“Dorfläden,”

The General Store

   It is a slow news day and we are all under quarantine. We are not supposed to go shopping, so I will just remind you of the good old days when we could. Back then there were General Stores scattered along back roads and in small communities.  On hot summer days one could hop off a bike and get a cold drink and wander under the ceiling fans among all kinds of merchandise. They are mostly gone now, along with the ceiling fans, but I can assure you that they were much better than the corner "Variety Stores" which are also rapidly disappearing. They were typically family-owned and attached to the family house and not at all like your 7-Eleven.

   At this point you are probably looking for a Dorfläden which, I gather, means something like 'village store.' I ran across the reference in some of the notes I have kept and exhumed it here because I can't go shopping. You will be surprised to learn that apparently they are making a comeback in Germany. You will be even more surprised that I learned this from an article in The Christian Science Monitor, which still exits and is still a good paper. It is really surprising that a guy who does not read German and is not a Christian can continue to find such amazing stuff for you.

  

   I grew up in the United States and thought I should look around up here to see if the General Store existed since we still can't go outside. They did.  Here is the Table of Contents from the book pictured above:

The General Store Then and Now

   The General Store in the Past

   The General Store Today [c1977]

The Stores

   Stores That Have Endured

   Stores That Are Vacant

   Stores That Are Museums

   Stores That Are Converted

Index of Store Locations

The author writes:

"Over a period of two years, I travelled throughout Ontario, researching, photographing and writing about these mostly rural country stores and their keepers. This book is filled with photographs of overstuffed interiors and amiable store owners and visitors, as well as an historical background about the growth of the general store in early settlement and its transition to the department stores of today."  That was written in the 1970s. Most such stores now exist only as replicas in Pioneer Villages such as the one out at Fanshawe and at the Doon Heritage Village. 

   Unsurprisingly there is an entry for the "General Store" in Wikipedia and the Canadian section includes this:

"The oldest continually run general store in Canada is Trousdale's, located in Sydenham, Ontario, which has been operated by the Trousdale family since 1836. Socialbility has always been a feature, as locals come to chat as well as buy. Gray Creek Store in Gray Creek, Kootenay Bay, Canada is the largest and oldest general dealer in the Kootenay Lake region. Enniskillen General Store in Clarington, Ontario has been in operation since 1840 and still continues today. Robinson's General Store in Dorset, Ontario, voted "Canada's Best Country Store", has been owned and operated by the same family since 1921."

Oddly enough, none of these are mentioned in Priamo's book.
Oddly enough, Trousdale's General Store still exists.

   Now that I think about it, there are stores that resemble general ones up in cottage country. Some that cater to the Muskoka Crowd around Port Carling ("Porsche Carling") are like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods. There is one in Rousseau and here is what the book above says about the Rousseau General Store (c. 1977. It's still there):

“This store was built about 1870 and has been restored by its present owners, Mr. and Mrs. Tassie. It is an exceptionally large store with the rear addition and includes a butcher shop. The family’s living quarters are in the house adjacent to the right side of the store. The customers are largely tourists and local folk. 

A wide variety of goods can be found in this general store. Items are displayed on shelves, in old cases, on counters, and hanging from hooks and ropes. As well as carrying groceries and hardware, unusual items such as handmade mittens can be purchased here. Every bit of space is utilized to full advantage."

[There are three pictures - of Mr. Tassie, the outside and the inside of the store on pp. 44-45.]

There are also General Stores  that provide for the campers and one can be found at the nicely named 'Bent River General Store'. 

Sources:

For more about the Dorfläden see: Village Store Revival? German Towns Opt for Community Over Big-box Retailers," By Isabelle de Pommereau Correspondent, Christian Science Monitor, July 25, 2019 "When local shops close, it’s not just a loss of convenience for townspeople, but also a loss of community. Some Germans are trying to reverse that by bringing back “dorfläden,” or village stores."
   The literature relating to the invasion of the big boxes is extensive. See, for example: "The Anti-Chain Store Movement and the Politics of Consumption, American Quarterly, Vol.6, No.4, 2008.
   The battle was even fought locally and fairly recently: "Ten-Year Saga Ends With Wal-Mart's Arrival in Stratford," Brian Shypula, Stratford Beacon Herald, Nov. 28, 2013.

General Stores of Canada, R.B. Fleming

   

“A fascinating new book [c.2002] on all aspects of the thousands of general stores that existed across Canada has just been published, and will bring back memories to many who used them. There are a few general stores still around today, but they do not have the significance of those from the past.

