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Sleigh Racing Popular Sport(Editor's Noiu — With the winter season here, this account ol *i*igh riding, and sleigh racing. •* timely Thts story was written for The Herald Times-Reporter Feb. 24, 19JJ, by the late Francis X Murphy, Manitowoc historian, who liked t0 chronic It* about yesteryear )llv FRANCIS X. MtltPIIVMANITOWOC ~ In my story about hoi sex at the turn of the century I abruptly Mopped with a short rclmmi* to sleighs I said something about Hit* sweet music ol musical chimes lading mlu the distanceThere were several Kinds ol sleigh bells Some w ei t* fastened lo the shafts and might be a whole net.ive teight 111 number I believe Then then* would be a string ol bells sometimes as many as lib winch would circle .1 hotse Some had a cluster ol lather large bells at the horses saddle Hells always gave a sleigh or cutlet a festive anOil the bullet equipped oullits the 1 e weie always two robes -one hung over the back and the other was used to tuik 111 the occupants lliese 1 ubes were all known as bullalo robes They might be goat skin or dog hide but they derived tlicir name Jiotn the buffalo At one time bufialo skm was commonly used and was actually so common that all tobes xvete known as “buffalo robes “William Kahr. the eldest of the original William Kafir's sons hud about the most complete winter equipage It was a two-seated sleigh with the driver on a high seat m front It was a Russian style, used 111 the days when the Russian was not as unpopular as tie is today Mr Ruhr's driver was John Hcidorf. who. with his long mustache and lur cap and coat really looked the part of the comfortable, portly coachman, and he made a point of keeping that little team ol black Iron Hill horses right up on their bitsFor about ten years alter 1896 there w as quite an interest taken in last horses I actually had the residents of New Wk Avenue signed up to grant permission to use that thoroughfare as a speedway The idea probably originated with the speedway on Riverside Drive in New York CMv We really appreciated our own importance However just about that time progress 111 1 erfered in the shape of the new street car line that wanted to use New York Avenue as its right-of wayFor winter racing a track about one half mile was laid out on Silver Lake The snow was piled nigh on both sides And it ically was a fine speedway For this kind of racing the horses were shod with very sharp calks That was the proper name for the sharp prongs on the steel shoes There were not many racing cutters This cutter was arranged with rather high shafts and built so a horse had plenty of leg room under the cutter Cutters like tins could not be used very well 011 the highways because a single horse had to follow in the rut made by a team and if he got out of the rut it w as avery easy mailer to tip the cutter and this meant a runaway 111 most casesThere were several types ol cullers The ones w ith the squai 0 backs were called Portlands The ones most common were rounded backs and were simply called cutlers Some were called jump-seat This one allowed the seat to be jumped forward and allowed lor a seat m the rear so four could ride comfortablyIn the days ol horses, hitching was a great Saturday spoi t lor all the school children, gnlx .is well as boys A low hung sleigh was easy to hang on to Farmers brought grain and cord wood to the city and most of them went home with a very light load on 1heir sleighs — some ol them did not have so light a load on then persons it was a very common sight to see a jug 01 two fastened to the stakes of the wood racks Good whiskey was all ol a dollar or a dollar and a quarter a jug and was always handy around the house for snake bites or the threshing in the lal) You never could tell when you might have use lor it 111 case any ol it wastel tOneol the most populai sleighs to hitch onto was one owned by the Truman and Cooper retail Hour and feed store situated about where Dick Bros bak ery now stands A big wholesome man named Jerry Toomey drove this sleigh He always asked us if we were married and it we answered in the affirmative he allowed us lo hitch a ride Some of the youngsters actually let their piratical instinct prevail over their better judgement and when they met a farmer coming m onthe old Plank road, who refused them a ride, they would proceed to throw off Ins cord wood If the next farmer or the next came along and gave them a hitch they would proceed to throw that wood on his load Not very ethical hut it was doneHitching, sliding on north Tenth Street, or Gerpheide's hill or Roeffs' hill, skating on the Little Manitowoc commonly called the “crick,” splitting wood and filling the wood box were about all a small boy could do on a Saturday afternoon His energy was pretty well consumed and hedidn't need much supervised play when the day was overAll in all. those days were not so terribly dull and I think still that one of the sweetest sounds ( ever heard, or ever will hear, was the chimes of sleigh bells receding into the distanceNew England Farm On Fords' CardWASHINGTON 1 APi - Pres ident and Mrs Ford's Christmas cards show a snow-covered New England farmyard and carry the greeting. ‘Best wishes from our family for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year *'The Fords began sending the cards Friday to about 35.000 officials and friendsThe card’s picture is taken from a portion of a painting in the White House collection by New England artist George Durne It depicts an early 1800s scene in rural ConnecticutBeer consumption reached an all-time high in the United States m 197-1. equaling about a six-pack a week for every American 18 wars of age or older
Newspaper Details
Herald Times Reporter
Manitowoc, Wisconsin, US
Mon, Dec 15, 1975
Page 13
Full Page
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Badgerlink
WI, USA 21 Jul 2017
Other Publications Near Manitowoc, Wisconsin
Manitowoc Herald Times
Herald Times Reporter
Manitowoc Tribune
Manitouwoc County Herald
Manitowoc Journal
