The Old Passenger Station at Holyoke

W. W. Ward’s Reminiscences

Concerning Early Railroading Up the Valley — City Affairs.

The face of William W. Ward, station agent of the Boston and Maine railroad at Holyoke, with its patriarchal white beard has been so long familiar that the regular day patron of the road would not feel that all was just right if a stranger appeared at the ticket window. the old Connecticut River railroad and Mr. Ward became acquainted about 1849, when he went to work in the freight house at Northampton. Dome two or three years after Josiah Hunt, then superintendent of the road, came up there and said to the freight agent, “I wonder if Ward will go to Holyoke. I want him for the ticket agent down there.” “I guess so, ask him,” was the reply. So with the promise of an additional “raise” in salary, Mr. Ward came down and began to sell tickets in the old wooden station that had then been built but a year or two, and was considered quite sumptuous. It is now being used or the less dignified, if wholly honorable, career of a blacksmith shop, and also as a sort of advertising billboard on Main Street. Passengers on the trolley cars often notice it, and recognize it as a former railroad station.

Some ideal of the vast magnitude of the travel can be gleaned by the reports of about that time. One one day in February, not Sunday, the following ticket sales were reported: Springfield 18, Cabot (Chicopee) six, Northampton three, Greenfield one,. This must not be taken as a fair sample, however, as the receipts were often more than that, and a glance at the accounts of 1849 shows that the sales increased from month to month. One month, March 1849, the total sales were $344; but Mr. Ward has seen the time when the monthly sales amounted to $17,000 in recent years. Mr. Ward succeeded H. D. Carroll of this city, who is still living, and who doubtless remembers plainly the little old shanty — it hardly could be called a station — that preceded the new structure that was built shortly before Mr. Ward’s arrival. There were then but few trains a day, the engines were all wood-burners, with the great stacks , inside cylinders, and rain between Holyoke and Springfield in perhaps half an hour. There was then but a single track, and the double track did not come until a number of years after.

William W. Ward

Tickets were sold only for points on the Connecticut River line. They were printed on plain white cardboard, and were kept n a tin trunk that was sent once in so often to the headquarters in Northampton, and a fresh supply of tickets returned. The road only extended to Greenfield, and at first there were first and second-class fare to your city from Holyoke, and from Holyoke to Northampton, was 25 cents; from Holyoke to Cabot, 15 cents; from Holyoke to Greenfield, 65 cents. In spite of the light engines and cars and road-bed, there have been few accidents on the line. Once in Deerfield a train ran down a kindly cow that was looking along the track for iron spikes to improve her digestion, and it promptly left that track in disgust, and tied itself up into a Cupid’s know. It took all the profits for several months to pay for that accident. Another time the ponderous engine “Whatley,” which must have weighed as much as 20 tons, and which any yard “switcher” of today would butt off the track with supreme contempt, fell into a washout a little above the sawmill. It was a time of high water, and the track was submerged and the “Whatley” was moving along when all of a sudden it dived down into 10 feet of water. It remained there, an interesting object lesson in navigation and a fine attraction for the citizens until three of four other 20-ton engines had joined their might together and yanked the offender back to rather drunken dignity upon the rails. Mr. Ward has some excel;lent pictures of this old wreck.

When Mr. Ward began selling tickets the greater part of Holyoke was a “howling wilderness.” The Holyoke house now the Hamilton had been erected and parsons hall across. The Lyman company had one or two mills, but elsewhere around but one or two small buildings were extant. The foundations were then being laid for the cotton mill which is now used by D. Mackintosh Sons. The 40 years that followed saw continual building and change. the Holyoke street railway company was represented by one horse car to a line that ran from the railroad station to the Holyoke Paper Mill. President Loomis and the Northampton board of aldermen had then not met and Mountain Park had not been evolved. the streets were sandy and dirt roads and the canals themselves had hardly been constructed and extended but a small fragment of the distance they now extend. This station stood a little south of where the bridge over the tracks at the foot of Dwight Street stands. Its Gothic design is not uncommon in some part of New England yet.

Adapted from The Springfield Republican.

Mural on Closed Annex Door of Holyoke Community College, May 10, 1970

Striking students at Holyoke Community College painted a mural showing a clenched fist, symbol of revolution. When college and city officials complained that it defaced a public building, students added the staff of wheat and religious symbols pictured above. The painting is on what was the sealed entrance to the HCC annex.

My era at HCC. Maybe it is just me, but I think of Kent State on May 4th, not Star Wars.

Photo: The Springfield Sunday Republican.

05 January 1913

Herbert E. and Laura E. (Smith) Ainley

Alderman Ainley Dies in Holyoke

Popular Member of Paper City Government Victim of Bright’s Disease

Deane Traffic Manager

Board of Aldermen to Act; Employees Adopt Resolutions; Grief Hastened Death

Alderman Herbert E. Ainley died at 8 o’clock this morning in the City Hospital of bright’s disease following a long illness. Grief over the death of his wife a year ago also hastened his death.

