“Chin-Chin” at Hippodrome, Pottsville, PA on April 26 & 27, 1920.

Donna and “Chin Chin” play at the Hippodrome in Pottsville, Pennsylvania on 24 & 25 April 1920.

Donna Montran
Vaudeville
Chin Chin

My grandmother, Donna Montran, joined the cast of the vaudeville show “Chin Chin” on October 30, 1919, and toured with the production until the production ended playing on May 31, 1920.  

Before the cast of “Chin-Chin” arrived at Pottsville, they had had a tough series of one-night shows and were probably pleased to have off on Sunday, April 25th before playing at the Hippodrome in Pottsville, PA. Also pleasing to the cast had to have been they would play at Pottsville for two days in a row.

“The Hippodrome” that must be the place where Hippo’s roam. That sounds good but isn’t right. The word “Hippodrome” comes from a Greek word, hippos, which means horse, and dremon, meaning path or way.[i] I doubt very much that horses ever raced at the Hippodrome in Pottsville, however, Mademoiselle Falloffski surly rode her horse in circles on stage during the production of “Chin-Chin” at the Hippodrome.

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Ancestor Sketch – Thomas Washington Harris

Welch-Harris Line
By Don Taylor

 

Welch-Harris Project – Ancestor WH12

List of Grandparents

  • 6 – Grandfather: Living
  • 12 – 1st Great-grandfather: Thomas Washington Harris
  • 24 – 2nd Great-grandfather: Raymond O. Harris
  • 48 – 3rd Great-grandfather: Thomas L. Harris

Thomas Washington Harris (1897-1987)

Birth

Thomas Washington Harris was born on 12 Mar 1897 in Boothbay Harbor, Lincoln, Maine, USA. He was the first child of Raymond Orlando Harris and Addie Richards. William McKinley was sworn in just days before Thomas’ birth. Later that year, the first Boston Marathon was run with fifteen men competing. Also, a strike by the United Mine Workers union brought an 8-hour workday to the mines.

Childhood

Siblings of Thomas W. Harris

Born
Dorothy E. Sep 1898
Gladys M. Jan 1900
William C. ca. 1902

The 1900 Census finds the Harris family living in Boothbay Harbor. Three-year-old Thomas is living with his parents and two siblings.

Thomas’ mother died sometime between 1900 and the 1910 Census. Likewise, it appears that his sister, Gladys, had also passed.*

The 1910 Census found Thomas living with his father (a widower), and Dorothy and William. Thomas is attending school and his father is a restaurant proprietor. Thomas continued with his education through the 8th grade.

Thomas was too young for the First World War I draft registration on June 5th, 1918 (He was only 20 years old). However, he turned 21 in time for the second draft on June 5, 1918, and registered in Saco. Thomas was living on Thorton Ave., Saco. He was working as a shoemaker at the Mechanic Shoe Co. in Biddeford. Thomas was medium height, medium build, had black hair, and brown eyes. He was inducted three months later, on 4 September, and accepted the next day, 5 September.  His military service needs further research.*

Marriage

On 13 December 1919, Thomas filed an “Intent to marry” to marry Alise Dorcas Ladd, also of Saco, Maine. They married on Christmas Eve December 1919 in a ceremony performed by Horace H Hauyer, a clergyman, in Saco, Maine.*

Thomas and Alise had two children, both of whom are living.

Just a week after their marriage, during the 1920 census, they can be found rooming at 106 Elm Street in Saco. Thomas is a laster at a shoe factory, and Alise is a beamer at a cotton mill.  A laster is a person who shapes or stitches soles on shoes or boots. A beamer was a person who watched over a beamer machine or carried new beams to the loom. According to Wikipedia, “The taper’s beam is a long cylinder with flanges where 400 plus end (thread) are wound side-by-side. Creels of bobbins with the correct thread mounted on a beaming frame wind their contents onto the beam.”[i]

By 1930, Thomas, his wife, and two children had moved in with his wife’s parents, Edwin and Dorcas Ladd, on Boon Road, Saco. Thomas is still working in a shoe shop as a puller and is identified as a WW veteran. He is probably a tack puller doing shoe repairs at this time.

In the 1940 Census, Thomas was the head of a household consisting of Thomas, his wife, Alice[ii], lived on Boon Road with their two children, and Alice’s mother, Dorcas, who is identified as a widow. All are living in the same house that they lived in on 1 April 1935.

Thomas is in the 1948 Town Directory for Saco and Biddeford. It indicates that he was employed in Biddeford, and he and Alice are still living on Boon Road. He continues to appear in the town directories into the 1960s.

Death

Thomas died in May 1987. I have not been successful in finding a burial location.*

Locations

  • Boothbay, Lincoln County, Maine –1900 – Lived
  • Boothbay Harbor, Lincoln County, Maine – 1897 – Birth
  • Fairfield, Summerset County, Maine – 1910, Census
  • Saco, York County, Maine – 1918 through 1987 – Enlisted, Married, Lived (1920, 1930, 1935, 1940, 1948, 1951, 1961), Death.

Other than military service, it appears that Thomas Washington Harris spent his entire life in Maine and his adult life in Saco, York County, Maine. Map available here.

Further Actions / Follow-up

  • Research Thomas’ mother’s death.
  • Research Thomas’ sister, Gladys, death.
  • Research Thomas’ military service.
  • Research what church/religion Horace H Hauyer was a clergyman for.
  • Determine what happened with Thomas’s remains.

————–  Disclaimer  ————–

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Donna Darling Collection – Part 57

The Orpheum and the Majestic

Treasure Chest Thursday
By Don Taylor

For this week’s Treasure Chest Tuesday, I’m looking at a page from the Donna Darling Collection that includes two clippings.

“Leon The Great” Pleases Orpheum

The mystery act of “Leon the Great,” advertised as the headline stunt on the bill current at the Orpheum, went over with a bang, but is forced to share honors with Primrose Semon and the Donna Darling revue.

The former is the snappiest and hardest working redhead to appear here in several months. Shad had a stock of clever songs and with her partner got across some original quips.

Donna’s singing, two comely toe dancers, and a comedian who was actually funny at times constitute the Donna Darling revue.

Stone and Leever get some good stuff across, but should get together with the comedian in Donna’s revue and flip coins for a couple of comic songs that both acts use.

“Leon the Great” is mysterious enough….

Analysis

This clipping comes without any date or location information.

  • Donna played the Orpheum in Clinton, IA on December 9th thru the 11th, 1926.
  • Donna Played the Orpheum in Des Moines on 2nd thru the 5th of January 1927.
  • Donna had a return engagement to the Orpheum in Clinton, IA on January 16th thru 19th, 1927.

According to the advertisement[1], Donna played at the Orpheum in Des Moines with The Great Leon, Miss Primrose Seamon, Stone & Leever, and Hartley and Patterson on January 2nd 1927. I have been unable to find any ads or articles for Donna in Clinton (either date) so far. However, it is unlikely that the same 5 acts played in both Des Moines and Clinton. As such, I’m confident this article relates to Donna’s show in Des Moines.

Majestic Theatre Program

MAJESTIC
THEATRE

IOWA’S FINEST
AND SAFEST
PLAY-HOUSE

Program
Season 1926-1927
Program (Continued)

DONNA DARLING REVUE

—With—
Sammy Clark
Assisted by Hal Dixon & Co.
A Super Song Revue—A Dazzling dance fantasy—A Novel
Comedy Oddity in Five Scenes

Analysis

Handwritten on the clipping are the words “Dubuque Iowa.” From previous work I know that Donna performed the Donna Darling Review at the Majestic Theater in Dubuque, Iowa from December 12th through December 15th. I wrote about some other clippings from that show in the Donna Darling Collection #55. I added DDC-57 to the listing for that show.

Conclusion

December 12-15, 1926 – Dubuque, IA – Majestic Theatre – Donna Darling Revue – Newspaper Archive – DDC-55, DDC-57.

ENDNOTES

[1] “1 Jan 1927, 8 – Des Moines Tribune At Newspapers.Com”. 2019. Newspapers.Com. Accessed October 24 2019. https://www.newspapers.com/image/324007959/?terms=%22Donna%2BDarling%2BRevue%22.

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Presentation – Sources for Finding Addresses

I developed a 20-30 minute talk about “Sources for Finding Addresses” (for Genealogy) including some links of where to find them. The presentation was given at the Scarborough Public Library Genealogy Group on 28 October 2019 and included the following:

    • Census Records – 1940 Census
    • Other Censuses
    • “Where would you look?”
    • Military Draft Records
    • Public Records
    • Where to Find.

