Great Headlines Speak for Themselves… The First Moon Walk…

November 17, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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The best headlines need no commentary. Such is the case with the WAPAKONETA DAILY NEWS, Ohio, July 21, 1969, which reported the first moon walk. Whereas most newspapers declared some variation of: “Man Walks on the Moon”, this one was a little more specific – perhaps because it was his hometown newspaper:

“NEIL STEPS ON THE MOON”

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November Newsletter (2025) – Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers…

November 14, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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Welcome to the November newsletter from Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers. Shown below are a host of items we believe to be pertinent to the collectible family. Although we often use this space to highlight new and interesting inventory, we hope you do not miss the links to recent posts on the History’s Newsstand Blog.

NEW CATALOG ITEMS – Since Catalog 360 went to print we have continued to add new items to the on-line version – including more than 25 since last weekend’s update. While the set includes a variety of genres and price-points, a short-list of key issues includes: the first issuance of Continental Currency, John Wilkes Booth appears at Ford’s Theater, a report on the actions of Boston residents “flying in the face of the Mother country”, the death of Henry Ford (in a Detroit newspaper), two issues dated in 1776, and more.

DISCOUNTED ISSUES – Nearly 120 newspapers have been newly discounted (by 50%) through Thursday, December 11th. The prices shown on each already reflect the discount.

WORTH NOTING (NEW To EBAY)

CATALOG 360 – Great items still remain from the November catalog and may be viewed through the following links:

HISTORY’S NEWSSTAND – Back by popular demand… Over the years we’ve accumulated a number of posts with a Thanksgiving theme. The first link below shows these in reverse chronological order to enable those interested to take a thankful stroll back through time through the eyes of History’s Newsstand:
With apologies to the international members of our collecting family…

Happy Thanksgiving!

Guy Heilenman & The Rare & Early Newspapers Team

RareNewspapers.com

570-326-1045

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Who’s Who in Newspapers – John Wanamaker edition

November 10, 2025 by · 1 Comment 
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Typically, our “Who’s Who in Newspapers” series highlights individuals who were unfamiliar to me before I delved into the world of Rare & Early Newspapers. Today’s post is a departure from that norm. While reviewing the December 12, 1922, issue of The Bethlehem Times, I came across a front-page report of John Wanamaker’s passing. The article stirred a flood of childhood memories tied to this remarkable man whose legacy left a lasting impression on me. Eager to share his story, I hope the following introduction sheds light on his extraordinary contributions.

John Wanamaker: The Merchant Who Made Shopping an Experience

From personal memories to retail innovation, Wanamaker’s left a legacy that reshaped both commerce and tradition. Every December starting in the mid-1950s, my parents bundled up my siblings and me for a trip into Philadelphia to see the Christmas light and music show at Wanamaker’s (currently being converted into a mixed-use facility). To us, it was pure magic — thousands of twinkling lights, the sound of the great pipe organ, and crowds of families gathered in awe. With my grandmother working in the store during those years, Wanamaker’s always felt like more than a department store — it felt like part of our family’s story.

That sense of wonder was no accident. John Wanamaker (1838–1922), the man behind the store, believed shopping could be more than a transaction — it could be an experience. When he opened his Philadelphia department store in 1876, it quickly became a model for modern retail. Wanamaker pioneered the one-price system (no haggling), introduced the money-back guarantee, and used newspaper advertising on a scale few had seen before.

He also reshaped how Americans paid for what they bought. Realizing that many working families couldn’t afford to pay cash for larger purchases, Wanamaker offered installment plans and charge accounts. This bold move laid the foundation for consumer credit, opening the door for more households to access quality goods.

Beyond retail, Wanamaker served as U.S. Postmaster General under President Benjamin Harrison, introducing commemorative stamps and expanding rural mail delivery. Yet it was his Philadelphia store — both marketplace and civic landmark — that became his greatest legacy.

Even today, the memory of standing with my siblings beneath the glow of the light show while the Wanamaker organ thundered through the Grand Court remains a vivid reminder of how one man’s vision reshaped not just shopping, but tradition itself.

Wanamaker’s Firsts – Innovations that reshaped retail

  • One-Price System – Ended the practice of haggling; everyone paid the same fair price.
  • Money-Back Guarantee – Built customer trust and loyalty.
  • Large-Scale Advertising – One of the first to use newspapers to reach wide audiences.
  • Department Store Experience – Turned shopping into a cultural outing with art, music, and public events.
  • Consumer Credit – Introduced installment plans and charge accounts, paving the way for modern credit.

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Lead-up to a Nation… as reported in the newspapers of the day (October, 1775)…

November 6, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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Today we continue our series, “Lead-Up to a Nation… as reported in the newspapers of the day” – the anniversary of the greatest experiment in democracy and self-government.
The following are the installments from last month (October), which reflected on the events as they were reported in and around October, 1775:

England Misses the Temper of the Times (Lead-up to a Nation – E9)

George Washington – Religious Freedom (Lead-up to a Nation – E10)

Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys (Lead-up to a Nation – E11)

The Liberty Tree (Lead-up to a Nation – E12) 

George Washington – Integrity, Leadership & Humility (Lead-up to a Nation – E13)

We hope you are enjoying this year-long trek to the 250th anniversary of The United States through the eyes of those who were fully engaged, first hand. As mentioned previously, all accounts are rooted in what they read in the newspapers of the day.

“History is never more fascinating than when read from the day it was first reported.” (Timothy Hughes, 1975)

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The reason I collected it: the Nuremberg trials…

November 3, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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I have likely stated several times that part of the quest in seeking the best report of a notable event is to find it in a newspaper as close to where it happened as possible. For the death of JFK, a Dallas newspaper is best. On the bombing of Pearl Harbor, a Honolulu newspaper is great. On the Boston Massacre in 1770, a Boston paper would be wonderful.

Some events can be extremely difficult, so you do the best you can. How about when man walked on the moon? Outside of a lunar publication that did not exist, a newspaper from Neil Armstrong’s hometown is pretty good. Or perhaps one from close to Cape Canaveral.

One of the more notable events at the conclusion of World War II was the Nuremberg Trials. There were 22 defendants held for war crimes; 12 would hang, 7 served time, and 3 found not guilty.

But finding a German newspaper with this report had eluded us. And as is the case with events in foreign language countries, a report close to the event would be diminished a bit if the text is in a language other than English. Not many desire a newspaper they cannot read.

But as luck would have it, a Nuremberg suburb–Furth–had a former Nazi air base, captured by American forces in early April, 1945 & converted to a U.S. air base. And better yet, it produced a small, obviously low-circulation newspaper called “The Jet Gazette”. The October 1, 1946 issue was devoted to the results of the trials. And being an American air base, it’s in English. It was a great find that I suspected never existed!

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Announcing: Catalog #360 for November, 2025 – Rare & Early Newspapers…

October 31, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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November’s catalog (#360) is now available. The links shown below will take you to various segments of the new catalog, the History’s Newsstand Blog, and the current list of discounted issues. We hope you enjoy!

Catalog #360 (for November): This latest offering of authentic newspapers is comprised of over 300 new items, a selection which includes the following noteworthy issues: Washington’s Thanksgiving Day proclamation, a report on America’s first war, Gage’s account of Lexington & Concord, The Swedish Intelligencer from 1633, Lincoln’s assassination in the desired New York Times, notable broadside on the Gerrymander, and more.

The following links are designed to help you explore all available items from this latest edition of our catalog:

  • Grouped by price…

Priced under $50

Priced at $50-$99

Priced at $100-$299

Priced at $300 and up (the best of the best)

  • Grouped by era…

Dated from 1600-1799

Dated from 1800-1899

Dated from 1900-Present

————–

DISCOUNTED ISSUES – What remains of last month’s discounted issues may be viewed at: Discount (select items at 50% off)

HISTORY’S NEWSSTAND – Recent Posts on the History’s Newsstand Blog may be accessed at: History’s Newsstand
Thanks for collecting with us!

Sincerely,

Guy Heilenman & The Rare & Early Newspapers Team

RareNewspapers.com

570-326-1045

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They Put It In Print – A U.S. President Seeks Permission…

October 27, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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In the U.S., only Congress can declare war. So how many wars have Americans actually fought since World War II? You might think of the Korean War, Vietnam, Kuwait, Iraq, or Afghanistan. But here’s the catch: the answer is technically zero.

How can that be? Modern presidents simply avoid the word “war,” using terms like “military engagement” or “conflict” instead. No official declaration, no congressional vote—problem solved.

It wasn’t always this way. Take the War of 1812: President James Madison believed the U.S. needed to go to war with Great Britain. Did he send troops under a euphemism like “military operation”? No. He went straight to Congress with a detailed manifesto explaining why war was necessary. That document, printed in The War on June 27, 1812, shows just how seriously Madison took the Constitution’s war powers. The introduction and conclusion of his lengthy plea are shown below.

Today, renaming wars might serve convenience or strategy, but it raises a bigger question: if we can call war by any name we like, what happens to the checks and balances the Constitution set in place?

Do you think this trend is a necessary evolution—or a dangerous bypass of Congress?

 

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From the Vault: Headlines drive interest in World War II…

October 24, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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For likely a multitude of reasons, interest in World War II newspapers ranks far higher than in the Korean War, World War I, or the Spanish-American War.  It may be a generational thing, as most collectors today are children of World War II veterans and likely heard stories of the war first-hand, or found newspapers in their parents attics which sparked an interest. One could debate a number of other possible reasons why other wars lack the intrigue found in that fought by the “greatest generation”.

Headline collecting has always been a focus for this hobby, and as any collector knows, bold, banner headlines did not become commonplace until late in the 19th century. With the increasing competitiveness of daily newspapers across the country–Hearst, Pulitzer & others rising to prominence–flashier front pages were needed to draw attention at the corner news stand. It’s a shame there is not more interest in the Spanish-American War and World War I as both events resulted in some huge, dramatic, & very displayable headlines.

Because there are a plethora of newspapers from the WWII era available, collectors have become very discriminating in what they collect.  Only the “best of the best” will do, meaning just the major events and only those with huge and displayable headlines. If there is a “top 6” list of sought-after events, our experience is they would be: 1) attack on Pearl Harbor; 2) the D-Day invasion; 3) death of Hitler; 4) end of the war in Europe; 5) dropping of the atomic bomb; 6) end of the war in the Pacific. One could add any number of other battle reports such as Midway, battle of the Bulge, fall of Italy, Iwo Jima, battle for Berlin, and so much more. And we could step back before American involvement in the war and add Hitler’s invasion of Poland and the battle of Britain.
The bigger the headline the better. With some newspapers the entire front page was taken up with a headline and a related graphic. The U.S. flag was a common patriotic device. Tabloid-size newspapers commonly had the front page entirely taken up with a singular headline and tend to be better for display given their smaller size.

And not just American newspapers draw interest. German newspapers hold a special intrigue, but the language barrier is a problem for many. But the British Channel Islands, located in the English Channel between England & France, were occupied by the Nazi during the war so their reports were very pro-Nazi while printed in the English language (ex., Guernsey Island). And the military newspaper “Stars and Stripes“, while certainly being American, was published at various locations in Europe and the Pacific. Collectors have a special interest in finding World War II events in the official newspapers of the American military forces. Plus there were a multitude of “camp” newspapers, amateur-looking newspapers printed on a mimeograph machine for consumption limited to a military base, and typically printed is very small quantities. Their rarity is not truly appreciated by many.

For obvious reasons, there is also a high degree of collectible interest from those wishing to make sure certain aspects of history are not forgotten. The Holocaust, and the Nazi propaganda used to provide a rationale for eliminating the Jewish people, is well documented in newspapers from the era. In addition to the Holocaust and its atrocities, issues providing context through reporting other pre-war events such as the Great Depression, fascism, and increased militarism, are also desirable.

True to any collectable field, newspaper collectors are always on the lookout for an issue better than what they have, and collection upgrades are constant. Finding that special, rare, unusual or fascinating headline is what makes the hobby fun. Will interest in the Korean War and the Vietnam War gain more interest in future years? Perhaps so. With interest currently low and availability and prices very attractive, it might be a good time to explore.

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Headlines That Never Happened: Germany’s Loss and Its Lasting Echoes…

October 20, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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In April of 1918, a newspaper playfully speculated on what the headlines might have looked like if Germany had won World War I. A century later, we know the opposite outcome set in motion consequences far greater than most could have imagined. Germany’s defeat, and the way the Allies handled it, reshaped not just Europe but the modern world.

The Ripple Effects of Germany’s World War I Defeat

The Treaty of Versailles (1919) imposed heavy reparations, territorial losses, and strict military limits on Germany. Instead of securing peace, these terms humiliated the nation and destabilized its young democracy. The resentment they bred became fertile ground for Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, leading to World War II and the Holocaust.

Europe’s New Order

Britain and France emerged victorious but weakened, while the United States stepped into global leadership. Versailles became a cautionary tale: punish a nation too harshly, and you may guarantee the next war. After World War II, the Allies took the opposite approach—rebuilding Germany through the Marshall Plan and anchoring it in NATO and the European Union. Today, Germany’s central role in both reflects that strategy.

Jews and the Holocaust

Germany’s turmoil fueled dangerous scapegoating. Conspiracy theories like the “stab-in-the-back” myth cast Jews as traitors, intensifying antisemitism that Nazi propaganda later weaponized. The Holocaust destroyed European Jewry and gave new urgency to the Zionist movement, leading to the founding of Israel in 1948.

Redrawing the Middle East

The collapse of Germany’s ally, the Ottoman Empire, allowed Britain and France to carve up the Middle East. Mandates in Iraq, Syria, and Palestine ignored ethnic and religious realities. Britain’s contradictory promises to Jews and Arabs in Palestine set the stage for the enduring Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Lasting Echoes

The “war to end all wars” did not end conflict—it reshaped it. From NATO and the EU to Israel’s creation and Middle Eastern instability, the ripple effects of Germany’s defeat still define our world.

While the two photos above show The Liberty Blast with a dateline of April 29, 1920, this newspaper with “fictious reporting” was actually printed on April 20, 1918 “in the hope that in some small way it may serve to awaken in the hearts & minds of those who read it a realization of those horrors of a great world war, so far from and yet to near to American shores, American life, and American people…”.

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October Newsletter (2025) – Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers…

October 17, 2025 by · Leave a Comment 
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Welcome to the October newsletter from Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers. Shown below are links to a “heads-up” (which could be worth thousands to a few lucky collectors), an expanded set of new listings (another 25+ within the past 24 hours), more than 100 items added to last month’s discounted issues (at 50% off), several of our most recent posts on the History’s Newsstand blog, and a link to a special find. We hope you enjoy.

Newly Added Catalog Items – a list which includes the capture of Ethan Allen, a great foldout map of Boston & vicinity (w/ early reports on the Revolutionary War), a terrific issue on the Jefferson/Callender situation, Frederick Douglass’s “Colored Men’s Rights in This Republic” speech, a dramatic front page on Germany’s invasion of Poland (WWII begins), a great issue containing: a rebuttal to ‘Common Sense’, General Howe’s letter to Ben Franklin concerning peace, and Franklin’s lengthy response, and more.

October’s Discounted Newspapers – a set which includes a naturalization document from 1810, a review of the new work ‘Death of a Salesman’, Michael Jordan wins the NBA 1987 slam dunk contest (w/ photo), the “God is Dead” debate, President Garfield is shot, Italy surrenders unconditionally (WWII), the execution of John Dillinger’s fellow gangster, the first airplane death (a passenger with Orville Wright), and more.

ALERT – Hidden Treasures Await!

As we often share on our History’s Newsstand blog, one of the great joys of collecting rare newspapers is discovering “golden nuggets” of history hidden within the pages. Many collectors buy an issue for one reason, only to find additional remarkable content that wasn’t listed in the description.

Despite our best efforts, it’s impossible to read every line of every issue we offer—and that’s part of the adventure! Recently, with help from AI and reacquired titles, we’ve uncovered reports so significant that some issues once sold for under $25 are actually worth thousands.

Case in point: the London Chronicle, October 7, 1773. We sold this issue in the past (perhaps as many as three times) as either part of an inexpensive set or as a “generic” stand alone “period” item from the 1700’s – only to recently learn it contained a rare article containing one of Phillis Wheatley’s 1st poems. Ouch for us; awesome for a few collectors (assuming they’ve discovered what we missed). This and similar “misses” are not uncommon in this hobby/collectible.

So when your next newspaper arrives, take time to explore every page. You never know what hidden treasure(s) might be waiting for you!

PS You may also want to revisit the issues you already have. 🙂

Recent Posts on the History’s Newsstand Blog

A Special Find – Whereas we typically highlight newspapers from the 1600’s through the Civil War era, we recently uncovered a report of what is considered the very first professional football title game (known as “the De Facto Championship”). It may be viewed at: The Chicago Staleys vs. the Akron Pros. Additionally, the report is in a Chicago Newspaper!

Links to the October Catalog (#359)
Thanks for collecting with us!

Sincerely,

Guy Heilenman & The Rare & Early Newspapers Team

RareNewspapers.com

570-326-1045

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