The new book General Stores of Canada: Merchants and Memories is by R.B. Fleming, whose family ran a general store at Argyle, near Lindsay, for years. He visited, photographed and interviewed people across Canada and has produced a definitive profile of the store. The book does not profile individual stores, but looks at themes from architecture through the role of the store, and the role of the owner in the community, etc., all done with a sense of nostalgia.”

Bonus Information (information found along the way)

KATE AITKEN 

As I mentioned, I did not grow up here and knew nothing about Kate Aitken (pictured above) who wrote a book about Beeton, Ontario and the general store there: Never a Day So Bright. “A relaxed view of life in Canada (Beeton, Ont.) during the author's childhood is filled with domestic and community details of the seasons where her home was a store, at times a boarding house and always a busy center for gatherings."

Some additional information about Aitken:

"Parents Kept a General Store at Beeton." Toronto Globe & Mail, November 3, 1956, p. 21.

This is from the article above which is a review of Never a Day…

It is called a nostalgic and entertaining book. It notes that Beeton got its name from A.D. Jones who was “one of the foremost beekeepers of his time, whose honey was of such rare quality that the name of the settlement was changed from Clarkesville to Beeton.”

“She records little that is unpleasant, but preserves the beautiful fragrance of long-dead flowers, along the well-remembered path we all once walked.”
[She had a radio show and was a columnist]

"While most of her fans were women, among the many people who wrote to get her advice, 18% of the letters came from men. Throughout much of her radio career, Aitken was heard three times during the day; in 1950, an estimated 32 per cent of Canadians listening to the radio were tuned into her show whenever she was on the air;[24] estimated to be up to three million listeners.

Beginning in the late 1950s, and continuing until 1962, she was a columnist for the Globe & Mail, offering her opinions about fashion, food, raising children, and current trends in society that affected the home. She also gave advice to homemakers about etiquette, such as a column on using the telephone: taking calls during dinner was always to be avoided, she wrote. Additionally, she continued to write cookbooks: by some accounts, she wrote or contributed to more than fifty of them, several of which became Canadian best-sellers."

There is an obit in the G&M on Dec. 14, 1971 and it begins:

“If any contemporary crusader in the cause of women’s emancipation ever needs an example of a self-liberated woman, the abundant career of Kate Aitken would be hard to beat.” [talks about her interviewing Mussolini and having tea with Churchill."]

"Kate Aitken died in Mississauga in 1971, at age 81, having lived for many years on property that she ran briefly as a spa, on a bend of Mississauga Road, south of Streetsville. She is buried in Beeton United Church Cemetery."

---------------

If you are ever in Port Carling and need some really good meat, go to Stephen's Butcher Shop. It is not a true "General Store" but Morley (the owner) is referred to as the "Butcher for the Stars" (in reference to his often famous clientele.)

Post Script:

Although it has taken me a while to put this together, I still can't go shopping. If I could, I wouldn't be able to buy booze at a Variety Store and it is only grudgingly sold at a few places, even in ordinary times. Owners of Variety Stores are attempting to have the laws about alcohol consumption made more liberal. Until that happens, they could try this solution:

Anna Jameson, offered this description of General Stores in London in 1837[ - pp.21-22 in the Priamo book.] “Besides the seven taverns there is a number of little grocery stores which are, in fact, drinking houses. And though a law exists, which forbids the sale of spiritous liquors in small quantities by any but licensed publicans, they easily contrive to elude the law; as thus:- a customer enters the shop, and asks for two or three penny-worth of nuts, or cakes, and he receives a few nuts, and a large glass of whiskey. The whiskey, you observe, is given, not sold, and no one can swear to the contrary.”

University of Minnesota Press

   This is the fourth post in a series relating to University Presses. The first was about the environmental books published by the University of Washington. The other two were about the books produced by two universities closer by: Penn State and Wayne State. They both devote some of their publishing efforts to regional books. Penn State's are in the "Keystone Books" collection, while Wayne State has a "Great Lakes Book Series." 

   The University of Minnesota also produces a number of books that relate to our general geographic area. A short list of some of them is provided below.  Full a full listing: UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA PRESS

   It can be difficult to find good books. Here are some for those interested in the Midwest and more will be found at the U. of M. site.

  This is being written during the "Great COVID-19 Quarantine." We are supposed to stay home and the border between Canada and the U.S. is closed. At least we can read about the places we currently can't visit.


