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#Post#: 4878--------------------------------------------------
George Damon Meets The World.....Reporter
DIR By: HowBrown1953
Date: July 7, 2025, 1:57 pm
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I had posted something earlier today about the May 23rd, 1901,
Washington Times-Herald article
which brought up the conversation John A. Lee had with an
attorney, during which the issue of the
story and the alleged evidence George Damon had in his
possession was brought up.
It appears to have been the first ( and only) newspaper to
mention the conversation between John A. Lee ( the well-known
businessman)
and an attorney concerning the evidence Damon had kept from the
police. There are other newspapers published on that day, such
as The Sun,
Boston Globe, Brooklyn Times-Union, Scranton Times, Jersey
Journal, etc, but none mention what the Times-Herald did. I may
have overlooked
one, but at this time, I can't recall seeing one before or today
when I looked again.
Washington Times-Herald
May 23, 1901
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HTML https://i.imgur.com/9WSnqd9.jpg
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This article from the New York Evening World, a newspaper which
researchers will already know was not averse to making
claims to elevate its status, states that it was the New York
World, another newspaper in the Pulitzer stable,
that was the first paper to have sent a reporter to speak with
George Damon...and it's probably true.
I cannot access the New York World editions from May 1901,
either on Newspapers.Com or the Old Fulton site,
but nevertheless, it does appear that the New York World sent a
reporter to converse with George Damon.
New York Evening World
April 16, 1902
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HTML https://i.imgur.com/Y7AVLhX.jpg
#Post#: 4879--------------------------------------------------
Re: George Damon Meets The World.....Reporter
DIR By: HowBrown1953
Date: July 7, 2025, 2:12 pm
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Some items of interest in the second article. I'm glad I went
back to look a few minutes ago because
I had misdated the NY Evening World article....and in realizing
the discrepancy, a more careful look
reveals some strange statements.
Third paragraph- "The pardon of Frenchy and his release from
prison is the result of
the efforts of The World in his behalf."
In reality, the World had no active role in his release.
The World, in the 5th paragraph, claims that the key was sent to
them, and an investigation
showed that it fitted the lock of the room in which Brown was
murdered.
This is stunningly preposterous. D.A. Philbin would go on to
state, officially, that Detective Robert McNaught
investigated the issue of matching the key to East River Hotel
keys in June 1901, after this article was published, &
told the Governor it was impossible to match the keys since new
ones were in use at the hotel.
Yet, here the NY Evening World is claiming that 'Evidence came
into possession of
the World last December..." ...which meant December 1901, long
before all 14 affidavits were submitted.
Furthermore, why would the key be sent to a newspaper, and who
would have done so?
Certainly not the District Attorney's Office or the Governor.
Why would George Damon give the key to
the newspaper?
The Evening World, in this instance, was guilty of fabricating a
story to make itself look good in the
eyes of their readership.
#Post#: 4880--------------------------------------------------
Re: George Damon Meets The World.....Reporter
DIR By: HowBrown1953
Date: July 7, 2025, 2:45 pm
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For Pete Damgaard.....
Just in case you're confused about the about-face on the thread,
Pete, this was
what I originally posted when I misread the date of the NY
Evening World article.
This is an excerpt from a Washington Times-Herald article from
May 23, 1901, published three days after Damon's first affidavit
:
HTML https://i.imgur.com/9WSnqd9.jpg
It appears to have been the first ( and only) newspaper to
mention the conversation between John A. Lee ( the well-known
businessman)
and an attorney concerning the evidence Damon had kept from the
police. There are other newspapers published on that day, such
as The Sun,
Boston Globe, Brooklyn Times-Union, Scranton Times, Jersey
Journal, etc, but none mention what the Times-Herald did.
This article from the New York Evening World, a newspaper which
researchers will already know was not averse to making
claims that elevated its status, states that it was the New York
World, another newspaper in the Pulitzer stable,
that was the first paper to have sent a reporter to speak with
George Damon...and it's probably true.
I cannot access the New York World editions from May 1901,
either on Newspapers.Com or the Old Fulton site,
but nevertheless, it does appear that the New York World sent a
reporter to converse with George Damon.
