Smyrna times., 1930-11-19
SMYRNA FIFTY YEARS AGO AS /
REvAMPED FROM OUR FILES.
ITEMS ABOUT SMYRNA FROM
SMYRNA TIMES, NOV. IL, 1880
Notes of Marriages, Deaths, Real
Estate Deals and Matters of In
terest of Half Century Ago

(The Smyrna Times has started
20 look back over its files and tell
what happened around the correspond
ing date of this issue. half century
ago. We hope to make this a regular
weekly feature. If it does nothing else,
it will call to mind people and events
of that day that should be interesting
to the present generation. We hope
our readers will find it interesting and
that it will make the Times more eag-
erly sought and read-Editor.)
The Illumination.-The illumina-
tion of the Republicans on Monday
night, thought it was deferred till
two weeks after the election when
usually the enthusiasm has ebbed
out, was complete success, ex-
ceiling, it is said, anything of the
kind, ever before attempted in
Smyrna. The stalwartness, unan-
unity and heartiness of the move
ment was a surprise both to Re
publicans and Democrats, the
buildings with a few exceptions
being lighted with candles, the
houses numbering between seventy
and eighty. The store building of
]. B. Cooper including the Club
Room had about $50 candles in
the windows. The first house
lighted was that of Joseph Smith
ers, every window on three sides
from garret to wood house, pro-
ducing a fine effect. The next was
the Club Room, which was the
signal for a general lighting of the
various dwellings. This room was
dressed in front with the Ameri-
can flag and from a centre window
was a large transparency bearing
the likeness of President-elect
Garfield. The store and dwelling
of j. V. Smith was very artistic in
its display. The residences of DR..
Collins, A. H. Wilson and James
P. Hoffecker in the same neigh
borhood were finely illuminated,
with decorative lettering, that on
the wall of the latter being From
the tow path to the White House"
The office of ]. e. Tygert & Com
pany and store of T. B. Megear at
the corner were likewise illuninat-
ed as were also the stores of EN-.
Fowler, William Walker, the
Messrs. Beck, George w. Gordon,
r. NJ. Johnson, James H. Cotton,
Robert Gass, William w. Tschudy,
William FAIRIES & Co., John Cos
den, 1. M. Wilson, DR.. Smithers,
Edward FAIRIES, George Tilghman,
Stephen Van Fossen, William Du-
hurst and j. NJ. Boyd. On Com
merce street the large three story
houses of DR.. ]. G. Swinney, the
Johnson building, John H. Hof-
fecker and James B. Clements res
licences threw out a flood of light
to which were the further attrac-
tions of Chinese lanterns, flags,
etc. The Post Office was we'll
lighted inside and out. In other
parts of the town there were some
fine parlor decorations as well as
brilliant lights, ETC., namely at the
residences of Honorable r. NJ
Foust, Mrs. Mary FAIRIES, the Miss
es Hough, j. B. Evans, David
Stevenson, John Cathcart, w. A.
FAIRIES, w. H. Baggs. That of the
latter was particularly noticeable.
There were a number of other
handsomely Illuminated houses
with decorations of lanterns, flags,
flowers, ETC., that we have not
space to enumerate and much of
which may not have passed under
our observation. The two oldest
were Captain William
Denney and Samuel Griffin both of
whom are several years past their
four score. Not the least import
ant feature of the evening was the
fire works, which took one and a
half hours to fire off without any
cessation. They consisted of rock
cts, roman candles, triangles, mines