The Great Lakes at Ten Miles an Hour: One Cyclist’s Journey along the Shores of the Inland Seas
2017 • Author: Thomas Shevory
A chronicle of travels by bicycle around the Great Lakes, combining personal observations with reflections on the geology, ecology, history, and culture of the region
Over the course of four summers, Thomas Shevory biked along the Great Lakes’ shores, absorbing the stories the lakes tell—of nature’s grandeur and decay, of economic might and squandered promise, of exploration, colonization, migration, and military adventure. This is Shevory’s account of his travels and explorations of the geological, environmental, historical, and cultural riches harbored by these great inland seas.



Border Country: The Northwoods Canoe Journals of Howard Greene, 1906–1916
2017 • Author: Martha Greene Phillips
Border Country is a collection of the remarkable, handmade journals from businessman Howard Greene’s early 1900s canoe trips to the north woods of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, and Canada. Reproduced with numerous photographs and maps, these journals are a window into a world at once familiar and strange, the wilderness caught on the verge of becoming the North Woods we know today.


Fresh from the Garden: An Organic Guide to Growing Vegetables, Berries, and Herbs in Cold Climates
2016 • Author: John Whitman
Grow your own vegetables, berries, and herbs with the fourth book in the best-selling cold climate gardening series
A concise guide, with nutrition information tables and hundreds of color photographs, Fresh from the Garden will help you extend the growing season to produce the best vegetables, berries, and herbs. It includes more than 150 edible plants and provides a wealth of information for determining the best varieties, harvesting techniques, and uses for your bounty—especially for cold climate gardeners.

Apparently we are not the only ones who know about canoes. Note the positive review by Canada's 'canoe man' and also that John McPhee was willing to offer a foreward - a good sign. 


Canoes: A Natural History in North America
2016 • Authors: Mark Neuzil and Norman Sims
Foreword by John McPhee
Mark Neuzil and Norman Sims have written a wonderfully detailed biography of the vessel that made North America possible, treating it as a living, breathing personality. As enjoyable as a swift, steady, and smooth river, this is the ideal book for canoeists—the perfect canoe trip of a read.
— Roy MacGregor, author of Canoe Country: The Making of Canada

North Shore: A Natural History of Minnesota’s Superior Coast
In North Shore Chel Anderson and Adelheid Fischer offer a comprehensive environmental history of one of Minnesota’s most beloved places. Compelling and accessible, the book will provide readers with a science-based knowledge of the Minnesota North Shore watershed so that together we can write a new, hopeful chapter for its inhabitants, both human and wild.


Lake Superior Flavors: A Field Guide to Food and Drink along the Circle Tour
2014 • Author: James Norton
From the founders of the popular food website Heavy Table comes Lake Superior Flavors, a celebration of food culture around the shores of the greatest of the Great Lakes. Author James Norton and photographer Becca Dilley take readers on a culinary tour around Lake Superior, hitting high-traffic tourist spots and cultural institutions as well as off-the-beaten-path discoveries.


A Love Affair with Birds:The Life of Thomas Sadler Roberts
2013 • Author: Sue Leaf
The father of Minnesota ornithology, whose life story opens a window on a lost world of nature and conservation in the state’s early days
A Love Affair with Birds is the first full biography of Thomas Sadler Roberts. Bird enthusiast, doctor, author, curator, educator, conservationist: every chapter in Roberts’s life is also a chapter in the state’s history, and in his story acclaimed author Sue Leaf—an avid bird enthusiast and nature lover herself—captures a true Minnesota character and his time.

The Lure of the North Woods: Cultivating Tourism in the Upper Midwest
2013 • Author: Aaron Shapiro
The origins of the North Woods vacation across northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan
This book tells the story of how northern Minnesota, northern Wisconsin, and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula became a tourist paradise, turning a scarred industrial countryside into the playground we know today. Aaron Shapiro describes how residents and visitors reshaped the region from a landscape of exploitation to a vacationland and reveals how leisure—and tourism in particular—has shaped modern America.

The book below about the Lost Mansions of the Twin Cities reminds me of a similar book about ruins closer by. See the very expensive and out-of-print The Ruins of Detroit, by Marchand and Meffre. It was produced by Steidl, the subject of an earlier post relating to, of all things, Gas Stations. 