Mr. Ainley was about until a few weeks ago, when the illness became severe and the alderman was confined to his home. His condition became so serious that early in the present week friends determined to have him removed to the hospital and he was taken there on Wednesday. It was then plain that he could live but two or three days.

Mr. Ainley was born in Spencer 47 years ago, coming to this city in his yearly youth. After passing through the grammar schools he entered the employ of the Deane Steam Pump Company, where he had been engaged for 33 years, progressing from office boy through the various grades of the traffic department, until finally he was appointed manager of the branch. As traffic manager he had wide acquaintance among the railroad men and traffic managers of the country his ability and efficiency in this field being undisputed.

It was eight years ago when Mr. Ainley entered the field of politics, and the result was his election twice as alderman from Ward 6 on the Republican ticket. Subsequently, he was nominated by the Republicans as an alderman-at-large, and he would have begun next Monday morning the last year of his third term of two years in that capacity. During 1904, 1905, 1906, 907, 1908, 1909, 1911 and 1912 he served the city government. Nearly all of the time of his connection with the boar of aldermen his name was called first on roll calls, not infrequently a trying place, but he never was known to make speeches. He was satisfied with his vote, which expressed his attitude.

Alderman Ainley held membership in Hampden Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and he was just as popular with his fellow members of the order as with the colleagues of the city government and throughout the city. The marriage of Mr. Ainley and Miss Laura Smith of this city took place in 1887, Mrs. Ainley dying late in 1911. He leaves his mother, Mrs. Joseph Ainley of Northampton street, and two daughters, Mrs. Alphonse La France and Miss Beatrice Ainley of 144 Cabot Street.

Mr. Ainley and his daughter, Beatrice,  who is 14 years old, have been inseparable companions since the death of the girl’s mother. It had become a common sight to see the two walking hand in hand along High Street, the marriage of the elder daughter cementing the parental companionship of the father and the younger child.

The following expression of regard for Mr. Ainley was prepared by his associates in the Deane plant:

“Mr. Ainley was well known to railroad men all over the country in his capacity as traffic manager for the Deane Steam Pump Company and ranked high among the traffic men of the country. His many years of service with the Deane Stem Pump Company made him thoroughly expert in the line of its work, and he was a valued and trusted employee, and became a walking encyclopedia as regards the business of the Deane Steam Pump Company. His loss is very much regretted by the management and by his fellow members of the office staff, with whom he had always been a general favorite in all his business relations and dealings.”

The funeral will be held Monday afternoon at 3 o’clock, with services in the Second Baptist Church chapel, the body lying in the meanwhile in Alger’s undertaking rooms, where friends may view it. the aldermen assembled this evening to take suitable action on the death of Alderman Ainely. A floral tribute will be sent and a committee will represent the board at the funeral.

Adapted from The Springfield Republican.

Holyoke Semi-Centennial Celebration Program

Celebration Will take Place in 1923 — Preparations Are Begun

The custom of taking note of the various anniversaries of one kind and another as they appear, has been growing of late years, and it is interesting to record that the Holyoke Chamber of Commerce is awake to the matter and is to have a committee appointed soon to see that the 50th anniversary of the founding of the city in 1923 does not go by without proper attention. It is only a little over a year and a half before the anniversary arrives and it is a good thing that the start is being made so early.

Adapted from The Springfield Republican.

Donald O’Connor and Zasu Pitts in Francis. Costarring Francis the Talking Army Mule. Also playing: Unmasked.

At the Suffolk Theater: Francis

Holyoke View

Photo © Llewellyn Lafford, all rights reserved.

Petition For Pardon of Mrs. Walence

A petition for the pardon of Mrs. Mary A. Walence of Linden Street, signed by Mayor Henry J. Toepfert, Senator Frank Hurley, Representatives Charles D. Chevalier, William E. Kirkpatrick and Francis Clark, and many of the prominent local people, was filed with Governor Joseph B. Ely at Boston today by Atty. Thomas C. Maher, who defended Mrs. Walence on a murder charge in the trial held in Springfield last March. Mrs. Walence is serving an 18 months sentence in the house of correction for manslaughter in connection with the death of her husband Paul J. Walence, on July 11, 1932.

Adapted from The Springfield Republican.

Previously published articles about this case:

Sensational Trial Ends When Judge Imposes Sentence
Mrs. Walence to Spend 18 Months at House of Correction — Attorney Breaks Down on Mercy Plea

Eighteen months in the house of correction was the sentence handed down to Mrs. Mary Walence, 43, mother of five children, by Judge Daniel T. O’Connell in criminal session of superior court yesterday morning. Mrs. Walence had been convicted Saturday, by a jury, of manslaughter after a trial of a week on the charge of murdering her husband, Paul Walence, Holyoke grocer and speakeasy proprietor, in their bedroom at their home at 71 Linden street, that city, at 2:20 the morning of July 11, 1932.

