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On This Day: Court decides on custody


It always amazes me the things that made the paper in times past. The dirty laundry aired in papers just always surprises me. For example, On This Day in 1880, Dora Ditman and her husband, Casper Ditman, appeared in court in a custody matter. The details were reported in the daily paper.

Casper allegedly was abusive and told Dora to get out of their home in Bird-in-Hand. She and five of their six children went to live in Lancaster City. Casper supported them financially for awhile but as of recent she and the children supported themselves. 

Witnesses were called to support her version. Rebuttal witnesses were called to claim Casper was a good man who provided for his family. In the end, the Court ruled in Dora’s favor, allowing the children to remain with her. 

Source:
Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. (Lancaster, PA), 14 August 1880. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress.  

 

On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.
                

© Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015
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  1. AnonymousAugust 14, 2015 at 8:35 AM

    Airing "dirty laundry" was once a common thing in yesterday's newspapers....long before the term of politically correct. I have been shocked at some of the details provided.

    ReplyDelete

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