March 2017 by The Hatching Cat in Dog Heroes, Dog Mascots
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118 Clinton Street, police station constructed in 1909

Constructed in 1909, the large, block-long police station at 118 Clinton Street was quite the fortress, but it was simply not big enough to peacefully accommodate Buster and Topsy, the rival police cat mascots.

In December 1911, the policemen of the old Eldridge Street police station in New York City’s Lower East Side moved into the new station house constructed for the men of the old Delancey Street station. Although the new station at the corner of Clinton and Delancey streets was more than big enough to accommodate everyone, the rival police cats, Buster and Topsy, refused to share the same territory.

In Part I of this old New York City Police mascot story, we learn that the move to 118 Clinton Street was a disaster for the little male cat, Buster, who was clearly bullied by the much larger female cat, Topsy. One has to wonder if the outcome would have been different had the two feline mascots been of the canine persuasion instead.

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1911: Buster, Topsy, and Yaller, the Police Mascots of NYC’s Lower East Side, Part 1

Posted: 3rd March 2017 by The Hatching Cat in Cat Mascots
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Buster Topsy

This vintage photo is not of Buster and Topsy, but it’s how I imagine they may have looked had the two feline mascots actually liked each other (and had Topsy lost some weight). 

Part I: Buster and Topsy, the Rival Police
Cat Mascots

On the evening of December 6, 1911, the men of the old Eldridge Street police precinct in New York City’s Lower East Side moved into the brand-new station house occupied by the men of the old Delancey Street precinct.

The large modern building at the corner of Clinton and Delancey streets, with dormitory quarters for 250 men, was more than adequate to accommodate everyone. Everyone, that is, except for Buster and Topsy, the two rival police cat mascots.

In other words, when the two stations merged peacefully, the feline mascots refused to do the same.

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1887: Punch and Chico, the Photogenic Dogs of Alice Austen That Lived Where History Was Made, Part II

Posted: 20th February 2017 by The Hatching Cat in Dog Tails
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Chico and Punch, the two pampered pooches of photographer Alice Austen, on the porch of Clear Comfort, the 17th-century farmhouse on Staten Island where Alice spent most of her life. Chico and Punch lived with Alice for about 15 years, during which time she took many photos of them. Alice took this photograph in 1893. 

In Part I of this Old New York dog tale, we met Alice Austen, an American photographer who grew up in the Austen family’s 17th-century farmhouse in Rosebank, Staten Island. Part I left off on June 24, 1950, the day Alice, once of prominent woman of New York’s high society, took an oath declaring herself a pauper.

In Part II, we’ll visit the Staten Island poor farm where Alice lived for a short time and briefly explore the history of Clear Comfort, the home where Alice spent most of her life with her family, her lifetime partner, Gertrude Tate, and her dogs, Punch and Chico.

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