[Nfb-history] Christmas for blind beggars a century ago

[Peggy Chong]

Hi All, This is my last Blind History  Lady  Post.

 

Peggy Chong

 

Omaha blind Musicians

 

At this time of the year, we all receive dozens of requests for
contributions to help the les fortunate in our mail boxes almost daily.  At
the malls there are the red kettles and in many businesses, we are asked to
leave a coat for the children who have none.  I wondered if this was always
the best time of the year for our blind ancestors, men and women who took to
the streets to earn a meager living.   

 

The city of Omaha around the turn of the twentieth century had many
peddlers, preachers or street entertainers that most cities would have
considered beggars.  To control the many transients and poor who took to the
streets of Omaha to earn enough funds to keep them warm and fed for the next
several days, the city implemented a permit process for the "peddlers".   To
the citizens of Omaha, the peddlers were known by their first name and a
label before the name such as blind.  Today, we will highlight three of
these peddlers who made the newspapers in December of 1904.  

 

Blind Tom, Blind Harry and Blind Billy, not to be confused with "Blind Uncle
Billy" another  street musician permitted by the city of  Omaha, had closed
up shop for the night and went off to a vacant lot to spend the rest of the
night.  The three men all in their thirties earned their living as street
musicians.  The community claimed that the three were almost always
together.  Each helped the other if one was not able to make enough to
sustain himself for that night or the next day.  Sometimes they could afford
a place to stay.  Other times, they slept were they could find shelter such
as a boxcar or door stoop.  This was one of the nights they had no rooming
house to go back to.  

 

On this particular night in December of 1904, they had their soap box from
their street corner, a bag of pretzels and some beer for their evening meal.
After a few beers, they got into a heated discussion as to who would work
the popular street corner and how many of them at a time.  All three at the
same corner meant that none could make enough money for a room for the
night.  

 

Soon the discussion led to a loud and physical brawl.  Witnesses stood and
watched in surprise as the three blind men fought each other.  Soon, the
three came to their senses.  Blind Harry and Blind Bill decided to head off
to Council Bluffs for a while and leave Blind Tom to his street  corner.  It
would be a while before the three would reunite in Omaha.

 

That night, Blind Tom lost his watch.  It was a watch that the crystal had
been removed so he could feel the hands of the watch.  Not able to  find it
and his friends gone, he had no choice to go the the local police station
and report the loss.  He also had to admit to fighting but would not press
charges against his friends.  Doing so would have endangered their permits
to solicit and earn an income.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

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