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Contemplating Memorial Day in light of the last 15 months…
May 31, 2021 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
I’m embarrassed. Last year, in the midst of the pandemic, I was so consumed by “in the moment” issues I neglected to take the time on Memorial Day to be thankful for “those who have gone before us” – specifically, the men and women who gave their lives so those of us who reside in the United States could live in safety… freedom… hope – in a land where the ideals of the pursuit of happiness, equality, freedom of speech, etc., while not yet fully realized, were and continue to be part an parcel of the dream we call America. Starting with a revisit of a post from a few years ago, this year I’m committed to being more thankful for others and less self-consumed. Hopefully you’ll enjoy the following as much as I have while preparing this post:
Memorial Day… The Blue and the Gray…
We recently discovered an original issue of The Atlantic Monthly for September, 1867, which contained the earliest nationally distributed printing (and maybe the first ever) of ‘The Blue and the Gray,” by Francis Miles Finch. Although Memorial Day had not been officially proclaimed (via General Order #11, May 5, 1868), the practice of placing flowers and wreaths on the tombstones if the fallen was somewhat common. What was uncommon was the act of a group of women in Columbus, Mississippi, which is best described in the preface to Finch’s poem (quoted from the New York Tribune):
“The women of Columbus, Mississippi, animated by nobler sentiments than are many of their sisters, have shown themselves impartial in their offerings made to the memory of the dead. They strewed flowers alike on the graves of the Confederate and of the National soldiers.”
In recognition of Memorial Day, please enjoy the full text of this grand expression of appreciation for those who have fallen in battle – be they blue or gray:
Two additional Memorial Day themed posts from the past are:
Perhaps not a perfect system, but… Happy Memorial Day!
A simple reflection on Memorial Day…
Love of History Takes Many Forms…
May 27, 2021 by Laura Heilenman · Leave a Comment
I firmly believe that a love of history in one area often seeps into many other areas as well – that it is possible to be completely enthralled with each battle of the Revolutionary War and Vintage Ads for Cream of Wheat or Firestone Tires at the same time. With this in mind, I put out the following “all call”…
Calling all Disney fans !!!!!
Those of us who are Disney lovers in any form and specifically Disney Park lovers may find the following interesting in light of the upheaval the Disney parks have faced over the last year+. On June 14, 1981, the Los Angles Times had the ad shown in the photo. Disneyland was beginning their shift from individual ride tickets to all-day passes. Later, they would move to annual passes which allowed locals to come and go at will, making Disneyland a part of their everyday life. What a memorable moment in Disney history for Disney Park fans.
Snapshot 1928… A couple in London is spotted in New York just a few seconds later…
May 24, 2021 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Impossible you say? I’ll let Wikipedia do the talking:
“On February 9th, 1928, Hartsdale became the birthplace of the American “Couch Potato” when the Scottish inventor John Logie Baird (1888-1946) transmitted the world’s first inter-continental short-wave television signal from a transmitter (call sign 2KZ) in Coulsdon, Surrey (a suburb of London, England) to his colleague O.G. Hutchinson in the cellar of Robert M. Hart, an Amateur Radio Operator (call sign 2CVJ) in Hartsdale, New York.”
And what was transmitted? A man and a woman… well, at least a “live” image of them, making them the first couple to been seen in two places at once. Most newspapers of the day reported this historic event, including the Chicago Daily Tribune shown to the right.
You’ve Come A Long Way Baby…
May 20, 2021 by Laura Heilenman · 2 Comments
Oftentimes, when I see a headline or an issue here at Rare Newspapers, some old fashioned turn of phrase or idiom comes to mind and today was no exception. As I leafed through a volume of Harper’s Weekly’s looking for a customer request, I glanced through the issue dated one week earlier. “You’ve come a long way baby” sprang to mind as I paused to pour over the vintage automobile and tire ads in Harper’s Weekly’s “Annual Automobile Number” issue. Ironically, the front color cover had a baby in a 1912 car barely missing 1911, represented by an old man trudging across the road. These new cars must have seemed a tremendous upgrade from Henry Ford’s Model T in 1908 and may have caused a pedestrian on the curb to murmur, “We’ve come a long way baby”, however, I am sure their jaw would drop at the thought of electric and self-driving options 100+ years later. These are the things Jules Verne dreamed of as he put pen to paper. I like to imagine that someday, a 100+ years from now, another person may very well see a newspaper from today with the headline: “Tesla’s Autopilot Technology Faces Fresh Scrutiny”(NYT) and quip, “We’ve come a long way baby”, as they climb into their hover car.
From Dream to Dream…
May 14, 2021 by Laura Heilenman · Leave a Comment
I can’t speak for anyone else but, at this moment… I’m over with bad news. I long for news stories that make me smile … that bring to mind sweeter times. Today, in the subtlest of news stories, my wish came true and a huge smile spread over my face. On June 30, 1905, the Springfield Republican published their issue for the day. I am sure no one in the editor’s office had a clue that on the sports page there was one line in the box score that would, 80+ years later, inspire one of my favorite movie moments of all time. Allow me to borrow a paragraph from our RareNewspapers website’s description for this Springfield issue…
“Spoiler alert: Anyone who has viewed the *movie-classic, “Field of Dreams,” starring Kevin Costner, has been touched by Archie “Moonlight” Graham (played by Burt Lancaster). The poor fellow simply cannot catch a break. When this doctor, who had given up baseball after only 1 professional appearance in order to care for people via his physician training, was given (in the movie) a 2nd chance to get on the magical “field of dreams,” he was almost immediately faced with the choice between either leaving the field (never to return) in order to save an injured young fan from near-certain death, or stay on the field and enjoy the game he had always loved.”
Although Field of Dreams mixes fantasy and reality, this peek into a “real life person” made me dig a bit deeper. Wikipedia sums him up as follows: “”Doc” Graham, as he became known after his career as a ballplayer, served the people of Chisholm (MN) for fifty years. From 1909 to 1959, Graham was the doctor for the Chisholm schools. For many years, “Doc” Graham made arrangements to have used eyeglasses sent to his Chisholm office. On Saturdays, he would have the children of the Iron Range (Minnesota) miners, from Grand Rapids to Virginia, come to his office, have their eyes checked and then fit them with the proper set of glasses, all free of charge.”
Wrapped up in this good news from the past is also a reminder that sometimes, when one dream ends, a better one begins.
One Hit Wonders Can Still Pack an Emotional Punch…
May 10, 2021 by Laura Heilenman · Leave a Comment
Today I was doing some research for a customer. This particular customer loves to collect obituaries from music and film stars of a bygone era. As I worked through his want list, I came upon a singer named Bobby Fuller. Unlike other stars on this want list, I had never heard of 
Bobby… or so I thought. Upon further research I discovered he was a “1 hit wonder” from 1966 and had released the song, “I Fought the Law and the Law Won”. As soon as I saw the title, a big smile formed. I am not sure where I had 1st heard the song… after all, I would have only been 2 on it’s release date however, somewhere in my earliest memories my parents must have played it or I heard it on a passing radio station. However it happened, the song left an indelible imprint on my young mind and those happy feelings came flooding back. I grabbed my i-phone and quickly brought up the song on my Spotify account and for a few moments was transformed to a simpler time. I am sure I’m not the only one who spent time growing up listening to music with their parents or watching old movies with their Mam Maw. For those of you who delight in those old memories as much as I do, here is a quick search of some of the issues we have with Stars of Past. Feel free to peruse my list or start a personal favorites search to create your own.
The Gentleman’s Magazine & Bankruptcy…
May 8, 2021 by Stephanie Williams · Leave a Comment
Under the illustration of St. John’s Gate that introduces each issue of the Gentleman’s Magazine, is the month and year, followed by the table of contents (each issue via the link will show an image of this – typically the last image posted). For the first time, I noticed the calligraphy that follows “CONTAINING” and precedes the article headings and their corresponding page numbers. “More in Quantity and greater Variety than any Book of the Kind and Price.” While I have nothing to compare it to, I can attest that of the thirty-seven distinct articles listed for March of 1782, the subject matter ranges from Parliamentary debates to a Swiss underground road, and includes bull-baiting and the wool trade along the way. The regular coverage of weather, news from around the world, births and marriages and deaths, trials, and literary reviews is fit in around the special bits.
In particular, my interest was caught by “Usual Causes of Bankruptcy, Caution against — ” and turned to page 138 to read.
In all ages there have been men, who, by sudden losses, by entering into indiscreet obligations, by improvident conduct, or through fraudulent designs, have become, or pretended to become, incompetent to the discharges of their just debts; but the number of bankrupts which now appear in every Gazette is a subject of serious and alarming consideration.
Along with the obvious financial harm that can be caused by frivolous living and participation in gambling, the author addresses the lack of care and foresight that must be viewed as the social responsibility of every gentleman, in order to enable him to properly discharge his debts and contribute to the public funds by means of taxes. He recommends annual reflection for the purpose of seeing areas of weakness in funding, and to not allow debts to unknowingly pile up beyond the ability to repay. Then, he maintains, steps toward frugality can be made in enough time to avert distress. Finally, he offers as example the late Sir Stephen Theodore Janssen who he terms a “virtuous citizen.” He records the words of Sir Stephen, addressed to the Livery, as he deems them of value to the general population. The speech concludes in this way:
I do further declare that it is my determined resolution to continue living in the same frugal manner, till the last shilling is discharged; and in case any turn of fortune should happen to me, my whole just debts shall be discharged so much the sooner, as I am determined to persevere in preserving the character of an honest man.
Many Thanks to Give…
May 3, 2021 by Laura Heilenman · Leave a Comment
My family often jokes with me (maybe about me ) when they say, “she can use Disney World as an example for anything.” They aren’t wrong and have accurately pegged me as a bit of a Disney fanatic. I won’t bore you with all the reasons I have for loving this place but I will tell you how it came to mind today as I was perusing an issue published by Frederick Douglass. For those of you who have visited Disney World or more specifically Epcot, I hope you have experienced Spaceship Earth. I never tire of riding this attraction and hearing Dame Judy Dench recount mankind’s history of communication to me as I gaze at the vignettes on each side of my “time machine”. At one point, she is describing how, since the invention of papyrus, knowledge is able to be kept and shared more easily and so civilization advances more rapidly until …
“Rome falls, and the great Library of Alexandria in Egypt is burned. Much of our learning is destroyed—lost forever… or so we think. It turns out there are copies of some of these books in the libraries of the Middle East, being watched over by Arab and Jewish scholars. Call it the first backup system. The books are saved, and with them our dreams of the future.”
I get shivers every time I hear those words… so much knowledge… so much history… so many pages. Just now, as I pause to admire this precious Frederick Douglass paper lying on my desk, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for all the people we, the collectors of historic newspapers, have to thank for watching over the issues that later end up in our hands. Precious treasures of knowledge and history handed off to us, if even for a moment, to guard for future generations.