Carol Fisher-Linn
A mystery from history
Why did 38 Saloons make Salamanca a dry town before Prohibition?
Here’s another puzzler for you: What do Brigham Young, Buffalo Bill Cody, Horatio Alger, Horace Greeley, and Ralph Waldo Emerson have in common? They were all guests at The Krieger House (it was located across from the Dudley Hotel) in Salamanca during the years 1813 – 1873 according to the guest register that can be seen today at the Salamanca Area Historical Society and Museum. Here is an amusing piece from the files of The Republican newspaper titled “Sixty Years Ago Today – 1878”. Salamanca – “Ralph Waldo Emerson, the great poet and author, was a guest at the Krieger House Tuesday night (September 16th). He arrived on train 20 and left on the early train Wednesday morning for Rochester. It appears that he made a mistake and went to Cattaraugus, where he waited for a train returning to Salamanca.” Here’s the amusing part … “Mr. Emerson is very old and shows evident signs of decay. He is very absent minded, and while at the Krieger House asked the same questions several times. He is the most illustrious man who ever visited Salamanca.” Editorial comments in 1938 … and here we thought that was a modern phenomenon!
For those interested on “all things Salamanca past, the museum, located at 125 Main Street, is working on putting on CD the contents of 80+ scrapbooks (1860’s through 1942) compiled first by Krieger House founder, Andrew, then by his son John, and down through the family. Alas, the building (built 1865) which survived the fire of 1880, and later served as a clubhouse, a vocational school, an annex to the Maple Street school and a speakeasy during Prohibition it was demolished in the early 1940’s. You can learn more about the Krieger House and the historic 1882 building that houses the museum at the Salamanca Historical Society and Museum online or call 716-945-2946.
Discover stories of the world famous Fancher Furniture made in Salamanca. Be sure to follow the soft chimes of the Fancher grandfather clock, the last one off the assembly line (donated by Bruce Erickson). As you browse through local antique shops, keep an eye out for Silverplate items stamped Silver Buck Plating Company at Kill Buck, an enterprise that unfortunately succumbed to fire as so many of the old wooden structures did.
About those 38 saloons … It seems that the NYS Liquor Authority paid a visit to Salamanca back in 1912. Discovering that there were 38 thriving ginmills, or saloons, they deemed that number inappropriate for the number of residents in the city. According to their calculations, the general population numbers dictated that fifteen of those bars would have to go. Imagine the chaos that ensued. To quote someone in the know, “all hell broke loose.” No one was about to shut their doors, leaving all the railroad and lumber workers hung out to dry. Finally, “a referendum was decided upon, and a vote taken.” Big Surprise: the people voted to go dry – seven years before prohibition (there’s a lesson here for those who don’t bother to go out to vote – the ones who vote speak for you, whether you agree with them or not). But, aha, a fix was quickly found. One enterprising bar owner, Louis Torge, had a clever idea. He bought an existing building halfway between Salamanca and Little Valley (on the LV side) and called it The Halfway House. If, at the end of their workday workers found themselves thirsty, they would simply jump on an overcrowded trolley which (as reported on the Historical Society website) “were so crowded with thirsty citizens, some had to crawl up on the roof and hang on for dear life.” They also say, “the trollies were loaded on the way out, and the passengers were loaded on the way back.”
While you are in the neighborhood, be sure to walk over to the fully restored passenger depot – The Salamanca Rail Museum on 170 No. Main. It’s an old (constructed 1912) Buffalo Rochester & Pittsburgh depot open Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday noon to four, except this week – only Saturday. Visitors report an enlightening experience taking them back to the old railroading days in Salamanca. Check them out on Facebook or call them at 716-945-3133.
A heartfelt thank you to Mary Elizabeth Dunbar, for sharing some of this information with The Villager.
Happy History Hunting!
Caption: For those interested on “all things Salamanca past, the museum, located at 125 Main Street, is working on putting on CD the contents of 80+ scrapbooks (1860’s through 1942) compiled first by Krieger House founder, Andrew, then by his son John, and down through the family.