It's our latest edition of One Century Ago, a collaboration between Patch and the Historical Society serving Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown.

This column brings you the front page of a local newspaper that covered the news in Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow (North Tarrytown) one hundred years ago. This front page comes from the Tarrytown Press-Record. The Press-Record was published as a weekly from 1893 to 1946 and has been preserved by the Historical Society on microfilm.

Tarrytown Press-Record, November 10, 1911

Elections Take Center Stage

As noted in last week's installment, the Press-Record went to bat for the Democratic ticket (see past article here) with a series of blurbs aimed at pushing readers to vote for the entire slate in local and regional races. Despite their insistence however, voters across the state came out largely in favor of Republican candidates. 

Westchester County was reconfirmed a Republican majority during the election. The town of Mount Pleasant was solidified as a Democratic stronghold and Greenburgh as a Republican stronghold – almost exact opposites to the population's current political inclinations (see 2011 election results here).

The Press-Record, ever true to the line they pushed prior to election day, noted that Democrats had made some gains, securing the mayorships of Yonkers, Mt. Vernon and New Rochelle.

At the state level, Republicans retained a 50 member majority in the Assembly, with only one Democratic seat gained. The paper suggested that the huge gains for the Republican party were due, in part, to the pre-election arrests of three prominent Queens Democrats on charges they conspired to procure a nomination to the State Supreme Court by corrupt means.

Electric Trains Arriving in Tarrytown

Residents of Tarrytown were eagerly anticipating the arrival of the first electric trains from New York City.

The work installing am electric third-rail began back in August, as reported by the paper here. On November 9, 1911, electricity made it to the station in the form of lighting in the freight office and heralded the arrival of the first electric train which was scheduled for November 19, 1911.

Baptist Church Sees a Record Crowd

The Press-Record made regular mention of weekly occurrences at local churches. In November 1911, the biggest news was the "large congregation" that had gathered on Sunday morning at the First Baptist Church.

The reason for the occasion was the one-year anniversary of Pastor Brooks arrival at the church. The paper noted the prospect for the pastor's second year of work was "bright."

For more local history, visit the Historical Society on Grove Street. Information can be found on their website: www.thehistoricalsociety.net. Currently on display are artifacts from the Civil War.