Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Horse Thief

Date: 1866-05-19; Paper: Springfield Republican  $50 REWARD.- The 28th day of December last, a woman giving name as Mrs. Porter hired a team to go to Westfield and back  and has not returned. The horse was a dark bay, about 950 pounds weight, thin in flesh, a good traveler, spavins on each hind leg, silver-mounted breast-plate harness, buffalo robe trimmed with red flannel, light checked blanket marked Deane on the edge; top wagon, end springs, J.&W. Loomis, markers, on the spring bar. blue lining badly faded; was last heard from in Cummington, Mass, in the possession of Susan Porter, alias Wright, alias Connell, and a man giving name of Philo Snider. The above reward will be paid for the recovery of the property and the conviction of the thieves, or $25 for either. Information my be left with the city marshal of Springfield or with the subscriber.    j23daw       C. Deane

Arrested on a Charge of Stealing A Horse And Wagon - About ten o'clock Saturday night, Mr. H. Pease, Police Marshal of Springfield. Mass., bought to the second precinct station house a man named Philo Snyder, and a woman named Susan Potter, whom he arrested in Coxsackie, Greene county, on a charge of stealing a horse and wagon last December, from Springfield. The prisoners were taken East this morning.



This reward add ran in the Springfield Republican every week from Feb 3, 1886 until May 1886. I believe this is my Philo Snyder because Philo Snyder and Susan Potter were asserted in Coxsackie, Greene County, New York as shown in the second article from Albany Evening Journal 1886 and Philo in from Greene County.

Called Springfield Superior Court today and they have to research where I would even look to find the old records. Hopefully we will find the records and be able to add more to the story.
Three drunkards received the attentions of the police court, yesterday. Joseph McGoff paid $8.35, and Thomas Noland and Thomas Coney went up for thirty days. Philip J. Snyder and Susana Porter, who stole Chester Dean's horse and buggy. last December, and were arrested recently, in Coxsackie, N. Y., were arraigned, and the woman pleaded guilty, and Snyder not guilty. Judge Morton continued the case for a week, till the 27 th, and ordered them to give bonds in $800.00 each for their appearance.  They failed to procure the sureties and were committed to awaite trial. The women has formerly been employed in this city and Chicopee, and Snyder has also previously lived in the latter place.

The May criminal term of the superior court for Hampden county begins at the court-house in this city on Monday, Judge Morton of Andover presiding. The grand jury will com in at 2 p.m. The session promises to be a very busy one, and will probably occupy all the time until the beginning of the June Civil term. There will be a large number of liquor cases on trail before the grand jury. The county sheriff will furnish the following cases: Larceny, Benjamin Wilson of this city, Walter T. Lord and Henry White of Holyoke; Henry Vanall of this city (for stealing money from Marshall Elmer), Belle Coster of this city (for stealing clothes from the "Pea Green" house of ill-fame), Seth Willamson of Westfield, Jerry Harrington and Charles Calnan of this city (stealing money from the store of John Weeks & co); horse-stealing, Susan Porter and Philo Snider of New York. In this case the horse was hired of Chester Dean, on the hill in this city, and the parties made for the interior of York state with it, but were followed up by Marshal Pease. Polygamy, Samuel E. Moore of Chicopee; arson, John Murphy of Chicopee, Daniel B. Robbins of this city; keeping house of ill fame, John Lynch and Jennie Morand of Holyoke: liquor selling, James and Louisa Miller of Westfield. There are at present eight-five prisoners in the county jail, a larger number than Sheriff Bush has had under his care for four years before.