Funeral of Hiram Cronk 1905

Photographed May 17-18, 1905.
American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Location: Brooklyn, New York, N.Y.
Camera: G.W. ''Billy'' Bitzer

Crowds of people line a thoroughfare in Brooklyn and watch a military procession. The march is lead by a full dress military band with only the drummer marking the pace [0:10]. Two uniformed riders lead a brigade of Rough Riders followed by Civil War dressed troops which accompany the horse drawn hearse baring the body of Hiram Cronk [1:40], and a long line of open carriages probably occupied by family, friends, and dignitaries [1:50]. This portion may be on the way to City Hall followed by film of the procession to the burial in Brooklyn. The segment takes up with soldiers baring shouldered arms [2:00]. The line of mounted riders driving the hearse comes to a rest as the marching procession continues with soldiers representing the War of 1812 coming into view before the film ends.
-TR

Hiram Cronk (April 29, 1800 - May 13, 1905) was thought to be the last surviving veteran of the War of 1812 at the time of his death. He died at his home in Ava, New York on May 13, 1905, and under the direction of the Board of Aldermen of the City of New York the body was taken to the city, where a military funeral was held before interment in Brooklyn's Greenwood Cemetery.
Born in Frankport, New York, Cronk enlisted with his father and two brothers on August 4, 1814. He served with the New York Volunteers in the defense of Sackett's Harbor, and was discharged November 16, 1814. For his service, he received a pension of $12 per month. In 1903, Congress increased it to $25 per month. He also received a special pension of $72 per month from the State of New York.
Cronk spent most of his life working as a shoemaker. He married Mary Thornton in 1825, with whom he had seven children. At the time of his death he had fourteen grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
When he died, his body was displayed in the main lobby of New York City Hall. An estimated 25,000 people paid their respects.
- excerpt from Wikipedia

http://www.newsday.com/community/guide/lihistory/ny-history-hs505b1v,0,170547...
This link which is from The Sunday Utica Journal, April 26, 1903, p. 6, is a fascinating account celebrating Hiram Cronk's 103rd birthday.

New York City in 1905:
The first Carnegie Library in the Bronx, the Mott Haven branch, opened at 140th Street and Alexander Avenue. The Tremont and Kingsbridge branches also opened. In Queens another Carnegie, the Richmond Hill branch opened and the Port Richmond branch opened on Staten Island / August Belmont purchased the unfinished Steinway Tunnel (completed 1907) for $80,000. On December 22, Belmont acquired the Metropolitan Street Railway Company, eliminating another rival to his Interboro Rapid Transit Company. The Tribunes headline cried: ''Belmont Is Traction King; Belmont Now in Position to Sandbag City.'' / The first issue of Variety appeared on December 16 / ''Will You Love Me in December as You Do in May?'' lyrics by future mayor Jimmy Walker, was one of the year's hit songs

01/04/12 - 3,108

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[TigerRocket]

@ZacharyG89 Right now some of our oldest citizens are folks who lived through the Great Depression and fought in WW2. Many others are gone now. Take every opportunity you can and talk to seniors you may know. But more importantly, listen! There is nothing more valuable than stories and wisdom from the minds of those who saw what we can only read about.

[LiuBaio]

interesting video....such a short wikipedia page for somone who lived to be 105! i would have loved to here about his life!

[BrianCeelyNew]

That guy in the front who keeps looking at the camera is fucking hilarious

[NYisontop]

Thank you for posting this. Our past isn't so distant and unrecognizable to us when viewing something like this. Civil War veterans in their 60s, Mexican-American War veterans in their 80s, marching in a stately funeral for a man who fought alongside Revolutionary veterans, lived during the wars of Napoleon and served during the War of 1812-1815. Some of the children in the crowd could have lived to our own recent years.

[jasonjcronk]

@jasonjcronk sorry he was 14 when he was in the War of 1812

[jasonjcronk]

This is my great great great great grandfather (i think thats the right amount of greats). He was a drummer boy in the war of 1812, can you imagine druming a marching beat on the front line while musket balls fly all around, and only at the age of 12?

Thank you for the upload haven't seen this video since i was a kid

[ZacharyG89]

@kjm11992 It blows your mind when you think about it. We grew up learning in schools about things like George Washington and The War of 1812 as if it were the distant past, but it really isn't that long ago if you think about it. I would do anything to see some footage of people from the American Revolutionary War era, just imagine how fascinating that would be.

[kjm11992]

to think that this man was born when john adams was president, was just one year removed from george washington's death and died when tr was president and guys like fdr and truman were starting to build reputations. ronald reagan was just 6 years away

[galept]

@pgs5719 Even more impressive than the 1812 uniforms at the end was the footage here showing the Civil War veterans. It's so hard for me to grasp that in this video they were around the same age as today's Vietnam veterans. This is the first time I've ever seen footage of surviving Civil War veterans.

[pgs5719]

I wish there was more footage of this awesome video...it ended where there was soldiers in 1812 soldier's uniforms marching before it cut out...oh time must have cut the footage to this length...people please respect our soldiers of the past...this Phony President we have now of Barack Hussein Obama is such a shame to all of us veterans and America.