Back in the Day

Trolley ride leads to lawsuit

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Ellanor Francis (Budlong) Wilcox decided to set out on a short trip with her mother and son on July 25, 1904.

The 35-year-old dressmaker, who had married Frederick Bacon Wilcox on Oct. 9, 1894, and divorced a few years after, was living with her 64-year-old mother, Ann, and 8-year-old son, Earl, on West Clifford Street in Providence.

The trio had gone to Oakland Beach and was now preparing to return home via the electric trolley cars of the Rhode Island Co. Ann and Earl boarded first. Ellanor followed with her small shepherd dog. One end of an old clothesline was tied around the dog, to act as a leash, and the other end was wrapped securely around Ellanor’s hand. What followed, or what was said to follow, became the subject of a very expensive lawsuit.

Ellanor claimed in her court testimony that the conductor of the car, upon spotting her entrance to the car, approached her and suddenly grabbed the dog and threw it from the car.

Because the clothesline was secured to her hand, she testified that the action pulled her around and caused her to be ejected from the streetcar and land violently on the station platform upon her right knee.

A physician who she later visited testified that he found contusions and bruises on the joint of the knee and that the injury was permanent.

Despite the fact that no one else present on the cars that day had witnessed the described altercation, the court awarded Ellanor $2,000 in damages. The plaintiffs, representing the Rhode Island Co., were not happy about this ruling, which they believed was excessive. They appealed the decision and requested a new trial.

In written complaints, they referred to Ellanor as “gruff, impulsive and high-tempered” and “convincingly capable of anything.” They went on to state that certain matters were not taken into account by the court, such as her appearance on the stand, her manner of giving testimony and the unbelievable nature of that testimony.

The court responded by informing the plaintiffs that they did not base decisions on the conduct of those testifying or the peculiarity of their expressions. All that mattered, it was explained, was the substance of testimony. The request of the Rhode Island Co. was therefore denied.

Ellanore remained living in Providence for a few more years before removing to Occupasstuxet Road in Warwick. She was physically crippled by this time, though records do not state whether or not her condition was due to a lame leg.

Kelly Sullivan is a Rhode Island columnist, lecturer and author.

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