New York Evening World
April 16, 1901
***********
HTML https://i.imgur.com/Y7AVLhX.jpg
Some items of interest:
Second paragraph- "Frenchy's release was due to new evidence
discovered by the
World within a year."
This line was poorly written. It should have read that the
person with the 'new evidence'
had come forward and spoke with the World reporter. The World
discovered nothing.
Third paragraph- "The pardon of Frenchy and his release from
prison is the result of
the efforts of The World in his behalf."
In reality, the World had no active role in his release.
" Evidence came into the
possession of the World last December..."
This seems to suggest that Damon's story ( key, clothes, etc.)
was kept from authorities
some 5 months before this article was written.
If this was true and not a boast on behalf of the newspaper,
then it meant that before
Benjamin Odell took office and while Teddy Roosevelt was
Governor, the alleged
evidence was accessible to Roosevelt, if only he'd been
informed.
One question is if Damon would allow the press access to the
key and story, why didn't
he contact Governor Roosevelt in late 1900? Why did the
headline-hungry, sensationalist
newspaper the World keep this news back?
Was it because there had already been two rejected pardon
efforts when Roosevelt
was Governor? Or did Damon believe that Roosevelt would
scrutinize his story to a greater
degree than Odell would ( or whoever succeeded Roosevelt) and
not accept it without
a more in-depth inquiry?
The World, in the 5th paragraph, claims that the key was sent to
them and investigation
showed that it fitted the lock of the room in which Brown was
murdered. We know that
Detective McNaught informed D.A. Philbin that it was impossible
to ascertain whether
the key Damon turned in could match the current locks on hotel
doors since the hotel
had obtained new doors and locks. Therefore, the content of the
fifth paragraph is false.
If it was true that the key 'was sent to the World', it isn't a
far-fetched scenario that the World
could take that key, tell Damon 'thank you very much' and run it
by whoever was Governor
themselves in order to increase sales. During the 'Newspaper
Wars' of the late 19th and early
20th century, the World was one of the newspapers in
competition with their rivals.
Additionally, if this was true, then Damon would have faced some
serious heat for not only
suppressing evidence but giving it to a newspaper like it was
candy....and knowing what we
know about Governor Roosevelt, it would have been an intense
heat.
One point against the fifth paragraph being factual:
We know that a month after this article appeared that Damon
would file the first of four affidavits.
In the first one, he claims he took the key and matched it to a
key left at the bar, and claimed it
was the same type of key his farmhand had left. Therefore, why
would he send the key to the World
so that they could run an investigation of their own to confirm
that it matched?
Damon could have sent it to them just to confirm what he would
go on to say at the time of the
first affidavit. In any event, I, for one, think Damon would be
making a very risky move handing the
key to the New York World before touching base with the State.
Comments welcome.....
#Post#: 4885--------------------------------------------------
Re: George Damon Meets The World.....Reporter
DIR By: Kattrup
Date: July 10, 2025, 12:50 pm
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Hi Howard
Still on vacation.
The World article’s claims are clearly spurious.
They also call Damon a “farmer” from “Frankfort”.
They apparently just made stuff up, trying to claim credit.
#Post#: 4888--------------------------------------------------
Re: George Damon Meets The World.....Reporter
DIR By: HowBrown1953
Date: July 10, 2025, 5:46 pm
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Pete:
You might be right, boss.
On the other hand, is it possible that The World tried to
'disguise' Damon's identity?
There is no Frankfort, New Jersey.....there is a Frankford,
NJ.....and obviously he wasn't a farmer.
#Post#: 6750--------------------------------------------------
Re: George Damon Meets The World.....Reporter
DIR By: HowBrown1953
Date: April 8, 2026, 3:02 pm
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I cannot access the New York World editions from May 1901,
either on Newspapers.Com or the Old Fulton site,
but nevertheless, it does appear that the New York World sent a
reporter to converse with George Damon.
No problem, since the article from April 16, 1901 ( see above)
was not referring to the New York World, but the New York
Evening World.
It was a New York Evening World reporter who sent a reporter to
converse with Damon if anyone did.
On numerous occasions, the New York Evening World referred to
itself as 'The World'.
Took my dumb ass long enough to figure that out. ;D
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