Evening star., 1902-09-02
ANTE-bELLUM PERIOD
Forty or Fifty Years Ago
and Beyond.
REVIVAL OF MEMORIES
FAMOUS IRON HALL" WHERE
YOUTH WAS ENTERTAINED.
Old-Time Shops and Those Who Pa
tronized Them-A Primitive
Public School.
REVIVAL OF MEMORIES
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star.
The interesting "reminiscences recently
printed in The Star Of Washington seventy
years ago recall to many of younger gen
Grafton the days of their own youth before
the war" We sometimes forget that ''be-
fore the war means between forty and
fifty years ago-and beyond-and while
that is an interminabie age to the young
generation, it seems but yesterday to the
sweet faced mothers and reminiscent faith
ers whose chief delight is in recalling and
rehearsing the wonderful doings of their
youth.
There are no days like youthful days: no
fashions half so becoming to womanly
grace or manly form as the fashions which
clothed our first love. In our grandparents
eyes the thirties and forties, with all theii
lack of modern conveniences, were superior
to all time before or since, though our
parents disagree with them. holding that
war times and the sixties generally con-
stituted the season of the earths fullness
We in turn smile pityingly and knowingly,
for we perfectly assured that the faSn-
ions and manners of the fin de siecie YOUTH
when We were cOurted. were the most near
ly perfect yet produced.
But the mention of a name or an old 10
cation revives memories of places ana con.
!
events connecting the past and present is
| completed. The matronly head OF an OLD
| Washington family visiting Droops IN the
| interest of her musical daughters rarely
| thinks of old Iron Hall" which stood
! there in the fortfes ard fifties where, as an
eager little girl, clinging tightly to her par
| ent's hand, she went to see the famous
| Aztec Children" and Tom Thumb in his
! early exhibitions; nor of Hilbus q HitZ'
! predecessors of Mr.. Droop in the music
| and musical supply business, who occupied
| the ground floor of the building.
Half a Century Ago.
! When she enters Galt's jewelry establish
ment her mind may revert to the elaborate
medallion bracelets, the long pendant ear
! rings, the brooches secured by MASSIVE
chains, all very expensive and very fash-
ionabIe bought for her by her extraFagant
| and doting father from THIS same nliii MY
years ago. J..
She remembers the days when, seated In
| the big old-fashioned carriage, she accom-
| panied her father in his frequent business
| drives Her voluminous MORE dress, ana
| also her merinos and alpacas, We're from
J. T Mitchell's fashionable estaoiishinaee.ih. ae.h
on 'the avenue between 9tn ana horn ho,i,
| streets; or from Darius tiagetts s. "heie
| Parker & BridgetS store now standS' OF
| from Morgan Shuster's, or White s, on
Hoeke's present site. Her berthas' bre-
telIes and their trimmings were from ste
| vens' near 9th street. Harper and Wllilan
were also familiar names among the dry
| goods merchants of that day.
Sha nosstblv attended the "Hawley In
-itmte on the south side of Pennsylvania
avenue between 1Tth and 18TH streets, kept
by the FIVE daughters of Rector HaWie9 "a
81 Johns Episcopal Church. If SO, she
numbered among her schoolma1es freslueis'
| pnIk's niece little Maria Polk Walker; Com
mander Herndon's daughter Ehen,who later
became the wife of Chester A Arthur' tnt
| daughters Of Secretary Meredith OF ths
| treasury: of Secretary Preston OF the navy
| DAUGHTERS of many Otner puDl1t
Graced by Dolly Madison.
The last reception of President Polk wa:
graced by the presence OF Mrs. Dolly Madl
. | son, who sat upon a raised platform, at
i. tired in white satin cut decollete, display
ing shoulders and arms still beautiful, hel
. customary turban of fringed white sati1
twined about her head. During the recep
: ton another function quite as important q
its Youthful participants was in progress il
another part of the building. Miss Maria
: Polk Walker was hostess at a birthda!
. | party probably her seventh or eighth ami
. | versary to which she had invited some o
her SchOoimateS from the t1a"ley lAsti
tute.'
. On one side of the "Hawley Institute OLE
. Commodore Warrington lived, and on tn
other side stood large house set well bacl
: In the yard, where General Winfield Scot
had his headquarters at the beginning o
1 the civil war. Prior to that he had lived II
| the old CnalT House, NHSIc Ulc IeuONE
] Hotel now stands, so called because of tn
] chain fence which surrounded it, like tina
!. | which no incloses the triangular park op
!. | posite.
. | lived in the first ward for that was tn
I largest residence section of the city, George
+ | town, across the avenue, or X street bridg
/ being reckoned a separate community
!. Though the first ward comprised the prin
| cipal residence section, it was by mean
! the only one. The vicinity of 18th, 14th. c
! | D and E streets was the home of a con
J | siderable number of highly respected citi
!. zens, many of them Quakers.
] Where the Shoppers Halted.
|. Driving down the gravel roadway O
!. Pennsylvania avenue, the shoppers Of ear
! | lier days most probably halted at Howard
!. apothecary shop afterward Thomas P MOI
+ | gan's next to the Seven Buildings" an
!. the residence of Robert J. Walker, Secre
J tary of the Treasury. They paused fre
| auently in the square between 18th and 1Stt
: at John Boyle's neutrality-suspicious.
Brodbeck's-which supplied the President
| table; at kraft's bakery, and at Brander
berg's or Robinsons for cigars: past tn
: handsome residences of Montgomery Blai
Admiral Lee and Dr. Parker, an emineI
missionary physician, down TO the busy Ger
ter Of town. They lunched. elegantly &
5! Gautier's on the avenue between 18th an
IT 18th streets, for Gautier was the mo:
fashionable caterer and had no superior.
For groceries the Washingtonian Of ante
D. bellum days sent orders to King & Bui
le chell. on the corner of Vermont avenue an
n / street; to McBlair or Ayimer, on Penn
T. sylvania avenue between 18th and 1st
= streets; to Bacon. on the avenue near It
IL street. or to La Prue, corner of 18th stree
= If he wished to purchase a hat he prol
IL ably went to William B. Todd. on the av,
IS nue. near 9th, to Francis p Mattingl,
whose store was on 7th near D. While
IS that part of town he most probably wou
r have stopped at the Era office, if he were
8 slave owner, to inform the management l.
s vehement word of mouth that he desirs
'e his subscription discontinued. The susp
e. cion under which the editor was held
te assisting slaves to desert their masters
Id means of an underground passageway b