Alan Crawford

Last fall, a great guy (Thanks, Kevin!) came over to check out a parcel of land belonging to the Fostertown Cemetery with his metal detection equipment. We covered most of the parcel finding some discarded metal items of no value, but three items caught our interest.

There were the metal ends of two 12 gauge shot gun cartridges and a dog license from 1923! These items deserved a bit of research and what better time to share this than after last week’s article on Carpenter’s Gun Works?

From what I discovered these cartridges were manufactured between 1911 and 1914, approximately. The wooded area where we found these was farmland back then. The find of two shells may lend credence to the shotgun being used was a double barrel. I still have my Grandfather’s, William T. Crawford, but have never fired it. It’s more of a keepsake.

I learned in my youth from the old timers (Yeah, I know, I’ve reached that milestone in my life, don’t rub it in) that accuracy and making one shot count was the rule, not the “spray and pray” philosophy of some people today. Cartridges were expensive and they didn’t buy boxes, maybe just one or two shells, depending upon the cash they had on hand. A good shot put meat on the table. The 1920’s saw the birth of what we now refer to as supermarkets. Years ago, it was still small specialty shops like bakers, butchers, and general stores.

Dog licenses first began being required in New York State on March 8th, 1894. The purpose was to control the population growth and set standards for canine care. The initial license cost was $2. Adjusting for inflation and such, this translates to about $50, today.

Dogs were used to flush and track game. Our town was mostly farmland a century ago. Fowl were plentiful as they had plenty to feast on. This also hold true for other critters like rabbits and squirrels.

The mandate for rabies vaccines didn’t become available until the late 1940s and early 1950s. In 1923, canines were a farm’s security system, alerting the family of possible threats and visitors. They assisted their masters in putting meat on the table as well as protecting the family from dangers.

One of my more beloved family photos is of our farmhouse with a Brittany Spaniel, purchased from John Grimm, proudly standing in the front yard. We always had dogs, mostly Springer Spaniels, over the years though they were more beloved companions than hunting canines. They adored us, especially my children, and we loved them.

Does this dog license lost off the collar represent a beloved pet, a working farm animal, or a hunting dog? You are the judge. I believe it’s a memory of all that combined.

I have tried searching for archival records of the owner. If I ever locate them, I will share the information. Maybe we’ll even learn the puppy’s name.