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My collecting story… D.P. in Brentwood, TN…
April 27, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Below we continue our series in which we post the “stories” graciously submitted by our collecting friends during the pandemic of 2020.
My Favorite Newspaper from Timothy & Guy…
Back in 2009 the list had an 1856 copy of the Concord (NH) Patriot and State Gazette which included an ad for Flagg & Aymar’s Circus. I bought the paper because, being a circus historian, I knew that old John Robinson had sold his interest in the Robinson and Eldred circus to his partner Gil Eldred in Richmond, VA, that year and had used the money to purchase the Flagg & Aymar show, renaming it John Robinson’s Circus. Under several ownerships the title was active as late as 1930 and was advertised as the oldest circus in America,
The plot thickens: Several items that were delivered to my porch on the same day vanished- to this day I am certain who stole them for spite over my firing a certain party.
Time passes and in 2015 I called Guy and asked if there was any possibility of their having another copy of that paper. By sheer coincidence they had one and intended to add it to the next list. I bought it as quickly as I can tell the story. Here the ad is in my little circus museum in Nashville.
As additional “stories” are posted they will be available at: MY COLLECTING STORY. We did this many years ago as well – and their posts are also included.
My Story… C. H. in Olive Branch, MS…
April 24, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Below we continue our series in which we post the “stories” graciously submitted by our collecting friends during the pandemic of 2020.
How I got into collecting was on one afternoon in the late 80s my Grandmother pulled out all these newspapers she kept and I spent hours just going through them. She had all the JFK, Bobby Kennedy, MLK newspapers including the newspapers on the march Dr. King had a few days before his death, the Moon landing, Vietnam, Watergate, the hostage crisis in Iran and last but not least every newspaper on the death of Elvis. I was hooked after looking at all these and every chance I got I would pull them out just to look at them again. This did annoy her but it kept me occupied.
The first newspaper I kept that got my own collection going was the newspaper on the death of Lucille Ball, in April 1989. I don’t know why I stopped after that but I didn’t pick up the hobby again until The Gulf War in 1991 and I haven’t stopped since. For Christmas of 1996, my Grandmother gave me all her newspapers which was the second best gift I got that Christmas, hey you can’t beat a car.
In 1998, my collection began to change when I started ordering newspapers from another company. I received several newspapers and I would never have found around here at any antique shops. I stopped ordering from them because they had a lack of interest in customer service In 2006 I discovered Hughes Rare and Early Newspapers and I will never order a newspaper from anyone else.
From that one newspaper from 1989 my collection now stands in the thousands. I have newspapers from every decade going back to the 1680s. My favorites are newspapers on The Salem Witch Trials, a map of the British Colonies in North America in 1754, and so many more that would fill this page. But some of my personal favorites are ones that would probably not be considered historic such as papers I’ve collected on movie openings and newspaper articles on TV shows that I liked such as Lost, Game of Thrones and all things Star Wars.
If you ask me why should you collect old newspapers I would have to say if you want to know what really happened and how the people felt about them, read an old newspaper don’t listen to some talking head on television who has their own bias on the subject. Hope I didn’t bore you.
As additional “stories” are posted they will be available at: MY COLLECTING STORY. We did this many years ago as well – and their posts are also included.
My collecting story… B.R. in Grosse Ile, Michigan…
April 20, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Below we continue our series in which we post the “stories” graciously submitted by our collecting friends during the pandemic of 2020.
Several years ago I ‘discovered’ the wonderful world of rare newspapers offered by Tim Hughes on eBay. I couldn’t believe what he had! Amazing rarities that I’ve never seen offered by anyone else anywhere else! I quickly became hooked.As additional “stories” are posted they will be available at: MY COLLECTING STORY. We did this many years ago as well – and their posts are also included.
The April (2020) Newsletter from Rare & Early Newspapers…
April 17, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
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Which issue within your collection do you value the most and why?
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Have you ever found something you consider special within an issue you’ve collected that you did not know was present prior to your decision to obtain it? If so, what did you find?
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Why do you collect rare/historic newspapers? How did you get started? Tell us your story.
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My collecting story… R. L. in Daytona Beach, Florida…
April 13, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Below we continue our series in which we post the “stories” graciously submitted by our collecting friends during the pandemic of 2020.
Newspapers Offer A Glimpse Into the Past
I don’t know if some things never change, or if history simply has a habit of repeating itself. As I watch today’s TV news in the era of the Corona Virus, I see many of the same challenges to society today that faced a particular society 76 years ago. Both then and now, people were searching for normalcy in their everyday lives.
Harper’s Weekly, September 11, 1858
Fall 1944 was a time when World War 2 was still raging across the globe. My period newspaper reports that “members of the International and Swedish Red Cross have been obliged to discontinue their activities…” Today, we hear of the possibility of hospitals becoming over-run and shutting their doors.
In 1944, an article headlined Enormous Drain On Resources feels just as relevant now as it did back then. As we see images of grocery stores with empty shelves, I am reading about food shortages which existed in 1944, with potato thieves being fined — or even going to jail. Yet despite shortages and community hardship, then and now, everyday life carried on. While Jeffrey Morris was born on November 4, an 85 year old widow, Marie Guilbert, died on the 6th. The cycle of life still rolls on today.
Meanwhile, one subscriber offered a billiard table for sale to help pass the long winter nights. The editor offered a column titled How to Enjoy Long Evenings. Reading, creating arts & crafts, or even doodling sounds just as good to folks quarantined today, as it did to folks back then in a time of war.
What I find really amazing is that the wartime newspaper so relevant today is the Guernsey Evening Press published on November 22, 1944. It was written in English, under Nazi supervision, on one of the German-occupied Channel Islands. I believe its readers would certainly know how to face the current hardships we are enduring, and then some.
Newspapers from the past offer a glimpse into everyday lives. For me, that is the lure of collecting old newspapers. They are our personal connection to the people who lived while history was unfolding. Many of their hopes and fears and challenges were the same then, as ours are today.
As additional “stories” are posted they will be available at: MY COLLECTING STORY. We did this many years ago as well – and their posts are also included.
My collecting story… M.B. in Sedro-Woolley, WA…
April 9, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Below we continue our series in which we post the “stories” graciously submitted by our collecting friends during the pandemic of 2020.
I’ve been collecting newspapers of historic events for 50 years. In a purchase last year I was interested in a July 1960 New York Times front page story on the Democratic Party’s nomination of John Kennedy for president. As I perused the inside content I found the real treasure: the Books of The Times review of Harper Lee’s new novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” written by Herbert Mitgang. Many years ago, I worked with his son Lee Mitgang at the Associated Press in New York City.
As additional “stories” are posted they will be available at: MY COLLECTING STORY. We did this many years ago as well – and their posts are also included.
My collecting story… J.R. in Ipswich (UK)…
April 7, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Below we continue our series in which we post the “stories” graciously submitted by our collecting friends during the pandemic of 2020.
In 1945 at the end of the war I was eight and saw my father save the Daily Telegraph proclaiming VE (victory in Europe) Day. I was already an avid newspaper reader (no television then) and decided to add newspapers I found interesting – VJ Day, Nuremberg Trials, Princess Elizabeth wedding, Dakota plane lost in the Alps etc. Soon people gave me old newspapers they had – an aunt gave me Edward/ Mrs Simpson abdication papers and my grandparents two 18th century ones.
This slow rate of collecting continued until the mid 1980s when my income allowed me to spend on myself as well as a wife and the children. I found book shops in London, where we lived at the time, where I could fill the gaps in years which were blank and have reference to most historical events, particularly those relating to improvements in social well-being. By this time I had all years from 1661 and references to most riots, bread marches, demonstrations for improved parliamentary representation, and suffragettes.
The children having long departed and my wife having died I found I had more time (and money) and now am collecting titles as my main interest. This means I am acquiring and understanding how newspapers were able to develop and change their format and means of attracting customers.The growth of size, number of pages, type change, introduction of illustrations and then photographs. Also the relationships of one newspaper to another and the takeovers, combinations and title changes. Now of course I am monitoring their decline.
By collecting different titles I have been able to acquire many short lived extreme left and right wing newspapers and also Irish Republican ones.
After 75 years collecting I now have over 3600 newspapers going back to 1642 and 1900 different titles. What am I going to do with them? None of my family wants them although I am still working on one son-in-law, so they are being offered to my local museum in Ipswich- after many more years of my collecting!
As additional “stories” are posted they will be available at: MY COLLECTING STORY. We did this many years ago as well – and their posts are also included.
My collecting story… R.P. in Boise, Idaho…
March 31, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
As an attempt to make good use of the extra time many of us now have as a result of the current restrictions on mobility, about a week ago (from this post) we sent out an email asking collectors to submit their collecting stories. Three topics were suggested:
- Which newspaper within your collection do you value the most and why?
- Have you ever found something you consider special within an issue you’ve collected that you did not know was present prior to your decision to obtain it? If so, what did you find?
- Why do you collect rare/historic newspapers? How did you get started?
The response to-date has been overwhelming (and new entries are welcome – just email them to me at guy@rarenewspapers.com). Over the next few months our plan is to post 1-2 per week. Today we begin with a contribution from R.P. in Boise, Idaho. Enjoy.
In response to your request for posts regarding your customer’s collections I would like to answer a bit of all three suggested topics.
I have been a rare book collector for over 45 years. I am a native Oregonian who lives in Idaho. As a Northwesterner with an interest in history, early on I began to collect first editions of accounts of early expeditions and travels to the western United States. Because Lewis and Clark reported the first overland expedition to the Pacific across mostly territory controlled by the United States, I needed to begin adding their expedition items to my collection.
In my early collecting days, Lewis and Clark first editions were beyond my means. However, accounts of their expedition exploits, and President Jefferson’s early messages to Congress, were available in newspapers and some magazines. So I began collecting as many newspaper recordings about the expedition as I could find. My collection isn’t huge, but it provides an immediacy which even first edition books don’t provide since all books (even Congressional Journals) were printed well after the activities being reported. The close proximity of a newspaper account to the actual event occurrence is a primary reason why I collect newspapers and 18th Century American magazines.
Your second suggestion asks about surprises. From your last catalog I purchased a newspaper from 1848 which contained a Congressional recording of three votes made by Abraham Lincoln while he was in the House of Representatives. Although I am not a Lincoln collector, I thought this was interesting and worth owning. Also, the price was right. When I perused the Newspaper, I saw two articles regarding the soon to be completed establishment of a new Oregon Territory. The writers of both articles (one was a Georgia senator and the other was South Carolina’s John Calhoun) advocated that immigrants to Oregon be able to bring their slaves to the territory with the retention of their slave status. Happily, Oregon did not become a slave territory nor a slave state.
These articles fit well with my reasonably large collection of books, maps and ephemera related to the Oregon Territory which encompassed the present states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho and parts of Wyoming and Montana.
As additional “stories” are posted they will be available at: MY COLLECTING STORY. We did this many years ago as well – and their posts are also included.
Collector Historic Newspapers – A discussion with Tim Hughes…
March 27, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
On March 3, 2020 Mike Safo conducted a podcast with the Tim Hughes, founder of Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers. His textual intro. to the podcast states:
Joined today by the owner and founder of Rarenewspapers.com, Timothy Hughes. Tim and I talk about our weird passion of collecting newspapers and discuss the current state of collecting and the industry today. We chat about his infamous hometown of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, the home of the Little League World Series. How before the newspaper business Tim was employed by Little League International. He talks about the famous 1980 World Series and how that put the LLWS on the map and golfing with Mike Mussina. Tim takes us back to collecting coins and stamps and how buying a 3-dollar newspaper changed everything. From leaving employment with Little League International to how he acquired over a million newspapers from the 1600a to present day. He tells us which newspaper’s he’ll never sell, which are the most in demand and why the hobby is growing.
The entire, informative podcast can be heard at: Mike Safo’s Interview With Tim Hughes
Mike describes himself as: “Just a regular New York City guy who gets to interview some pretty amazing people… A conversation/hangout podcast with friends, athletes, authors, celebrities, fighters, and the world’s most fascinating people. ‘The greatest podcast ever’ – My Mom”
A few personal thoughts on the current pandemic – with a link to the past…
March 19, 2020 by GuyHeilenman · 3 Comments
It is rare I use this space to share personal thoughts which stroll into areas not directly related to Rare & Early Newspapers. If you are uncomfortable with views which may not match your own, please do not continue reading. I will certainly not be offended. If you decide to continue, please enjoy.
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Large-scale tragedy comes in many forms and often comes quickly. Whether by severe weather (flood, hurricane, drought, etc.), earthquake, war, severe economic crisis, or disease, the death, destruction, and broken lives (of those who survive) have been scattered throughout time. 
As we now face a nightmarish pandemic, it is easy to think myopically, and in so doing, fear, anxiety, and panic often win the day. Yet, what is a reasoned response? Where do we turn for strength? Politicians and other world leaders can help, but they are often mere fingers in a dyke – trying hopelessly to restrain the flood of pending devastation. Religious leaders can help point us to the future, and historians can direct us to the past (see examples through time), and family and friends can provide us with a degree of comfort. Still, in the end, most succumb either physically or emotionally to its crushing, callous, and often capricious impact on the world as they… and now as we know it.
This reality, in conjunction with the current pandemic, has caused many to reflect on life, death, and what is and is not important – and I’m certainly no exception. Each morning I try to read a passage from the Bible and jot down my thoughts as a written prayer-response to what I’ve read. What follows is my last two entries. If they are an encouragement to even a few, great. However, please know yourself. If one man’s meanderings from a Christian perspective would be offensive to you, please do not continue – but know you are in my thoughts and prayers as we walk through the shadow of death. You may still wish to explore the link above which shows examples of similar circumstances through time. We are not alone. 🙂
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A simple prayer (3/14/2020)… Psalm 61:1-4 “O God, listen to my cry! Hear my prayer! From the ends of the earth, I cry to You for help when my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the towering Rock of safety, for YOU ARE my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me. Let me live forever in Your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of Your wings!”
A simple prayer (3/16/2020)… Romans 9:30-33 “What does all this mean? Even though the Gentiles were not trying to follow God’s standards, they were made right with God. And it was by faith that this took place. But the people of Israel, who tried so hard to get right with God by keeping The Law, never succeeded. Why not? Because they were trying to get right with God by keeping The Law instead of by trusting in Him. They stumbled over the great rock in their path. God warned them of this in the Scriptures when He said, “I am placing a Stone in Jerusalem that makes people stumble, a Rock that makes them fall. But anyone who trusts in Him will never be disgraced.”
Dear Lord, Thank You. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You for the above passage which drives home the nature and beauty of Your grace. While we often (rightfully) criticize the Pharisees for being whitewashed sepulchers – white and clean on the outside but on the inside filled with dead men’s bones, many of the Israelites did pursue The Law without ill motives – simply as a means for obtaining righteousness. Yet, Your Word overflows with examples which hammer home the truth that good intentions are simply not good enough. This point was made clear from as early on as the Garden. Adam and Eve sought and made coverings of fig leaves to cover their nakedness. Well intended? Perhaps. Good enough? No. Cain followed with providing a sacrifice from the fruit of his labor. Well intended? Perhaps. Good enough? Again, no. This same pattern was played out over and over again throughout Your Word, and culminated in the New Testament when we were told about a rich young ruler who had made every intention of keeping The Law from youth, yet in a matter of seconds, was revealed by Your Son to be lacking. It’s not as if this should catch us off guard, for Your Word in Isaiah 64:6 says, “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.” Yet, still today many seek to gain good standing with You by making sure their good deeds outweigh their bad. Once again… Well intended? Perhaps. Good enough? Sadly, and often tragically, no.
The bottom line: You are the Creator, we are the created… You are the Potter, we are the clay… You are Sovereign, we are not. Regardless of what we think or do, You are The One who decides the method for our salvation. Thankfully, in Your great mercy, You did supply both the method and the means: through faith in what was accomplished by Your Son when He gave Himself up as a sacrifice for the sins of the world. Why is this the only Way? Because You said so. Why is this Good News? Because even our best efforts, no matter how well intended, could never change our very nature – a systemic problem which was passed down to us from Adam and validated endlessly by our own actions – the mother of all pandemics which had and continues to have a 100% kill-rate apart from You. Without the righteousness provided for us through Your Son, we are merely dead men walking. We don’t need a fix, we need a complete redo. We need to be born again. Thankfully, You provided for us that which we could not provide for ourselves: the ultimate Cure – spiritual rebirth… a new heart… the You-Sourced breath of life itself.
Lord, thank You for Your great plan of salvation. Thank you for your mercy. Thank You for Your grace. Thank You for the method and the means. Thank You for forgiveness. Thank You for a hope which reached beyond the grave. Thank You for faith. Although I don’t get it, thank You for wanting a relationship with me. Thank You as well for birthing in me a desire to have a relationship with You. Now that I think of it, thanks for everything. Amen
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A Simple Prayer’s reading schedule may be viewed at:
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