March Lecture Sponsored by the Archeological Society of the Northern Chesapeake Date: Wednesday, March 14, 2018 Time: Light refreshments at 6:30 pm, program at 7:00 pm, followed by a short Chapter meeting. Location: Historical Society of Cecil County, 135 E. Main St., Elkton, MD.
Program: “An Early Pottery at Saint Mary Anne’s – A Cemetery Discovery of No Grave Concern”. Jim Kotersky and Dan Coates.
Abstract/Preview: Clay-rich Cecil County, MD, attracted a number of potters and fire brick makers during the 19th century. One site in North East located between the church structure at St. Mary Anne’s and the North East River was home to kilns burning both pots and bricks. The predominate potter, J. B. Magee, hailed from Canada, but left his finger prints in clay along a trail from Vermont to Virginia. With a focus on his decade-long tenure in North East, discussion will include clay sources, pottery types and “pott-house” operations. Not only will some examples of his decorated stoneware be on display, but artifacts from a recent site unearthing will provide a better understanding of his wares and kiln stacking techniques.
As families gathered to celebrate Christmas in the 1970s, Cecil County Police Officers continued their never-ending job, patrolling the roads and answering calls while others shared gifts, good company, and delicious meals. Although the demands placed on law enforcement can be high on holidays with the officers juggling calls, a glance at the police blotter reveals that sometimes there is a lighter side.
Santa Speeding Across Cecil County
In the early 1970s, one patrol sergeant, Steve Landbeck, orchestrated a little holiday tradition for several years. As people settled in with their families on Christmas Eve, things generally quieted down for first responders. But an urgent flash would break the silence of the night on the police radio. A Maryland State Trooper out of the North East Barrack was in a high-speed chase.
As the drama unfolded, the pursuit continuing up Route 40, a description was put out for other units rushing into position to back up the North East car. It went something like this. It was a shiny red vehicle moving fast. Moments later came the driver’s description: a heavy-set man with a white beard in a red suit. Soon, something would follow about hearing sleigh bells and ho-ho, ho. The radio broadcast played out over several minutes as additional details eked out.
In time, Sargeant Landbeck advised to 10-22 (disregard). The fleeing vehicle was only the jolly old fella and his sleigh coming into Cecil for his annual visit on a busy night with lots to do. The reindeer were there, and the sleigh was loaded with gifts for boys and girls around the county, the state trooper reported reassuringly.
That became a Christmas Eve tradition for many years as Steve orchestrated his little radio play, and once the broadcast kicked off, parents had their children listen to the scanner. After the 10-22 went out on the airwaves, children across the county knew Santa was on his way. He was in the county, and they had better hurry off to bed so they could wake up early on Christmas morning for gifts from Santa.
St. Nick Makes Quick Escape in Dark Parking Lot
In the county seat, another case unfolded on a Christmas Eve watch decades ago. Elkton Police Officer Marshall Purner prowled the streets on the holiday shift when dispatch radioed early on that quiet evening that someone had broken into a vehicle at Cecil Lanes. The bowling alley was having a party for children, and while all the merriment distracted everyone, a perpetrator forced entry into a car, taking holiday gifts.
Marshall Purner retired from the Elkton Police Department in June 1989. Photo Credit: Wilmington News Journal, July 27, 1989
Upon arrival at the scene, Officer Purner started the investigation. A witness observed a suspicious person — a man in a Santa Claus outfit dashing through the dark parking lot. He was carrying stuff in some sort of hurry when he jumped into a vehicle and sped from the scene. Those details were dutifully recorded, and with that information pointing to a primary suspect, Marshall was on the trail as he put out a “be on the lookout” broadcast for the getaway car and this red-suited suspect.
With all Cecil County patrol cars on the road Christmas Eve now keeping an eye out for the fleeing vehicle occupied by old St. Nick, they soon executed a stop, pulling it and the driver over. It was a fellow officer, Patrolman Joseph Zurolo, playing Santa for a group of kids at the Bowling Alley. Having finished bringing joy to a group of Cecil County youngsters, the merriment and gift-giving taken care of, Santa dashed off to make his holiday rounds. So, he made a hasty departure from the party, rushing through the parking lot.
Of course, he had nothing to do with the incident, but it made for a unique discussion back at the police station and several laughs on a Christmas Eve long ago, the calls documented for all time in the old Cecil County Police Blotter.
Elkton Police Officer Joe Zurolo (in uniform) greets old Saint Nick. Officer Jim Long is dressed as Santa in the mid 1970s. Source: Cecil Whig photo from the Jim Cheeseman collection at the Historical Society of Cecil County