You can download the presentation HERE.

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Donna Darling Collection – Part 56

Majestic (Harrisburg, PA) and York Opera House (York, PA)

Treasure Chest Thursday
Vaudeville
Donna Darling & Boys
By Don Taylor

For this week’s Treasure Chest Tuesday, I’m looking at three clippings from one page (0110) of the Donna Darling Collection.

Majestic Theatre

The first two clippings relate to Donna’s playing at the Majestic Theatre.

The first is a simple ad.

MAJESTIC
The Talk of the Town

Frederick V. Bowers
Popular Musical Comedy
Star and Song Writer,
In His
The first is a simple ad.
With a Bevy of Pretty Girls
— — —
COMING THURSDAY
Another Musical ComedFavorite
DONNA DARLING & BOYS

Sadly, nothing in this ad indicates which of the many Majestic Theatres this was nor does it indicate when. Luckily, an accompanying clipping on the same page provides a likely location and date for the show.

Majestic Theatre,
Harrisburg Pennsylvania
Week of April 3, 1922

MAXINE & BOGGY
The Comedy Dog

STEIFF PIANOS used in this Theatre

Spencer—CASE & MAYNE—Edith
In
“I WOULDN’T DO THAT”

Beautiful Musical Comedy Favorite
MISS DONNA DARLING & CO.
Assisted by Murry Walker and Jack Finney
In a Song and Dance Cocktail
“AS YOU LIKE IT”

MORGAN & MORGAN
“Making you Laugh”

MELODY LAND
In
Abbreviated “VARIETIES”
A Cycle Of
Songs and Dances
With
White and Mills
Juliet Beaumont
Kathleen Harrington
Ethel Cook
Assisted by

Olga Sirlis……………….Pianist
Martha Conwell …… Saxophonist
Charlotte Maloney…Violinist
Verna Dorn …………… Drummer
Scenery by Robert Law Studio
Staged by Douglas Royce

Newspaper articles, found at Genealogy Bank, confirmed that Donna played at the Majestic in Harrisburg on April 6th, 7th, and 8th. Also, in the Harrisburg Patriot on April 4th was the same ad in the clippings.

York Opera House

The third clipping is part of a York Opera House show.  No date is provided, but articles at Newspapers.Com confirmed that Donna played at the York Opera House in York, Pennsylvania, on April 3rd to 5th. The clipping shows many of the same acts seen in the Majestic clipping.

In place of Case & Mayne is:

Ralph                 Jim
KITNER AND REANEY
In “An Ocean Episode”

And in place of Morgan & Morgan was:

Lorraine         Verna
HOWARD & SADLER
Presenting their Harmonious
Comedy Songalogue
“Wedding Belles”

Program items A and B are missing in both the clippings, it appears that all other filler films started the two showings. For example, at the York Opera House, instead of “Case & Mayne” and “Morgan and Morgan” was the last chapter of “Breaking Through” and “Aesop’s Fables.”

Conclusion

The “Life of Madonna Montran” was updated with the following:

April 3-5, 1922 – York, PA – York Opera House – Donna Darling & Boys – News May 2019. DDC-56.

April 6-8, 1922 – Harrisburg, PA – Majestic Theatre – Donna Darling & Boys (Murry Walker & Jack Finney) in “As You Like It.” – Genealogy Bank – DDC-56.

Actions

  • Write about Donna playing in York, PA, and the York Opera House.
  • Write about Donna playing in Harrisburg, PA, and the Majestic Theatre.

Sources

  • Clipping: Majestic Theatre – Harrisburg, PA – Coming Thursday – SCAN0110
  • Clipping: Majestic Theatre, Harrisburg, PA – Week of Apr 3, 1922 – SCAN0110
  • Clipping: York Opera House – SCAN0110
  • Genealogy Bank – The Patriot (Harrisburg, PA) dated 4 April 1922, Page 14.
  • Genealogy Bank – The Patriot (Harrisburg, PA) dated 7 April 1922, Page 18.
  • Newspapers.Com – The York Daily Record (York, PA) dated 5 April 1922, Page 9.
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