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This Month in History – December…
December 2, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
One of the most popular topics collectors of Rare & Early Newspapers seek are those with war reports. Due to the nature of the human condition, they are in relative abundance. However, primarily due to poor weather conditions often present in the month of December, such reporting does not dominate the news as much as during warmer months. So, what is a collector to collect during this month? Feel free to peruse the link below to see a host of other topics which collectors have found to be desirable. Sadly, war reporting will also be interspersed throughout.
NEWSPAPERS PUBLISHED IN DECEMBER
Announcing: Catalog #349 for December, 2024 – Rare & Early Newspapers for collectors…
November 29, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
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[The links above will redirect to the latest catalog in approx. 30 days
upon which time it will update to the most recent catalog.]
Hidden gems – Searching for coverage of an 1850 shipwreck…
November 22, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Yesterday I went on a hunt for a report on the death of Margarette Fuller whose life was unexpectedly cut short in a shipwreck off the shores of Long Beach Island, New York. The wreck occurred on July 19, 1850, so I naturally started reading through our newspapers from the following day. My first stop was an issue of The Boston Museum. While it did not have coverage of the tragedy, it did have a few other gems: A report on the death of President Zachary Taylor, a balloon ascension, a detailed report on the gold in and dangers of California (nice for 1850), a poem which encouraged me to count each day as precious, and perhaps the most interesting of all, what appears to be a bit of sarcasm related to the transcendental views of Ralph Waldo Emerson – all amongst additional poems, a sheet of music, excerpts from a selection of contemporary literary items, and general news of the day. I love this collectible!
I hear dead people. Seriously, I really do!
November 8, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Spoiler Alert: If someone came up to those of us who were born between 1960 and 1980 and said, ” I see dead people!”, most would reply with something similar to: “I saw that movie too. It was awesome”. However, if someone came up to us and announced, “I hear dead people almost daily”, we would all think they were either joking or insane. Yet, each one of us can make this declaration with 100% legitimacy.
How? An issue of Scientific American dated November 17, 1877 was the first to announces the development of a process in which voices of the living could be captured and then replayed (and therefore heard), even after the one whose voice was recorded was dead, on a device recently created by the renowned electrician from New Jersey named Thomas Edison. At the time of the article the apparatus was called a “talking telephone”, but the name would eventually be changed to a “phonograph”.
While we cannot prove this with 100% confidence, a PBS special states that this appearance was the first such announcement in a nationally distributed publication. This special can be viewed at: The American Experience: The Phonograph (season 27, episode 3).
This Month in History – November…
November 4, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Let’s have some fun. Go to The History Place and pick three events which capture your attention. Limit yourself to 3 minutes.
… (waiting)
… (waiting)
… (waiting)
Welcome back. So, which events did you select?
Mine were:
November 1, 1848 – The first medical school for women opened in Boston. [Why did it take so long?]
November 4, 1922 – King Tut’s tomb was discovered at Luxor, Egypt. [“I see dead people.”]
November 6, 1860 – Abraham Lincoln was elected as the 16th U.S. President and the first Republican. [I’m sure we all picked this low-hanging fruit.]
Bonus selection: I would have said: “November 5, 1733 – The first issue of the New York Weekly Journal was published by John Peter Zenger, a colonial American printer and journalist. A year later, he was arrested on charges of libeling New York’s royal governor.”, but that may have come across a bit self-serving.
I’m sure if I had started at the middle or end of the list I would likely have a different “top three”. Furthermore, to be fair, the task was not served fairly by the time constraint. Oh well.
Although some of the events in their list may not have had corresponding reports within contemporary newspapers, my guess is more than a few did – and while each can be explored online, it is only through “rare & early newspapers” they can be easily pursued in context. Albeit not to Biblical proportions, context matters.
If your interest has been piqued, the following link will take you to an abundance of available newspapers containing reports of events which occurred in the month of November:
NEWSPAPERS PUBLISHED IN NOVEMBER
Announcing: Catalog #348 for November, 2024 – Rare & Early Newspapers…
November 1, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
The November catalog (#348) is now available. Shown below are links to various segments of the catalog, our currently discounted newspapers, and recent posts to the History’s Newsstand Blog. Please enjoy.
1) Catalog #348 (for November): This latest offering of authentic newspapers is comprised of over 300 new items, a selection which includes the following noteworthy issues: Lincoln’s famous ‘House Divided’ speech, a significant ‘pillar cartoon’: the Constitution is in effect, the death of Benjamin Franklin, a rare political cartoon on the Boston Port Bill, the King declares Americans free & independent, and more.
The following links are designed to help you explore all available items from this latest edition of our catalog:
- The Complete November Catalog (includes wholesale lots and ongoing listings)
1500-1799 (full view OR quick-scan/compact view)
1800-1899 (full view OR quick-scan/compact” view)
1900-Present (full view OR quick-scan/compact” view)
- Combined Catalogs (November’s, w/ remnants of the previous)
- PDF Version of the November Catalog
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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
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[The links above will redirect to the latest catalog in approx. 30 days
upon which time it will update to the most recent catalog.]
As Halloween approaches – “The Lady in the Furnace”. Yikes!
October 28, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Reality can often be stranger than fiction. Such is the case with “The Lady in the Furnace”. This true-life horror story (actual event) was first brought to my attention through a collector’s request: “Do you have any newspaper headlines on the Lake Bluff village hall furnace mystery burning of Elfredia Knaack on Oct.30, 1928?” My initial thought was this was going to be an off the grid event in a small town in the middle of nowhere, and our investigative efforts within our archives would be turn up empty. However, as I gathered information about the story so as to be an informed explorer, I was fascinated by what I learned. A severely burned young lady, unrequited love, a furnace, the mysterious imprint of a hand, a small town with its roots in the camp meeting movement of the late 1800’s, an actor with the last name of Hitchcock, spiritualism, secret “rendezvous”, the suggestion of ghosts, an unsolved mystery… What a weird story!
It didn’t take long before our staff realized this event had also captured the interest of those living at the time as we quickly found two issues with front-page reports – one from the city which has grown to nearly encompass this small town. Below please find a set of photos which include snapshots of some of the coverage found within the two issues (the Chicago Daily Tribune and The Day, from New London, CT – both dated on Halloween, October 31, 1928.
Whereas both issues have already been acquired by the one who sent us on this journey, interested individuals can learn more about this event by searching for Knaak Furnace 1928. And who knows, by the time this post “goes live”, we may have unearthed additional issues with coverage of this strange, but true event.
The October (2024) Newsletter from Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers…
October 18, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
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Welcome to the October newsletter from the Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers’ family. Autumn is here – with winter soon to follow. It won’t be long before most of us will consider grabbing an old newspaper and cozying up to a warm fire. In the meantime, perhaps a little bit of storing up future reading material is in order. 🙂
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How does your state’s Constitution compare?
October 14, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · 1 Comment
In simple terms, Constitutions are intended to be the framework which dictates how governments, institutions, and other various organizations are to function. They typically state both the rights of those whom they cover, along with the boundaries from which those in power must rule. They are not mere suggestions, and they nearly always make it VERY difficult to make modifications so as to prevent both the current winds of public opinion or over-reaching power-mongers to make changes to suite their own wants, desires, and opinions. However, as the U.S. Constitution, through the initial “Bill of Rights” and following Amendments clearly shows, revisions can be made. Of course, in doing so, the rules set forth within the constitution itself must be followed or the document itself means nothing.
When it comes to the very foundation of the U.S. – and dare I say its sustainability, no one can argue that the U.S. Constitution, along with its properly “agreed upon” amendments, is 2nd-to-none. In my opinion, each citizen should take personal ownership in becoming intimately familiar with its stated rights, privileges, and responsibilities granted to “We the People“, and the restrictions it places upon those who govern. While this plea will likely be met with general enthusiasm, sadly, doing so falls into the same bucket where “more exercise”, “eating better”, and a host of New Year’s resolutions are found. As the recently deceased philosopher David Crosby once said, “An ignorant [uniformed] populace is ripe for manipulation by despots [leaders who do not have their own best interests in mind]”.
Whew! Now I can step down from my soapbox and move on to the marginally related inspiration for the above rabbit trail.
State Constitutions
While most U.S. citizens still have a degree of familiarity with the Constitution which frames the Federal Government, thanks to recent events, many are just now becoming aware that the state in which they reside also has rock-sold guidelines from which they must function – i.e., their own constitution. I’ve always been fascinated by both the similarities and differences between my home state of Pennsylvania’s constitution and the U.S. Constitution, but I would guess I’m in a minority. Yet, “Knowlege is Power” – or at least a degree of protection. I was recently reminded of this as I came upon a pair of Nile’s Weekly Register’s from the 1820’s which printed the entire text of the newly ratified Constitution of Maine. Shown below are photos with portion of the text. When you think of the U.S. Constitution, does any of Maine’s sound familiar? Different? How about your own state’s constitution?
One of the opportunities/responsibilities we have as citizens at the national, state, and local levels, as dictated in both federal and state constitutions, is the right to vote. What a privilege! Yet, truth is, “We the People” have widely varied views of what we deem to be most important when it comes to those who govern us. While I am an advocate for open discourse in the face of diametrically opposed viewpoints, and can respect (and even care for) those who stand opposed to my own personal beliefs, my only hope as an American is that we all would continue to agree to live within the guidelines of the U.S. Constitution (and those of the state in which we each reside), and vote for leaders who will do the same – AND, when changes are warranted, will go through the prescribed channels for making modification.
Oops… I somehow stepped back up on my soapbox. Sorry about that. Well… not really. 🙂
Happy voting Oh, and in the meantime, why not have a little fun by pulling up your own state’s constitution and compare it to the one that rules us all (sorry for using a bit of Tolkeinese)?
This Month in History – October…
October 7, 2024 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
A continuation of our ongoing series: This Month in History – October Edition…
Not to be repetitive, however, we are often asked how we find newspaper reports covering such a wide variety of topics. Part of the answer is simply longevity. We’ve been collecting and offering issues for a half-century, and time itself as helped us amass an extensive database of notable events. Customer requests, what we’ve learned in school, the news, historical books and movies, etc. have all contributed to the cause. However, our capacity for discovery exploded with the development of the internet. Thanks to an abundance of historical websites, we can now search by day, week, month, era, event, and more in our quest to “mine” our archives. One such resource (among many) is The History Place. Through this online database one can find events by the day, week, month, and year.
As each month approaches, we often access this (or a similar) resource to search for new/fresh topics to explore. In our most recent effort, we search for historic events, discovers, accomplishments, etc. which occurred in the month of August. Our results were found here: The History Place – Month of October.
If you take a few moments to scan their index of October events, perhaps you’ll see an overlap between some of those shown and our currently listed newspapers dated in October through time (see below). If you decide to explore, we hope you enjoy.
NEWSPAPERS PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER