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9-06-2007

In These Otsego Hills

While we are in the catch up mood which we started last week, we are reminded that we have not yet had a chance to mention the fact that Mark Kraham, of the Cooperstown Krahams, was in town for the Baseball Hall of Fame Induction as a member of the media representing NBC channel 4 in Hagerstown, Maryland. In fact, we discovered that we were able to go online and watch a news video which Mark did for the television station while here in Cooperstown.

We found the report at http://your4state.com/mediaplayer. php?media-id=9253.

But we have no idea if it can still be viewed.

While here, Mark dropped in to chat several times during the weekend and brought us up to speed on various rumors which were flying around in the media.

Fortunately, we believe all of them proved to be false. At least we did not hear of anything that would have confirmed them. And while we enjoyed chatting with Mark about the induction experience, which he found amazing as it was his first induction, we were even more interested in the old photographs he brought with him to share with us.

This week we have included with the column a picture entitled "Bell Boys O-te-sa-ga 1920." Mark felt he was able to identify only three people in the picture. In the back row, second from the left, is Larry Dorn, whom we have been told ran Smalley's theater at one point and whose brother, Jimmy, worked at the Village Squire when we moved to town in 1982. Mark's uncle, Robert Kraham, is in the back row on the right and Mark's father, Rohan Kraham, is seated on the ground in the front. Mark did not know any of the others in the picture and we certainly were of no help in identifying anyone. But perhaps someone else will be able to. Please let us know.

On a completely different but equally interesting topic, we think, a copy of the Class of 1896 Prophecy came into our possession from someone who was cleaning out a house in the area. Written by Grace E. Michaels, the prophecy begins with a rather lengthy poem which is followed by a series of shorter prophecy poems about members of the class including J. Clyde Ainslie, Florence Byce, Myrtle Babcock, Richard Coats, Katie Conlen, Ernest M. Clapsaddle, Mary Cuttenden, Ken Coffin, Ella Dunn,William Dickinson, Annie Murphy, Vernon Pier, Harry Vickers, Benj. White, Grant White and, of course, Grace Michaels.

Interestingly enough, when we compared the list of 1896 students in the prophecy with the list of 1896 students in the Cooperstown Central School Catalogue for 1969/ 1970, we found some discrepancies. For example, Florence Byce was listed as graduating in the Class of 1897. Ken Coffin was nowhere to be found in the school catalogue. And Fred Fuller, Carrie Lippitt and Ella McDonough were listed as graduating in the school catalogue but were not included in the prophecy. It does make one wonder which accounting of the class is the more accurate.

Does anyone know?

In closing, we have several more interesting photos which Mark Kraham shared with us. We are keeping them in wings for the moment but will no doubt use them in the column when the time seems right.

We remain, In these Otsego hills, The Ellsworths The Ellsworths may be reached by mail at 105 Pioneer St., Cooperstown, N.Y. 13326, by telephone at 547- 8124 or by e-mail at cellsworth1@stny.rr.com. They look forward to hearing from you.