The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-12-13
AN ELOPEMENT.
General Sickels Daughter Alta Elopes and
Marries Bartender.

deneral Slckels Daughter Alta ElOpes and
Marries Bartender.
Especial to THE HERALD-Examiner Dispatch.
New YORK, Dec. 12-Miss Alta Sickels,
daughter Of General Daniel Sickels, ex-
minister to Spain, has eloped with bar
tender. Miss Sickels, beautiful girl of
eighteen, recently graduated from Cath
ole convent in Montreal. When her
grandfather died he left an estate valued
at s2,OOO,OOO. The young man now her
husband is Thomas Dinham,a good-looking,
light haired young man about twenty-five
years and employed as bartender in the
Huguenot hotel at New Rochelle He is an
athlete OF considerable note oand has the
reputation OF being the champion all-round
athlete of West Chester county. His
mother, who is a widow, lived in White
Plains many years and for long time
kept boarding house. Dinham was born
In White Plains. 1t is believed that Mrs
Dinham knew all about the elopement and
that her son intended to marry Miss
Sickels. The young couple arrived
at White Plains Tuesday. They first went
to Father Dunphy, pastor of St. Johns
Catholic church, the Dinhams being com
municants of that church. When Father
Dunphy was informed that the intended
bride was daughter of General Sickels
he refused to perform the ceremony. The
couple went away disappointed, but in a
very short time were standing on the stoop
of the parsonage of Grace church waiting
to be admitted. Miss Sickels was dressed
in travelling suit, Dinham wore a neat
business suit and dark overcoat. When
Dominic Van Kleecks opened the door he
ushered the visitors into a neat little parlor
Dlnham promptly Informed him that he
and Miss Slckels wanted to get married
he said nothing about an elopement and
did not mention that Father Dunphy re-
fused to marry them.
The dominic asked the usual questions
and performed the ceremony. Dinham
slipped IS into the dominie's hand and then
departed with his bride 1t soon became
known in White Plains that the couple had
eloped and married. The affair caused a
sensation. After leaving Dominic Van
kleeck's house the couple, it is said called
on Mrs. Dinham and afterwards boarded
the train for New York. 1t is said that
kilograms were sent to General Sickels IN
New York, informing him of his daughters
marriage. The bride is daughter of the
general by second wife, whom he married
in Spain when appointed to that country
as minister by Grant.
Elopements seem to run in the Sickels
family. A few years ago General Sickels'
father caused sensation in New York by
marrying his housekeeper, who was the
widow OF Captain Sawyer, of the British
army. The circumstances of the marriage
were OF such nature as to cause much
gossip and great amount of newspaper
comment. 1t came out that old Mr. Sickels
for years had lived on terms of intimacy
with his housekeeper, who had borne him
three daughters, two of whom are now
married. She also had son George Old
Mr.. Sickels finally consented to have a
formal marriage performed, so that the
children mentioned would be lawful heirs
The Sickels homestead in New Rochelle is
one of the handsomest in the place. Since
Mr.. Sickels' death the estate has been
looked after by Mr.. Sickels' son George
Mrs. Dinham made the acquaintance
of her husband while visiting her
grandfather's homestead. For some time
while she was in the convent at Montreal
she kept upa correspondence with Dinham.
After she graduated she made occasional
visits to New Rochelle, and Dinham man.
aged to see her on every occasion 1t is
said that he confided in a few close COM
panions that he intended to marry Miss
Sickels. Mr.. Ferry, his employer and pro-
prietor of the Huguenot house, speaks highly
of Dinham and says he is a steady, hard
working young fellow. Since old Mr..
Sickles' death two of his daughters have
eloped, one with a man named Mead, the
other with man named Quinn.