When depressions were great: Sept. 29, 1929

What were people doing, thinking and reading about in Minneapolis in the month that led up to the Great Crash of 1929? We’re counting down the days to the Oct. 29 anniversary by dipping into the local newspapers from 79 years ago.

Sept. 29, 1929, fell on a Sunday, meaning a fat edition of the Tribune that was chock full of cops and robbers: The Minneapolis purity squad rounds up gypsy fortune-tellers; San Francisco police round up Communists; Florida police nab the assassin of a man who formerly edited a newspaper called The Menace; St. Paul police hold a Harry Houdini-wannabe in Ramsey County jail; none of the four convicted in the bombing of the Boulevards de Paris Cafe in St. Paul goes to jail; and a small boy alerts police to a brick-throwing Kodak burglar in downtown Minneapolis.

And there was this item of financial news: First National Bank will double the size of its main lobby in Minneapolis — already one of the largest banking rooms in the West — and also double its vault capacity as part of a major remodeling just announced.

From the Minneapolis Sunday Tribune, Sept. 29, 1929:

Gypsy Seers Arrested Purity Squad

The purity squad of the Minneapolis police turned their attention to gypsy fortune tellers Saturday and arrested six self-styled experts in palm reading and phrenology in raids on five establishments.

25 Communists Held for Gastonia Protest

San Francisco, Sept. 28 – (By Associated Press) – Twenty-five members of the Young Communist League of America, including three women, were arrested by police tonight when they staged a demonstration on a downtown street corner protesting against the trial of the Gastonia textile strikers in North Carolina, who are accused of the murder of a police official.

Thief Hurls Brick, Steals Two Cameras

A burglar hurled a brick through a display window of the Eastman Kodak Co. at 116 Fifth Street South early Saturday evening, snatched two valuable cameras and escaped. A small boy who was passing at the time reported the theft to police, and a crowd attracted from Marquette Avenue by the sound of breaking glass had gathered when police arrived to investigate. The stolen cameras were valued at about $150.

Former ‘Menace’ Editor Shot Down

Jacksonville, Fla., Sept. 28 – (by Associated Press) – Billy Parker, said to be a former editor of The Menace, an Aurora paper, was shot and killed late today at the headquarters of a local political organization. Police are holding Harvey Jackson for the killing.

Bars of Ramsey Jail Confine ‘Escape Artist’

H.M. Golden, escape artist, has often slipped off handcuffs and wriggled out of straitjackets for the edification of theater-goers. But he was up against a tougher proposition Saturday — the cold, hard bars of the Ramsey County Jail. Friday night while his troupe was preparing to entertain the soldiers at the Fort Snelling theater, E.C. Sinclair, deputy United States marshal, took Mr. Golden into custody on a warrant from Seattle, Wash., charging him with impersonation of a federal narcotic officer. [H]is bail was set at $5,000 which was not furnished.

Four plead guilty in Café’s Bombing:
Three Fined, One Given Suspended Sentence at St. Paul.

Four men held in connection with the fight and bombing at the Boulevards of Paris café, Lexington and University avenues, St. Paul, September 18, Saturday pleaded guilty to assault and battery charges proferred against them by Motorcycle Officer Herman Schlichting.

First National Bank Expands Building Space

The quarters of the First National Bank in Minneapolis … at Marquette Avenue and Fifth Street are to be enlarged and extensively remodeled at a total cost of $400,000 … As a result of the alterations, the main lobby on the second floor will be doubled in sized … [as well as] the doubling of the basement vault space, and installation of a new ventilation system. The remodeling is expected to require about six months and will be done with minimum of interference with the bank operations. The present lobby was one of the largest banking rooms in the West when the building was occupied in 1915 by the First National Bank …. Fourteen years ago the merged banks had a staff of 340 persons and held 28,647 accounts. Those figures have increased to 524 officers and employes [sic] who handle over 78,000 accounts.

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