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This newspaper page contains 21 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Boston Post
Location
Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
Date
Jul 08, 1908
Page
12
The city endured a brutal heat wave with 60 000 using municipal baths and beaches at capacity. Crowds packed L Street Dewey Savin Hill and other baths while parks opened for sleeping to cope. Temperatures reached above 100 in Melrose Brookline and Brighton with a forecast of cooler weather but lingering heat.
Extreme heat sent thousands home or into early breaks across the city. American Soda Fountain and American Type Founders halted production as thermometers soared well above 100, with many workers quitting by late morning. Longshoremen, teamsters, and warehouse staff continued largely at work, while candy plants and printing offices eased schedules to cope with the heat.
New York mourns 21 more heat deaths bringing total to 88 in 86 hours as a record heat wave grips the city. A cool southerly breeze brings brief relief after a day with thermometers near 100 degrees and 92 at noon. People sought shade, beaches, and roofs to endure the scorcher while officials promise cooler weather tomorrow.
In Kit tery today Charles H. Trafton a carpenter on a church roof was overcome by heat and fell to a staging below. He was lowered to the ground by other workers using a fall and survived the dangerous plunge thanks to the staging.
Patrolman Samuel Burns recalls seeing Williamson and another man on a settee before 4 AM. Williamson died shortly after. the second man vanished and has not been located, leaving the case shrouded in mystery.
Thousands of residents slept on the Common and city parks last night aided by officials who opened Franklin Park Dorchester Park Wood Island Park and the North End beach. Families and individuals used grass and benches as beds amid warm ground and air with no disturbance reported.
Providence July 7 heatwave shuts Lonsdale Company mills in Blackstone Valley with about 1500 workers sent home at noon. Riverside Mills spinning room closes in Olneyville and Apponaug Print Works halts after lunch as excessive temperatures force machine stoppage and worker prostration rises.
Water department workers flushed streets off Harrison avenue, spraying relief on residents in the stifling district. Men, women, and children enjoyed the shower, with some lying in the streets to stay cool, while animals appreciated the cooling wash.
The Philadelphia heat wave continues with a 91 degree high as seven people die. Among the victims is George F. Green 65 who drowned after slipping into a bathtub while seeking relief from the heat. Since June 20 excessive temperatures have filled hospitals with thermic fever and heat prostration patients.
A 100 degree reading was noted on the steps of Police Station 11 in Dorchester though not added to the official report. Nearby thermometers on Dorchester Avenue and Westville Street showed 95 degrees in the shade, while a Mattapan shady spot recorded 106 at midday.
Heat blamed for tragedy as 28 year old George Williamson shot himself in Broadway park after writing a note saying he could not endure the heat. The day saw workers paused at the S J Catherine church project and public parks crowded with children cooling off.
Charles F Post a Selectman of Alford was overcome by heat while unloading hay in Stockbridge. He is in serious condition though Dr Webster Miller believes he may recover. Post a prominent Berkshire farmer and vice president of the Housatonic Agricultural Society. The Great Barrington thermometer read 92 in the shade with similar heat elsewhere.
The Charlestown bath situation leaves the poor with no public facilities while one beach remains open to all, but requires visitors to bring their own swimsuits. Hundreds suffer during July heat as bath budget cuts hit all ages. The North End example shows city action can grant equal access.
In Charlestown Dewey Beach remains the sole local bathing spot as other baths close. No suits are provided this year, leaving hundreds unable to swim while many children watch from the shore. Councilman John J. McCormick urges the bath commission to fix conditions. Depicted scenes show crowds seeking relief from heat and disappointment over empty supplies.
The speaker laments Chelsea occupying resources to the exclusion of Charlestown residents. Women and boys once walked miles to the Dewey Beach bath house where suits were provided, but this year none are available. The speaker urges timely outfitting of suits to restore access and enjoyment.
Rexford Trott of 107 Museum Street Cambridge, a 12 year old known for traveling from Cambridge to New York and beyond on a five cent piece. He spent the coin to reach Boston and boarded trains by sheer nerve. He told conductors his home was New York and was later taken in by Officer Flynn on West Forty second Street near Grand Central.
Pretty Nellie Cecelia Dixon daughter of Senator Edward W Dixon of the North End surprised her family by marrying Nathaniel Hill a prosperous liquor dealer. The ceremony took place in Providence to avoid Boston crowds and the couple plan to live in Boston.
The Brockton Day Nursery board sent a letter of gratitude to ex-Governor William S. Douglas for last week’s gift of land building and 10000 for nursery maintenance. Douglas has long supported Brockton children and city progress.
Washington July 7 Postmaster General Meyer departs for Hot Springs Va to attend a conference with Judge Taft and other leaders regarding the Republican national committee chairmanship slates and party strategy.
London reports that the government may intervene as newspapers press for action against Admiral Lord Charles Beresford. Tensions with Rear Admiral Sir Percy Scott and First Lord of the Admiralty Sir John Fisher peaked after the Nov 2, 1907 signal incident and a public rift at a royal levee. The row prompts calls in Parliament for resignation or removal to avert naval discord.
Glasgow dispatch notes Morton F. Plant of Larchmont Yacht Club plans an international addition to British waters in 1909. He has commissioned Herreshoff to design a 23 metre racer under European rules to race against White Heather and Shamrock.
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