Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-02-22
JOE "NOBERRY" OF
THE SECOND WARD
Old-Time Leader Who Jockeyed
the Democrats Through Dis
cord Into the Discard

Biale VI tIe IiiitIlbhl upoh ooih 4''
! Nobre in Wares s15O,OOO claim for work
on League Island Park will disclose in tho
background for many the ghostly figure OF
old Joe Nobre, the father of John, who was
long a character Of the town.
They called him "Noberry'' in the Second
Ward, and the clerk of Select Council fell
Into that fashion, too. when he called the roll
in that chamber. Possibly Joe himself adopt
cd that Americanization of his Portuguese
name, for Joe was Americanized all right.
OF his beginnings, If there was much of
interest to tell, there are not many now who
have knowledge His rise to power In his
bailiwick was slow he didn't leap into fame
at all. No Republican could do that in the
| days of the old Democratic Second Ward
| The way to take those trenches by
mining or sapping. and Joe Nobre proved
himself a cute sapper.
He didn't attract serious attention in the
political activities of downtown until the
| early SOS. when he began to take advantage
| of the constant and growing differ. noes be-
tween the Hagen and MCGOWAN factions of
| the Democrats, whose normal majority in
| the ward was about 20OO Nobre, who was
an ardent admirer of Jim McManes. spent
| his afternoons at the office of the old Gas
Trust in building on Seventh street above
| Chestnut. whose site is now occupied by the
McManes, Nobre absorbed political wisdom
and later dispensed it--or much as
politic-to his henchmen in the ward His
| method of entertaining his followers uas
| unique.
| Nobre lived in an old-fashioned house
| the east side of Moyamensing avenue near
| Washington avenue which had large eel
| lar door letting upon the front pavement
BY day the kids of the neighborhood slid
down It undisturbed. but at nightfall the
| door thrown open invitingly and the
elders were admitted to council 1t Is to the
credit of Joe Nobre that the threshold of
| his home was seldom profaned by poiti-
cal, or, shall we say. a business foot His
| family was intruded upon. We can
| scarcely say that they were undlsturbed, for
there were many hot discussions In that
| cellar and the raucous voice of Joe himself
| was of penetrating quality. 1t was there that
| all the deals were Matched which eventually
| switched the Second Ward into the Repub-
| lcan column and made Joe the acknowledged
| boss of the district.
Sapping Democratic Trenches
The old fox had a habit of playing first
| with one and then with the other Of the
| two Democratic factions. One year he'd line
| up his crowd with Hagen and the next with
| MCGOWAN, and while helping the Democrats
| in one direction always managed TO slide
| through into office one or more of his own
| men. His first important coup Of this sort
| was the election TO Select Council of his
| man. MATT CuttOn. III was tne nrSt plum
| the Republicans had ever shaken down in
| the ward and it marked the beginning of
| the end of Democratic control.
The biggest fight In which Nobre figured
was that for Register of Wills in 1888, when
| Jim McManes won the Republican nomina-
| ton for Alfred Gratz and elected him by
| 5000 majority Robert S. Patterson,
| Democrat That victory put Joe Nobre
| firmly in the Second Ward saddle. from
| which only the black rider on the pale horse
was able to oust him. The political promi-
| nence of George MCGOWAN waned as Joe
| Nobres waxed Joe a curious foil to
| MCGOWAN. whose dapper, well-groomed little
| figure the Napoeonic center of all
| Democratic gatherings of that day. He was
| a popular president of the Americas Club
| and had been chairman of the Democratic
city committee when Bill Leeds was the
| leader of the Young Republicans Joe Nobre
was squat and swarthy and trailed a crooked
leg He sported a ferocous black mustache
and in his shirt front perpetually blazed a
| huge diamond cross.
| When he entered Select Council, which he
did in 1894, his booming voice was seldom
| heard in debate. Indeed, our recollection is
that he used 1t most frequently 10 second the
customary motion for the suspension of
| Rule 33 (prohibiting smoking) for one-half
hour" made by Peter Munroe, of the Third
| Ward, whose seat was beside his, to the left
| of President James L. Miles
That was about all Munroe ever did but
| Nobre was never quite that clam-ike At
infrequent periods he was known to turn his
| voice loose for a moment or two and cause
the bell In the tower to vbrate In sympathy
He could swear picturesquely upon occa-
sion but the occasions of course were never
made where the Select City Fathers were
in solemn session. He had his own curious
brand Of logic. and It was interesting not
for it's carrying of conviction. but mainly
for the strange language In which it was
couched. He was always brief and he some-
times said humorous mouthful in q few
words. When the Mutual Automatic Tele-
phone scandal was electrifying the town anG
1t was pretty well known that most Of the
political leaders had received blocks of
stock. Nobre arose In his place In Councils
as the resolution OF inquiry was about to be
put to vote and said. "If this resolution
passes the price o. carpetbags win 70 up"
The resolution did pass and for time
many suspects showed panic Inclination to
| pack up few duds and n.y. But the storm
bisV over. ~ such storms usually Do in
Il this tpvn. snd Al The GOOD that came out
q e ~ thaf l'ft'e s1l'x g ~ ~ ~