Minonk's past
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A look at Minonk's past |
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By Harry D.(Babe Smith) - The Old Philospher column of the Minonk News-Dispatch
The photo is looking south on Chestnut Street from Sixth Street in 1903. The three ladies pictured are Mrs. James Fort and her daughter Clara and Mrs. Fannie L. Smith. The lone car pictured was owned by Dr. M. A. Millard who had his office on the second floor of the building now occupied by the Country Florist. It should be noted that the road was till dirt at that time and was not paved until the following year (1904). In rainy weather the road became a sea of mud and the hitching racks were on the sidewalk side of the street. When the horses were standing in the mud and water and would stomp their feet, mud would fly all over the sidewalk and also on anyone who |
This condition helped to bring on the custom for men to always walk on the road side when escorting a lady down the street so that the man's clothes would be soiled instead of that of the lady. Later the hitching racks were moved across the street (as shown in the picture) to remove the hazard. When the automobile became more numerous, the roads were widened and the sidewalks became narrower. The sidewalk in this picture is very wide because more people used it but today it is much narrower. |