I came across this short article concerning a woman named Catherine Creta
last night while perusing the papers & completely by accident.
Ironically, it was found in the NY
Evening Post, a metropolitan newspaper which
contained very little about the murder, inquest, or trial.
Creta, apparently, had some sort of relationship with George Damon. Nina
spent hours last night, using every available tool in the arsenal to find out if
she was related to George or his wife to no avail. It is as if she only existed in
this one little article. I looked into an 1890-1891 New York register ( names in
alphabetical order and residence) and two major newspaper archives with no
success. No other reference to this woman has been found to date from either
Nina or myself.......we began searching yesterday and continue doing so today.
The address, 59 West 45th Street, is considered Midtown Manhattan,
relatively close to Central Park and Times Square. It is also 5.5 miles from 44
Beekman Street.
First of all, here's the article in the Evening Post, August 18, 1891...less than
three months after the conclusion of the Ali Trial.
New York Evening PostAugust 18, 1891
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$ 1,000 in 1891 dollars equals $32,748.57 today.This is unusual, to say the least, considering Damon brought charges against a
man over a $ 1.98 vase in the summer of 1897 and took a man to court over $
10 in Cranford in August of 1901. The former was dropped and the latter case
found him not only having his complaint dismissed in Union County but being
needled over his role in the eventual release of Ameer Ben Ali.
Why is George Damon doling out $ 1,000 in cash for a woman ( serving time
since the 4th of July, 1891 in The Tombs) who robbed a bookie ( the 'bookmaker') ?
I've added East River Echo Number 174 which contains the two other stories
about the cheapskate who, for one shining moment, was Mr. Considerate in
August 1891 to a a young woman who ran a boarding house.
Your thoughts are most welcome.