The Coal-Throwing Landlady of Third Street
A quiet complaint about a noisy apartment turns into an assault charge after a tenant is struck by a thrown piece of coal.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Susan McConneil, who lives in the ABC lodging house, on Third street, between Union and University streets was arrested yesterday by Constable Terry King on a charge of assault and battery, preferred before Justice Caldwell by Andrew Baraco. Baraco lives in the basement of the building and the McConnells on the floor above. He says that Tuesday evening there was such a racket above that he went up to quiet it. He was told to get out, and when going downstairs Susan McConneil threw a large piece of coal at him, striking him on the head and cutting a long gash in his forehead. Susan McConneil appeared before the justice and was released on her own recognizance to appear this morning at 10 o'clock.
“Susan McConneil threw a large piece of coal at him, striking him on the head and cutting a long gash in his forehead.”
Lodging house disputes in downtown Seattle have long been a source of domestic strife. This incident, occurring right in the heart of modern-day downtown, highlights the proximity and tensions of high-density living in the late 19th century.
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