Once There Were Castles: Lost Mansions and Estates of the Twin Cities
2011 • Author: Larry Millett
The first in-depth look at the history of the Twin Cities’ mansions, Once There Were Castles presents ninety lost mansions and estates, organized by neighborhood and illustrated with photographs and drawings. An absorbing read for Twin Cities residents and a crucial addition to the body of work on the region’s history, Once There Were Castles brings these “ghost mansions” back to life.


The untold history of how the land of the Dakota and Ojibwe became the State of Minnesota
North Country: The Making of Minnesota unlocks the complex origins of the state—origins that have often been ignored in favor of legend and a far more benign narrative of immigration, settlement, and cultural exchange. It is the unflinching account of how the land the Dakota named Mini Sota Makoce became the State of Minnesota and of the people who have called it home.

There are even a couple about beer. Apparently craft brewing is not new.

Land of Amber Waters: The History of Brewing in Minnesota
2007 • Author: Doug Hoverson
Starting with its first brewery in 1849, Doug Hoverson tells the story of Minnesota’s beer industry from the small-town breweries that gave way to larger companies with regional and national prominence to the vibrant beer culture of today. Complete with a comprehensive list of Minnesota’s breweries—including many never before listed in print—and more than 300 tempting illustrations of beer and breweriana, Land of Amber Waters marvelously chronicles Minnesota’s rich brewing traditions.
And

The Drink That Made Wisconsin Famous
From grain to glass—a complete illustrated history of brewing and breweries in the state more famous for beer than any other
 From the global breweries that developed in Milwaukee in the 1870s to the “wildcat” breweries of Prohibition and the upstart craft brewers of today, Doug Hoverson tells the stories of Wisconsin’s rich brewing history. Going beyond the giants like Miller, Schlitz, and Pabst that loom large in the state’s brewing renown, Hoverson delves into the stories of the hundreds of small breweries started by immigrants and entrepreneurs that delivered Wisconsin’s beer from grain to glass.

Sources: 
All of the images and the annotations are from the University of Minnesota Press website.
   They typically publish over 100 books per year with about 50% of them being devoted to the region and subjects of general interest. The other 50% are scholarly. They also publish around five academic journals.
For more details see this article from a Canadian university press journal: "The University of Minnesota Press," Pam Werre, Journal of Scholarly Publishing, Vol. 40, No.4, July, 2009 (U of T Press)

Post Script: If you had troubles as an adolescent you may be familiar with the The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent psychology inventory also produced by the University of Minnesota Press.

Archer Butler Hulbert

   It is a rainy day during which we are currently quarantined. If you have run out of interesting books to read, here are some suggestions. The books mentioned below are available for free over the Internet.
   The Wikipedia entry for Hulbert mentions that an early bibliography of his works has over 100 entries. What led me to him is the series he authored which is discussed below.

Historic Highways of America

This is essentially a bibliographic note which will be of use to those who are interested in the history of roads, trails and the paths that have been used to traverse the continent. I used to work in the libraries at Western University and took a look for some of the titles in this series, which are provided more clearly in the list below. When they were not found, I was somewhat surprised since the Western Libraries have (or at least, had) strong collections in the humanities. It turns out that the entire collection of Historic Highways of America is in storage at Western Libraries. The individual titles are not catalogued, but the volumes can be found by searching for the title of the series. Here are the titles which cannot be read clearly on the spines above. Apart from the Historic Highways of America, the Western Libraries have more of Hulbert's books and they are listed after the individual titles of the series.

v. 1. Paths of the mound-building Indians and great game animals. 1902 --

v. 2. Indian thoroughfares. 1902 --

v. 3. Washington's road (Nemacolin's path). The first chapter of the old French war. 1903 --

v. 4. Braddock's road and three relative papers. 1903 --

v. 5. The Old Glade (Forbe's) road (Pennsylvania state road) 1903 --

v. 6. Boone's wilderness road. 1903 --

v. 7. Portage paths, the keys of the continent. 1903. --

v. 8. Military roads of the Mississippi basin. 1904 --

v. 9. Waterways of westward expansion. 1903 --

v. 10. The Cumberland road. 1904 --

v. 11-12. Pioneer roads and experience of travelers. 1904 --

v. 13-14. The great American canals (v. 1. The Chesapeake and Ohio canal and the Pennsylvania canal. v. 2. The Erie canal) 1904 --

v. 15. The future of road-making in America: a symposium by A.B. Hulbert and others. 1905 --

v. 16. Index

Additional Books by Archer Butler Hulbert in the Western Libraries

   

1830-1930, the Oregon Trail centennial : the documentary background of the days of the first wagon train on the road to Oregon.

David Zeisberger's history of northern American Indians, ed. by Hulbert and Schwarze.

Forty-niners : the chronicle of the California trail.

Frontiers, the genius of American nationality, by Archer Butler Hulbert.

Historic highways of America.

History of the Niagara River / by Archer Butler Hulbert.

Ohio in the time of the Confederation : ed., with introduction and notes, by Archer Butler Hulbert.

Pioneer roads and experiences of travelers, By Archer Butler Hulbert.

Soil; its influence on the history of the United States, with special reference to migration and the scientific study of local history, by Archer Butler Hulbert.

Southwest on the turquoise trail; the first diaries on the road to Santa Fe, edited, with bibliographical resumé, 1810-1825 / by Archer Butler Hubert; with maps...

The Crown collection of photographs of American maps, selected and edited. Series II.

The making of the American republic, by Archer Butler Hulbert.

The old national road: a chapter of American expansions, by Archer Butler Hulbert.

The paths of inland commerce : a chronicle of trail, road, and waterway / by Archer B. Hulbert.

The records of the original proceedings of the Ohio Company. Edited, with introd. and notes, by Archer Butler Hulbert.

Zebulon Pike's Arkansaw journal ....

Sources:
The following two sample pages are taken from: "A Dedication to the Memory of Archer Butler Hulbert, 1873-1933," Harvey L. Carter, Arizona and the West, Vol.8, No.1, 1966

For a review of The Niagara River:
“This is a splendidly printed and illustrated popular account of the Niagara River and vicinity, including its scenery, geological history and human associations. One chapter is entitled, “A Century of Niagara Cranks.” from Bulletin of the American Geographical Society
Vol. 41, No. 8 (1909), pp. 513-514, by R.E.D. 

The entire book is available in the Internet Archive. 

Post Script:

The complete set is now available electronically in the Hathi Trust Digital Library. Given that digital versions are freely accessible there likely will be pressure to remove the print copies, since the Western Libraries have decided to devote more space to students and less to books. Although the books are digitally available, the entire set of Historic Highways of America would be of interest to booksellers.I  did not attempt to retrieve any of the volumes and do not know if they are in good condition.
   As I indicated, I no longer work in the Western Libraries and no one there would be responsible for any errors in this post.

           This is one in a series relating to books about roads and trails.

Duct Cleaning

   
   Loyal subscribers know that I generally eschew current events (they also know the meaning of the word ‘eschew’ - for the rest of you, it means ‘avoid’), because my followers would already know about them and, more importantly, recent news items are eschewed (avoided) mostly because they are troubling and usually begin with a word that starts with the letter “T” (this blog is mainly read by U.S. citizens and Canadians who will be able to figure out what that word is.)
 
   First-time readers will not know that my posts are typically not funny. If you happen upon a humorous one, the content will surely have been taken from a comic, just as the odd clever bits were stolen from someone cleverer. So, to be clear, whatever I come up with below is deadly serious and will likely not be very clever.
 
   I am violating my rule of not discussing current events or the Royal Couple because all the news headlines now begin with a “C” word rather than the “T” one, although the “C” word is often preceded by a “T”one. In this instance, a short explanation of the “C” word may be required for my readers who are on the other side of a border which is now both real and linguistic. In Canada the “C” word stands for 'Coronavirus' or 'Co-Vid 19' and it is referring to a virus which is causing what was an epidemic, but which is now a pandemic which may be catastrophic, or not. The same virus in the United States is called the 'Chinese Virus' because, as we all know, the Chinese caused it and the Americans are more direct.

Finally - The Duct Cleaning Offer

   The news is depressing and I will not attempt to attract you by pretending to present some that is ‘Breaking” . Everyone is aware that the virus is transmitted most directly to us by our furnaces through the heating ducts. If you have been reading the news and not hanging up on the robo-call duct-cleaning guy, you will know this. It is tempting here to offer some breaking news and say that the Chinese are directly responsible, but I am unable to do so. I did find out, however, that Reliance Home Comfort was acquired by Cheung Kong Property Holdings LTD back in 2017.

   My purpose is more uplifting in that I will offer here some rare good news. It is that, during these trying times, I will be a responsible citizen and do my bit by offering, FOR FREE, to clean the ducts of the first 350 readers who respond (there are some, discussed below, who are not eligible to receive this offer.) After a visit from me, you will no longer have to worry about contagion and you will have a good response for the duct-cleaning robo-caller.

    Those of you who participated in the "Great Toilet Paper Bubble" are excluded from the offer above. You are clearly poor citizens who should be penalized. On the other hand, you are also clearly ignorant ones, so I will allow you to take advantage of my other offer.

   While you were raiding all the toilet paper isles, I made a run for the Ex-Lax and have cornered the market. Months from now, when you are sitting there feeling guilty, surrounded by stacks of toilet paper, I will be able to assist you in getting the diarrhea you deserve. Limit, three packages per customer.

Post Script: (the usual bonus stuff for subscribers)
   I avoid the headlines and politics because they are awful.  I only take a peek occasionally and probably miss all the headlines that are positive and reveal how kind people are and how we are all rallying to whatever flag it is we are flying.  Some results from a brief look recently confirmed my views:
Headline -”Canada Post to Reduce Hours, Install Clear Barriers in Response to COVID-19”.
Among the questions that could be asked -Who knew that there was still a post office and that people got mail or that delivering those flyers was that dangerous? This is the first news I have seen about the Posties since they boycotted the Postal Code.

   Some family members on the West Coast decided to retreat to an island to get away from it all. Even though they have owned property there for years and it is a large piece which allowed for a lot of distance, they noticed that the residents were less than welcoming and they felt like hippies from the sixties. That happened in Lotus Land where people are supposed to be mellow. The same thing is happening elsewhere according to the headlines I found:
"Seeking Relief from Coronavirus, Urban Brits Flee to the Countryside, Where Locals Beg Them to Please Stay Away,"
LONDON — Like refugees fleeing a coming contagion, anxious, stir-crazy Brits poured out of the cities and into the countryside over recent days, to postcard-perfect hamlets and wind-swept islands, seeking solace or safety in the mountains, lakes and shore....
They were not welcome. The emphatic message from the locals: Go away.

‘Stay On the Mainland’: Tensions Grow as Affluent City Dwellers Fearing Coronavirus Retreat to Second homes [Cape Cod, New England]
"In recent weeks, wealthy city dwellers hoping to escape the novel coronavirus have been fleeing to their second homes, exacerbating long-standing tensions between locals and summer residents. While those from out of town feel they have the right to use property that they own and pay taxes on, year-round residents worry that the new arrivals could be carrying the disease, and that local hospitals aren’t equipped to handle an outbreak."
   Apparently even some Southerners are becoming less hospitable - "North Carolina's Outer Banks Closed off to Nonresidents".
Sources: 
The two recent headlines are from the Washington Post and the Outer Banks situation is found on ABC News and elsewhere.
   And I did not make up the Great Postal Code Boycott of 1972. See: "A Chilly Reception for the Postal Code," CBC Archives, Oct. 21, 2018 and the Wikipedia entry for "Postal Codes in Canada."

Eagle Update

From: The Chatham Daily News, Aug. 7, 1934.

   On Dec. 19, 2018 I did a post recounting an incident in which a child was attacked by an eagle - see: "Eagle Attacks Child." Attached to the post were about 100 examples of news reports about alleged eagle attacks involving children, ranging from around 1825 to 1990. (Those of you who are wondering why such a bizarre subject received such intense scrutiny will have to examine the post.)
   One of the most sensational (and unbelievable) accounts is a Canadian one from Chatham, Ontario which occurred in 1924. Supposedly, 14-year-old 97 pound Fred Cunningham was lifted by an eagle from a golf course, but was quickly dropped. The story was widely reported and can be found in both The New York Times and The Manchester Guardian. 
   I recently discovered a source where one will find digitized copies of Ontario newspapers, including some from the Chatham area. A search of these papers yielded the example above. Although I did not find any accounts from the year in which the event allegedly occurred, I did find the example from 1934 which seems to verify that there was an eagle attack, but not the fact that a large boy was lifted into the air. (Those of you who are wondering how much an eagle can actually lift can find out by looking at Appendix 2: "Eagle Lifting Capacities" in my original post.)

Sources: 
  In the eagle post referred to above, the Chatham incident from 1924 is found on p. 35. Appendix 2 is on p.44.
  The archive of digitized Ontario newspapers is provided by the Leddy Library at the University of Windsor. For a list of the newspaper titles and the years that have been digitized see the INK-ODW Newspaper Collection.