Granville Then & Now – July 20, 2023

By Erik Pekar

The Granville Band was mentioned in last week's column, and comes up again in this item from the July 20, 1923 issue of the Granville Sentinel: "The members of the Granville band tendered their leader and musical director, Frank B. Allen, a surprise Tuesday evening at his beautiful new bungalow on the old Lake St. Catherine house grounds and it was all that the word implies. While preparing his program for the weekly concert in Granville, the band, in the rear of his place, 'hit up' a number, which took him completely off his feet and up to the present time has been unable to regain equilibrium. Several selections were rendered from the veranda throughout the evening, which was greatly enjoyed by numerous people on the lake and nearby cottagers, after which refreshments were served. The members of the band departed for their homes at about 10 o'clock after a very pleasant evening being satisfied that the surprise had added ten years to Mr. Allen's existence."

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The following news item is also from Lake St. Catherine, and displays some sentiment that may be familiar to Granville area residents today, even if the terminology is different: "Some one around these parts is a linguist of 'purest ray serene' as is shown by a circular proposition to cottagers to remove garbage in a manner 'not to "offuscate" the sense of sight or smell of the residents.' Offuscate may be a good word to use in some sentences but Webster fails to connect it up with the garbage industry. But then, in this instance, it may be an innovation. Just think of the joy of some genius coming along and 'offuscating' your garbage cans. Somewhat aesthetic, eh?"

The term "offuscate" is an older form of "obfuscate," the latter understood today to refer to the obscuring or hiding of things. In other words, the originator of the circular proposition likely felt the garbage cans were unsightly and smelly, and wanted them hidden from view of passersby on the roads along Lake St. Catherine.

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An unusual happening was reported in Truthville: "Our meat-market man, Charles Connor, had a very narrow escape from being thrown over the gorge near William Aldous' by a fast running car recently. The meat car just stopped before toppling over an embankment of many feet in height. The fast car kept on without ascertaining the damage but some numbers were secured." There were two general stores in Truthville at the time, owned by William L. Bemis and Delbert Chapman; Connor may have worked for one of these stores, or had his own meat market.

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Granville semi-professional baseball fans had a situation, as arrangements for playing a team in Granville had gone sideways. The situation was also told in detail in a letter to the editor, some of which is reprinted: "Editor Sentinel: Granville baseball fans are very much peeved over the treatment accorded them by the Glens Falls baseball team whose management has made arrangements to play Sunday baseball in Granville only to discontinue after playing three games to record breaking attendance. ... the Glens Falls team announced that it has severed all connection with Granville baseball fans who have enthusiastically assisted in helping Glens Falls to maintain its team financially..."

The letter writer continued: "The only excuse given by the Glens Falls team for its discontinuing games was that there was not enough money in it, in spite of the fact that the attendance the last game totaled nearly 3,000 paid admissions." Glens Falls then attempted Hudson Falls and Saratoga; both rejected. The writer suspected that Glens Falls would attempt to approach Granville again but discouraged Granville fans from being "used as a 'sucker' to any such scheme." They asked why Granville players such as Atsey and Andy McGrath, Kenneth Woodard and "Bill" Humphrey should go to other teams rather than play in Granville.

The writer summed up their sentiments by encouraging a Granville team be formed: "Granville has always had good talent ... With the assistance of a few hired players, if necessary, our own boys can make a good showing on the baseball field with any of the teams from this vicinity. Why not give the same support to our boys who have never commercialized the game and who have always played for Granville to win, regardless of the box offices receipts, rather than have three thousand loyal fans turn out to contribute and help swell the treasury to keep a baseball team (from) another town? And it is a hundred to one shot that our own Granville team can put up a better brand of baseball than the kind that was forced on to local fans for three consecutive games."

The letter writer concluded by saying they wrote it "at the request of several local fans who feel highly indignant at the treatment accorded them by the management of the Glens Falls baseball team. Yours for class play, Morris Rote-Rosen."

Some still wanted to see baseball played, even if it wasn't in Granville: "A number of Granville fans attended the ball games Sunday at Greenwich, Poultney and Saratoga, there being no game on the Granville diamond that day. Owing to the dissolution of the Granville-Glens Falls partnership local games are up in the air, but there is thought that a new nine will be organized soon."