The sentence was imposed amid scenes of great emotion. Mrs. Walence and her daughters wept bitterly during the proceedings and just before the imposition of the sentence Atty. Thomas C. Maher, chief counsel for the defendant , had broken down and wept in the midst f his plea for mercy for the woman. A three minute recess had been granted to give him time to recover. Dist. Atty. Thomas F. Moriarty, who conducted the case for the commonwealth, sat beside Atty. Maher and talked in low tones to him during that recess.

Atty. Maher’s plea for a light sentence and for confinement in the house of correction rather than state prison was granted by Judge O’Connell, for under the statute the defendant could have been sentenced to a maximum of 20 yeas in state prion or a fine of $1000 and 1 1/2 years in the house of correction.

When Mrs. Walence was brought into the courtroom the composure which was so marked during the trial last week was lacking and she  was so near a collapse that she was assisted to her chair by the jail matron, Miss Elizabeth Mahoney. She cried constantly during the proceedings and her sobs were echoed by her daughters who sat on a bench outside the rail behind her. Seated with the daughters and attempting to console them was Stephen Walence, Paul’s brother.

Dist. Atty. Moriarty made a brief address asking that the court impose sentence and explaining that, in line with his custom, he would not suggest to the court what that sentence should be. Atty. Maher then made a deeply emotional plea for a light sentence. In the midst of this plea he was overcome with his own emotion and the judge declared a three minute recess to give him a chance to recover

At the conclusion of Atty. Maher’s plea Judge O’Connell, imposed the sentence, the house of correction being expressed by Assistant Clerk James M. Healy as “common jail” as he read it to the defendant.

After court adjourned the five daughters crowded around their mother and kissed and embraced her. They also expressed their appreciation to Atty. Maher for his battle on her behalf.

Following his imposition of the sentence Judge O’Connell made a brief address in which he commended the lawyers on both sides for the dignity, sincerity and ability with which they had conducted the proceeding. In imposing sentence the judge took into consideration that the defendant had been in jail eight months awaiting trial.

When the court came in yesterday the sitting was held in the second session room because the first session room had been turned over to the naturalization sitting of superior court. Although the spectator’s part of the room outside of the rail was filled to capacity, there were only three lawyers in the space set aside for members of the bar. During the week of the trial a large number of lawyers were in daily attendance.

Before leaving the courthouse yesterday morning Atty. Maher paid a high compliment to the aid that had been rendered in the preparation and trial of the case by his assistants Attys. Gregory J. Scanlon and Stanley F. Closek. Dist. Atty. Moriarty was aided in the prosecution of the case by Asst. Dist. Atty. John J. Granfield.

Adapted from The Springfield Republican.

Previously published articles about this case:

Steiger's, High Street, Holyoke

Image © Llewellyn Lafford

Mrs. Walence Guilty of Manslaughter in Slaying of Husband
Holyoke Woman Unmoved as Jury Returns Verdict
Jurors, Out Nearly Five Hours, Recommend Mercy But Plea Officially Ignored
Mary Kostek’s Death Kept From the Jury
Officials Suppress News of “Other Woman,” Avoiding Mistrial
Tension Grows as Verdict Awaited

“Guilty of Manslaughter.” These three works from Patrick F. Quinlivan, foreman of the Hampden county jury which heard the case of Mary S. Walence, 43, charged with shooting her husband, Paul, while he slept in their bedroom at their Holyoke home. July 11, closed with dramatic suddenness the trial which opened Monday, st 4:10 yesterday afternoon. The sentence will be imposed Monday morning by Judge Daniel T. O’Connell.

Hears Verdict Unemotionally

Dry-eyed, the frail mother of five children heard the words without changing expression. She watched the judge unemotionally while he explained to Quinlivan that the latter’s verdict, “Guilty of manslaughter with a recommendation for mercy” had no legal bearing since the judge alone could decide on the punishment, and then heard Quinlivan repeat only the first three words of the verdict.

To this murder trial and the verdict of guilty, always a dramatic and moving spectacle, was added the sensational fact that one of the principal witnesses, Miss Mary Kostek, accused of being one of the women to whom Paul Walence paid his attentions, was found dead in bed yesterday morning. Unknown to the jury and to the principals in the tragedy, death, which had come not only to the husband, a grocery store and speakeasy proprietor, but to one of the women who had destroyed the happiness of the Walence home, weaving one more strand in the chain which ended in the courtroom yesterday, when the jury announced its decision on the case of Mrs. Walence.

Jury Out Nearly Five Hours

And in the courtroom a murmur swept through the rows of spectators as the decision was announced. During the four hours and 45 minutes the jury had been deliberating, tension had grown among the spectators, the attorneys and the relatives of the accused woman — a tension that tightened when the jurymen filed back to report to the court.

