Props to H. B.

[mklhawley]

Hi all,

As a Tumblety researcher, I make it a practice to see what Howard Brown has again discovered. To me, this is awesome. It allows me to figure other places to search. We clearly do not see eye to eye, but I have to be honest, he posts what he finds without bias. Great job, Howard.

http://www.jtrforums.com/showthread.php?t=23420

Sincerely,

Mike

[Amanda]

Indeed..

Yes indeed, a very interesting find.

Wonder if there are any of Mr. Bloom's memoirs waiting to be discovered...

Amanda

[Robert]

Howard often finds good stuff. I think he's wonderful for his age.

[lynn cates]

prefs

Hello Robert. Indeed. Just wish he liked haggis. (heh-heh)

Cheers.
LC

[Robert]

Och! He thinks Burns Night is November 5th.

[lynn cates]

Burns

Hello Robert. Thanks.

Does Howard even know who Burns is? (heh-heh)

Cheers.
LC

[Robert]

Ah! Old poet with a cigar. You can still visit his cottage and see the cigar ash.

[Mayerling]

A Little Bit More on Mr. Charles H. Bloom

I plugged the name of the "Royal Baking Soda Company" into the "Brooklyn Eagle" Web site search engine, for the year 1888 - 1889. I found a little something of interest - though hardly connected with Tumblety or Whitechapel. It is connected to Mr. Bloom.

From the Brooklyn Daily Eagle of 30 May 1888, on Page 6, column 8.

"Princely Pay"
What some men's services are worth.
Are the Hoaglands too handsomely renumerated?
Some interesting testimony about very large salary.

"There was a gathering of big financial lights in the Supreme Court, special term, this morning, when the trial of the Ziegler-Hoagland Royal Baking Company Suit was resumed. Samuel McLean, Charles Pruitt, John W. Masury, J. Seuer Page, and a number of others were among those who clustered about the lawyers. They were called as witnesses by the defense to show that the salaries paid the Hoaglands were not exorbitant when viewed in the light of the returns from the business. The first witness was Charles H. Bloom, one of the travelling men of the company. He testified that he had been in the employ of the company for several years, and when in New York his time was mainly spent in the office of the company. The drift of his evidence was to show that Mr. Ziegler had not paid as much attention to the business as formerly.
John W. Masury was the nest witness." He was the president of the John W. Masury Company which manufactured paint and varnish.

The defense attorney was (according to a later article, William J. Gaynor, future mayor of New York City (1910-1913). The plaintiff was represented by Benjamin Tracy, future Secretary of the Navy in the Benjamin Harrison administration (1889-1893).

Jeff

[Robert]

Thanks for that, Jeff. It looks like Bloom was a defence witness, but the overall effect of his testimony was to make Ziegler look bad.

[Mayerling]

Thanks for that, Jeff. It looks like Bloom was a defence witness, but the overall effect of his testimony was to make Ziegler look bad.

Hi Robert,

I only looked for one year. I'll try again later. It would be interesting to know what happened to the Baking Soda Company.

Jeff

[mklhawley]

Hi Robert and Jeff,

It's interesting that Bloom stated he was 45 years old on the ship manifest. If he's been seeing Tumblety everywhere for years, it was likely Tumblety's later years in the 1870s and 1880s.

Sincerely,

Mike

[Robert]

Mike, Jeff, could one of you explain the USA passport application procedures for the late 19th century? I have found a passport application that he made in 1888. The old passport was, by the looks of it, issued in 1865. How long would this passport have lasted before it expired? Bloom says he has known Tumblety for the last 15 years and run across him all over the world.

This is heavily resized to conform with board rules but fingers crossed will be legible.

[Robert]

That didn't work too well.

[Robert]

Another try.

[Mayerling]

Random observations

Hi Robert,

Nice find.

I am sorry to say I don't know what the rules about getting an American passport was in the 19th Century. But I did note the following (though I am certain you saw it too).

The current passport is actually for Charles Bloom and his wife - and the date is August 1888. So it is actually the passport Bloom and his wife were using when the events in the Buffalo newspaper occurred in London. That is lucky.

No details are given about Mrs. Bloom (whose name is Sarah Bloom) and she apparently was the responsibility of her husband. I take it this view of his wife mirrors what the current view of female spouses' rights and social placement was in 1888.

Charles Bloom is five foot seven inches (shorter than me). His eyes are brown.

The address of the Royal Baking Soda Company was 106 Wall Street in Manhattan, and it is listed as the address for Bloom - presumably it was sent to that address after it was signed and notarized. The reason for the use of the 106 Wall Street address was probably due to the passport being used mostly for the express purpose of the business travel for the firm (which begs the question, why was Sarah accompanying her husband - did she work as his secretary? If you recall from the reported comment Bloom made in the May 1888 trial he said that he spends most of his time in New York City at his company headquarters. He probably did not live with Sarah in N.Y.C.

Jeff