Eek! She's a "Common Scold"!

Sometimes, reading an old newspaper can bring out the giggles.  This morning, this article about a legal case in the 1869 court system really caught my eye.  After reading it, I wonder who this outspoken woman was.  I also have to wonder if that law was ever taken off the book in Pennsylvania.

A Common Scold


Michael Sweeny, a tavern keeper on Gibbon Street, in the Sixth Ward, made information before the Mayor a few days since against Mrs. Elizabeth CARREL, alleging that she was a "common scold."  This is a term applied by the common law to women, who from a propensity and disposition to quarrel with and scold their neighbors and families become a nuisance in the neighborhood in which they resided, and was punishable by fine and imprisonment.


The offense has never been embodied in our criminal code on account of the gallantry, perhaps, of those who revises it, and out of the the respect they had for American women, yet, notwithstanding its omission from the "catalogue of offenses", the courts have decided it to be an indictable offence in this State, as will be seen by reference to the case of the Commonwealth vs, Mole, reported in Second Smith.


In this case it appears from the testimony that there is some grounds for complaint on the part of the prosecutor, and if the conduct of the defendant at the Mayor's office is any evidence, the charge is well funded.  She was held to bail for her appearance at court.


Ahh, genealogy.  Guess this woman should have been more meek?  Can you imagine being labeled a "common scold"? Guess the standards have changed somewhat since then!

Source:
The Pittsburgh Gazette, Jan 11, 1869, pg8
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=NKlx0PmyA3cC&dat=18690111&printsec=frontpage&hl=en

©2011 AS Eldredge

Politicians are All in the Family Thru Early Plymouth Connections

Another day, another genealogy find.  I find this story from Ancestry.com of interest if only to show we are pretty much all connected to each other one way or another.  We may not share any common interests in the present with some of our extremely distant kin, but we are probably more alike than we realize.  Take, for instance, ....

Ancestry.com Reveals Midterm Election Connections: President Obama Related to Palin and Limbaugh

/PRNewswire/ -- As Americans prepare to cast their votes in November's mid-term election, Ancestry.com today announces that several key political leaders and media personalities are more than mere political allies or political foes—they are actually related.

The world's largest online family history resource reveals that President Barack Obama is related to former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Obama and Palin are 10th cousins through common ancestor John Smith. The website also found that Obama is related to one of his most vociferous critics, conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh. Perhaps Rush will ease up on the President when he learns they are actually 10th cousins once removed via common ancestor Richmond Terrell.

Ancestry.com researchers also discovered that Palin, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and conservative author Ann Coulter are also cousins through Englishman John Lathrop, who was exiled to the United States for becoming a minister of an illegal independent church.

But the connections don't end there. Obama, Palin and former President George W. Bush are also related. Obama and Bush, who both reached the highest office in the land, are 11th cousins through common ancestor Samuel Hinckley. Palin and Bush, who are also 11th cousins, are also related through Hinckley. Apparently leadership runs in the family, since Hinckley's son, Thomas, went on to become governor of Plymouth Colony.

"We have all watched the heated media coverage as the leadership of Congress is at stake in this very contentious upcoming November election," said Anastasia Tyler, a genealogist at Ancestry.com. "It is not unusual, however, to find family members on different ends of the political spectrum. This election season is an ideal time to look into the family trees of our candidates and their critics to learn more about the ties that make them all part of this great country."

Other Famous Finds

These newfound family connections between our nation's top political players are the latest of several discoveries from the research team at Ancestry.com:

* In 2009, Ancestry.com discovered that Obama and financial investor Warren Buffett are more than just allies. The two men are 7th cousins three times removed.
* Ancestry.com also revealed that Obama and actor Brad Pitt are 9th cousins.
* In 2008, Ancestry.com announced that then-Governor Sarah Palin is a distant cousin to both Franklin D. Roosevelt and Princess Diana.


Ancestry.com recently announced it has extended its relationship with NBC for the second season of the hit television series "Who Do You Think You Are?" Ancestry.com worked with NBC on the first season of "Who Do You Think You Are?" that debuted in March 2010, providing important family history research for the show, including tracing the roots of the seven celebrities featured.

As for my roots, I do have White House connections to a president, but not the current one.  My blood kin there was James Buchanan.  A presidential gold coin was just released for Buchanan--  I've got one.


Ahh, genealogy.  How many blood lines are hanging around in the ole proverbial woodpile?


©2010 AS Eldredge