2194----1869 Niagara Falls Thomas V. Welch original speech and poems

2194----1869 NIAGARA FALLS THOMAS V. WELCH ORIGINAL SPEECH AND POEMS Rare Niagara Falls NY item.    The "Danforth Club" was organized in 1867 by four alumni of School District No. 2 of Niagara Falls NY. The plan was for these four young men to meet once a year to reminisce and "recall the memories of our old schooldays."  The members were William Luther, James Barlow, Louis Blial, and Thomas Welch (more on Welch later). Included in this lot for sale are the 16 pages (plus title page) of original speeches and poems delivered by each member from the third annual meeting on Dec 13, 1869. They mention their teachers Gertrude Nichols and Mr. H.J. Danforth throughout.    (This is how the Danforth Club received it's name.)    One can see how much they admired these two and how they have (and will) influence their lives.     I was able to discover that  Mr Danforth was "Halsey J. Danforth."    I believe that Danforth and Nichols did not teach here very long, leaving the area soon after. The members also sent a letter, and a 3 page poem to Miss Nichols in Dec of 1870.  These are also included in the sale. All of these papers are ORIGINAL.  The most important and historic part of this lot, is the inclusion of member "T.V. Welch."  If you are from the Niagara Falls area, you may already know that Thomas Vincent Welch was the most beloved and well known community activist and politician in the Niagara area at this time.   There are placques and memorials all over Niagara with his name. I found obituaries online from his 1903 death of typhoid fever. When he passed away, its as if the entire city shut down. He was born in 1851 so only 18 at this time of the Danforth Club meeting. Welch wrote and delivered a long speech at this club meeting along with a poem.   His name is mentioned several times. I have scanned all the pages, and some closeups for your review. In addition, I have added newspaper articles pertaining to the death of Mr. Welch.  Materials and images used in research are for review only, and NOT included with the item for sale in this listing. As for the condition of the papers, they are in very fine shape.  Even the original ribbons are still intact. It is evident there has been minimal handling over the years. The only minor issue might be the lightness of the ink, so I did darken slightly for easier viewing.  Being limited on the number of photos I could include here, I had to combine some images to reduce the quantity. This is why they appear without a transition between them.  They have not been cut or altered in any way.  * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *