RareNewspapers.com has over 18,000 collectible newspapers available for under $50…

March 4, 2024 by · Leave a Comment 

When it comes to authentic, collectibles from the past, it is hard to imagine that items 100-300 years old can be had for under $50, but it’s true. RareNewspapers.com has greater than 18,000 original newspapers priced under $50, of which well over 10,000 are 100-300+ years old. A chronological list can be found here:

Authentic/Collectible Newspapers Priced Under $50 

The images below show a few snippets of what you may find.


The New York Draft riots from during the Civil War (1863)…

A newspaper from 1682 by a woman publisher…

Peace between Israel and Palestine?

Beloved actor Henry Fonda’s death report in a regional Hollywood srea newspaper (Los Angeles Times)…

This Day in “News” History… January 26th…

January 26, 2024 by · Leave a Comment 

Another day of news as reported in original newspapers… January 26th…

There are many internet sources available to explore what happened on a particular day in history. However, as collectors and resellers of “Rare & Early Newspapers”, our curiosity lies in what people were reading in their morning newspaper on specific days in history. In nearly every instance they were discovering what happened the day prior – and if one reaches back into the 1600s, 1700’s, and early 1800s, when news travelled a bit more slowly, they very well could have been (finally) reading about “rumored” and/or anticipated events from days, weeks, or even months prior.

Today’s adventure?

What about January 26th? The following link will take you to all of our available newspapers dated January 26th:

NEWS REPORTED in NEWSPAPERS on January 26th (through time)

Enjoy the trek. Oh, and if you want to try other dates, go here and plug in any month/day of interest.

 

Capturing the Vibe… Christmas 1903…

December 8, 2023 by · Leave a Comment 

Welcome to the 2nd post in our ongoing series “Capturing the Vibe” where we try to imagine what the world felt like to a newspaper reader from the past by immersing ourselves in their … “vibe of the day”. This month I was drawn to Illustrated Magazines as Christmas is right around the corner, and they usually offer a plethora of wintery images. 1903 was on a low shelf and so it called my name.

So, on we go with this month’s issue…

 

Sometimes the December 1900’s colored covers are Christmas related and sometimes they are just beautiful!

 

Even though the color cover wasn’t Christmassy, the inside cover was full of Winter spirit.

 

On a somber note, I found a fascinating article comparing Feast-days with Fast-days …  not something you hear in conversations of our days.

 

 

On a somewhat lighter note, I saw a multiple cell comic strip on “Pledges of Purity for the New Year”.

 

 

 

There was an article and intricate image of the New Williamsburg Bridge Christening in New York City…

 

 

 

A story by Robert Chambers…

 

and finally, a political Santa cartoon by W.A. Rogers who took over for Thomas Nast when he left Harper’s Weekly.

 

 

I count this find as an issue full of Christmas gifts!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving, 2023…

November 17, 2023 by · Leave a Comment 

Each year as Thanksgiving approaches my thoughts (rightfully) bend a knee in the direction of gratitude which I try to express, for better or worse, in a simple post. In so-doing, while the feedback has been generally positive, on occasion I have been accused of being rather verbose, loquacious, over-talkative, etc., when what I tried to communicate could have been delivered with a higher degree of eloquence with considerably less long-windedness (i.e., I can be a bit wordy). In an effort to reign in this default behavior, in expressing this year’s thoughts I’ve elected to let a series of photos taken from a single issue of Harper’s Weekly from 1900 do the talking. I hope you find them thought-provoking.

Happy Thanksgiving!

By the way, if pictures really do say a thousand words, success! My verbose, loquacious, over-talkative streak lives on!!!

Christmas in July…

July 28, 2023 by · Leave a Comment 

We all have those moments when a memory comes flooding back with all the delight or despair the original moment generated. Such was the case earlier this week as I was organizing a new our new acquisition of Harper’s Weekly Illustrated issues. After working my way through several years, I paused to sort through a stack of Christmas issues.  Although it’s the middle of summer and the temperature outside regularly toys with 3-digits, my mind darted back to a midsummer day 20+ years ago when Guy and I were hiking part of the Loyalsock Trail in the Endless Mountains of Pennsylvania. As we were walking along the trail near where we had set up our tents, we thought it odd to hear Christmas music in the distance, however, as we turned off the path and prepared to cross a stream we were amused and entertained by dozens of families and friends celebrating “Christmas in July” right in the middle of the woodland path. Their generator running to power countless strings of Christmas lights, music pumping, and tables crowded with homemade goodies – this family event was in full festive swing.

Jumping back to the present…

With a smile on my face at the thought of this communal celebration, I grabbed my stack of Christmas issues and headed back up to the front office to share them with all of you through this post. Below you will find a few I’ve listed. We may only have only one 1st-rate issue of each of these, there are plenty of similar to choose from on this hot day in July: Christmas-Themed Harper’s Weekly.

Sample Harper’s Weekly w/ a Christmas Theme

January 1, 1881

December 24, 1881

January 3, 1880

 

 

 

Happy “Victoria Day” (Canada)…

May 22, 2023 by · Leave a Comment 

Shown below is a Canadian-themed, woodcut illustration from a sketch by Frederic Remington as printed in the Harper’s Weekly dated March 22, 1890.

To our friends up north…

Happy Victoria Day!

(original available at RareNewspapers.com – digital available at History’s Newsstand @ Etsy)

This Day in “News” History… January 23…

January 23, 2023 by · Leave a Comment 

There are many internet sources available to explore what happened on a particular day in history. However, as collectors and resellers of “Rare & Early Newspapers”, our curiosity lies in what people were reading in their morning newspaper on specific days in history. In nearly every instance they were discovering what happened the day prior – and if one reaches back into the 1600s, 1700’s, and early 1800s, when news travelled a bit more slowly, they very well could have been (finally) reading about “rumored” and/or anticipated events from days, weeks, or even months prior.

As an example…

What about January 23rd? The following link will take you to all of our available newspapers dated January 23rd:

NEWS REPORTED in NEWSPAPERS on January 23rd (through time)

Enjoy the trek. Oh, and if you want to try other dates, go here and plug in any month/day of interest.

 

Harper’s Weekly… A Journal of Civilization…

December 26, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 

Last week, as I was preparing a January 22, 1898 Harper’s Weekly for shipment, I noticed it was to be sent to Japan. We at Rare & Early Newspapers love knowing our collectors span the Globe; in fact, on a wall in the shipping department we track all the countries where our issues now reside.

Although I knew we had sent many collectible newspapers to this region, I was still curious to see if there might be a cultural motivation behind the purchase. As I paged through the issue to see what may have caught the attention of our Japanese collector, near the back I discovered 4 pages of beautiful prints with the heading, “The Porcelain Arts of Japan”. Full certain this gentleman would be pleased with such charming illustrations, I was delighted knowing this historical treasure would make its way across the World to his collection. As I closed the pages to resume my task my eyes fell on the tagline used by Harper’s Weekly Illustrated: “A Journal of Civilization”.

How appropriate to have noticed their description at this moment and how sublime to know we have a community of collectors which extends across all of today’s civilization.

 

The Sounds of Summer and the Crack of the Bat…

October 28, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 

What makes summer feel like summer? Hazy evenings where light still lingers until after 9… Fireflies flitting across the grass… Children laughing as they romp in the neighborhood yards or… the crack of a bat at the local little league field? We at RareNewspapers have a particular fondness for baseball – not only because our Phillies made it to the World Series… or that our founder (Tim Hughes) has served for decades on the board of Little League International… or that the Little League World Series is played each year within a few blocks of our archives in PA, but also because baseball captures the essence of summer, America and apple-pie (with vanilla ice-cream), and we each have a fondness for all three.
To join our baseball enthusiasm a bit, take a look at some of our best baseball issues including one from the current catalog … a CHICAGO DAILY TRIBUNE, Sept. 29, 1920 covering the Black Sox Scandal. Even America’s pastime has a skeleton or two in its closet.

Happy Independence Day – Contrasting Celebrations…

July 4, 2022 by · Leave a Comment 

The July 11, 1868 issue of Harper’s Weekly contained prints by two notable illustrators – intentionally included to contrast typical 4th of July celebrations in the rural south (Thomas Worth) with those held in northern cities (Winslow Homer). Their diversity reminded me that we can have profound differences while maintaining our bonds of common citizenry. The Revolutionary War was fought for freedom. Today we fight to maintain that freedom. While our diversity in many ways has widened over the past few decades, this new battle is no less noble – and one which calls for unity of purpose. Hopefully we will heed the call. Happy 4th!

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