The Driving Clubs of Greater Boston (Classic Reprint)

Download or read book The Driving Clubs of Greater Boston (Classic Reprint) written by John W. Linnehan and published by . This book was released on 2015-08-04 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from The Driving Clubs of Greater Boston As the outcome of several chance meetings of the horsemen of Hyde Park, Milton and Dorchester in the several blacksmith shops, and especially in the shop of E. P. Denn and the stable office of H. P. Gallup, on Barnes Street. Dorchester, was organized on April 26, 1899, the Dorchester Gentlemen's Driving Club. It was the first driving club in this country whose by-laws and constitution called for weekly meeting of its members and weekly racing of horses for ribbons. The first election of officers was held on May 10. 1899. and showed over a hundred horse owners enrolled on its membership list. The election resulted in the following board of officers: President, Charles L. Young; first vice-president. S. Walter Wales; second vice-president, Louis Pfingst; secretary, Charles H. Belledeu; treasurer, John M. E. Morrill; clerk, E. O. Haddock; directors, T. A. Bresnahan. Cyril G. Blaney, Frederick J. Brand, George H. Greenwood, and Charles L. Bartlett; racing and speedway committee, R. S. Fitch. C. H. Belledeu. A. S. Gushee. F. T. Brand. S. H. Mildram, L. E. H. Tones, Geo. B. Fowler, H. P. Gallup, F. S. Eldfedge, F. L. Codman. Alpheus Sanford; membership committee, Geo. E. Griffin, W. E. Newbert, C. L. Hinds; finance committee, R. S. Fitch, George H. Greenwood and H. P. Gallup. Weekly matinee races were held on the Blue Hill Avenue quarter-mile speedway, that had been granted the club by the city and which was kept in condition for racing by money secured from among the members, many of whom went down into their pocket for as high as $25 each. And this brings to mind what happened to a number of the members of the club on the very first day racing was permitted on Blue Hill Avenue, which is well worth reading. On account of Captain Charles W. Hunt and the police of the Dorchester district not being notified of the order signed by Mayor Quincy, allowing the west side of Blue Hill Avenue between Talbot Avenue and Morton Street to be used for a speedway, several members of the Dorchester Driving Club narrowly escaped being arrested for fast driving. When a mounted policeman saw several of the club members start to race their horses he stopped them and said that he should be compelled to place them under arrest. The drivers told the policeman that a permit had been granted, but they could not show it. The officer started to take them to the police station, but afterward agreed to telephone from the nearest signal box. He talked with Captain Hunt, but the latter said that he knew of no permit. Captain Hunt told the policeman to come to the station. He did so, and there the matter was discussed. Finally it was decided that the officer should take the names of those on the "Speedway," and if it should be found that an order permitting them to race had not been passed, they should lie summoned into court instead of being actually arrested. Among the names of those taken was S. Walter Wales, the well-known stable man; A. S. Gushee, C. L. Young, W. E. Newbert and Charles F. Stevens. They found Councilman Mildram and explained the difficulty they were in. A hurried visit to City Hall and police headquarters resulted in matters being straightened out, but many of them had several hours of worrying, fearful that they would figure in the criminal courts as violators of the law. Weekly meetings of the club were held in Central Hall on Center Street, Monday nights, where the result of the races of the previous week were announced and the horses matched for the next Saturday. This matching was always done by a special sub-committee of the racing and speedway committee, and the schedules of matches were announced after a recess of the business meeting. This schedule of matches was never satisfactory to any one, and, no matter how fair they were, no one expected they would be. so there was always an argument for and against putting cer