As Judge O’Connell heard the decision and started to thank the jury for the manner in which the members had served the commonwealth, the county, and justice itself, the only sound other than his voice was the sobbing of Mrs. Walence’s children, their grief overcoming them as they sat on the benches behind the cage from which that had vainly hoped for five days the jury’s verdict would permit their mother to go free.

Defendant Goes Out Dry-Eyed

Mrs. Walence did not cry. Not then, as the jury was thanked, nor later as the courtroom was cleared and preparations made to taker her back to the county jail to await her sentence. She was given an opportunity to comfort four of her daughters — the youngest was home ill — and she talked quietly to them. They left her, still sobbing bitterly, to be driven to their home while she walked with a deputy sheriff and a matron down the stairs to a waiting car.There was no crowd around. Her head up, her eyes dulled and her face a mask, she climbed into the machine. Under the general laws of the commonwealth, manslaughter is punishable by not more than 20 years in jail or a fine of $1000 and not less than 2 1/2 years in jail. Atty. Thomas C. Maher, who defended the woman said after the verdict was announced, that an appeal would probably be taken.

Kostek Death Kept From Jury

The death of Mary Kostek brought to court officials yesterday morning the immediate problem of suppression of the news, since with the jury charged and ready to consider the case, this development might bring a mistrial.

Court official hurriedly took action to prevent the cried of newsboys shouting this story, from reaching the ears of the jury. Persons entering the courthouse were asked to give up their newspapers, by George O’Donnell of Holyoke, member of Superintendent of Buildings John J. Conway’s staff, so that the news would not be seen by those involved in the case. When the jury was taken to the Nayasset Club for lunch police officers were posted to keep newsboys away and the officers remained on duty until the verdict was reached.

Judge Thanks the Jury

Judge O’Connell said to the jury after the verdict was announced: “On behalf of the commonwealth as well as the county and justice itself, I thank you for the performance of your duty. The call has been made for you to serve the state and county and next to the call of serving the colors of the nation in war, there is no duty as great. Serving the cause of justice adds strength to the foundation of the country.” He then excused the jury from further service.

Dist. Atty. Thomas Moriarty and Ass. Dist. Atty. John . Granfield conducted the case for the commonwealth.

Give the Jury Alternatives

Judge O’Connell began his charge at 9 and ended at 10:12 and said that one of four verdicts could be returned, not guilty, guilty of manslaughter, guilty of murder in the second degree, or guilty of murder in the first degree. He said that the commonwealth alleges that the killing was done with deliberate, premeditated malice and forethought, which would comprise murder in the first degree, but under the indictment a verdict of second degree or manslaughter could also be returned in case the defendant was found guilty of the killing.

He aid that the evidence disclosed that Walence came to his death at 2:30 the morning of July 11 by one of four bullets which entered his body, a fifth grazing his arm. Walence was in his own home and bedroom occupied by himself and his wife when it happened.

An investigation by the police in the course of their duty followed the killing and every effort was made to discover and place on trial the person who committed the crime As the result of the investigation his wife, Mary Walence is now before the jury on that charge and the jury has the duty of determining whether or not the accusation has been made out.

It is a duty of the highest importance not only to the prisoner, but to the whole commonwealth, he said. A false verdict of guilty would do great injury to the prisoner, on the other hand a false vote of acquittal would be unjust to the commonwealth and of no real benefit to the woman herself. Only by rendering a true verdict will the jury render a duty to the commonwealth that few of their fellow citizens will ever have the opportunity to perform.

Not To Be Convicted on Suspicion

It is necessary to prove the defendant guilty. She is not required to prover her innocence. the fact that she is in the dock is not to be taken against her, neither is the fact that an indictment has been returned against her. She is not to be convicted on suspicion or probability. If the fact can be reconciled with any reasonable theory of her innocence, she must be discharged.

The case must be proved against her beyond a reasonable doubt, not all possible or imaginary doubts, but proof such as satisfies the consciences of the jury and so satisfies them as to exude any other reasonable conclusion.

Judge O’Connell paid particular attention to that vital part of the testimony in which it was alleged that she said to Capt. Peter F. Cullen of the Holyoke police, “I didn’t mean to kill him, I didn’t mean to kill him” Capt. Cullen testified to that.

Judge O’Connell said the defendant claims that Capt. Cullen used the words first, saying, “Perhaps you didn’t mean to kill him,” and that the defendant says she merely repeated his words and immediately added, “I didn’t do it.” This matter, he told the jury depends on whose version of the conversation the jury adopts. Judge O’Connell added that immediately before and after the words “I didn’t mean to kill him,” were used the defendant had denied the shooting.

Adapted from The Springfield Republican.
Previously published articles about this case: