Monday, December 25, 2017

Santa Visits Lorain City Jail – 1924

Merry Christmas to all my readers and contributors! Have a wonderful holiday and I hope the New Year brings you and your friends & family good health and happiness.

I’ll be taking my usual holiday break from the blog this week, but will be back in time to post some unusual New Year’s Eve “Don’t Drink and Drive” ads.

In the meantime, here’s a heartwarming story that ran in the Lorain Journal on Dec. 26, 1924. It's about how the prisoners in the Lorain city jail had a Merry Christmas that year, thanks to Lorain’s men in blue.

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SANTA VISITS LORAIN CITY JAIL
Prisoners Get Phonograph, Records, Smokes and Sweets

Routine and monotony of life behind the bars in city jail was broken by Santa Claus Christmas Eve. He came in the person of members of the Lorain police department and when prisoners looked in their stockings they found a phonograph, records, cigars, cigarettes and candy.

Today several of the prisoners, who have been doing solo dances for their fellow inmates and tripping the light fantastic with old time buck and wing dances, were walking around in their bare feet. The soles and heels had worn off on the cement floor, while they were putting on some entertainment.

It was in the wee hours of the morning on Christmas eve that prisoners finally shut off the phonograph and it was only a few hours later that they were up for more music and preparing for their Christmas special dinner.

Long-term liquor violators have been placed in charge of the phonograph and they vow dire vengeance on the first prisoner who tries to wreck it. For they want to enjoy the music for the years they are to be confined in jail.

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