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Great Headlines Speak For Themselves… Martin Luther King, Jr. slain…
January 19, 2015 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
The best headlines need no commentary. Such is the case with the LOS ANGELES TIMES, April 5, 1968: “DR. KING SLAIN BY SNIPER IN MEMPHIS“
The Civil War… January, 1865
January 15, 2015 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
What news was reported in January, 1865 – 150 years ago? Such a walk back in time through the eyes of those who read the daily and weekly newspapers of the period can be quite revealing. This is why we often say, “History is never more fascinating than when it’s read from the day it was first reported.” The following link will take you back in time to show the available newspapers from the Rare & Early newspapers website. There’s no need to buy a thing. Simply enjoy the walk back in time:January, 1865
They put it in print…
January 12, 2015 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
Tabloid journalism was alive and well in 18th century America. If you thought “sleazy” reports were a concoction of the 20th century, you would be wrong, as newspaper editors had, for hundreds of years, few concerns about slandering those they found offensive or who were on the other side of the political fence.
The “Pennsylvania Ledger And Weekly Advertiser” of December 24, 1777” was a Tory newspaper (loyal to the King, not the American cause of independence) and on page 2 the editor printed portions of a letter from George Washington to his wife, intercepted on its route. Obviously no friend of Washington’s, he even publishes the letter as a separate piece and offers for sale in his shop: ” “The printer has received from New York a few copies of an intercepted letter from General Washington to his Lady, dated June 24, 1776, which he is now selling at his shop in Market Street. The following is an extract.”
Time capsule dating to 1795 included coins, newspapers…
January 9, 2015 by GuyHeilenman · 1 Comment
It’s all over the news (thank you API): “Time capsule dating to 1795 included coins, newspapers!” The time capsule was embedded in a cornerstone of the historic Massachusetts Statehouse by a group which included Samuel Adams and Paul Revere. The contents, in part, contained a number of coins, a silver plate with one of Paul Revere’s engravings – often used in the creation of the mastheads for various Boston area newspapers, and several late-18th century Boston newspapers. As newspaper collectors ourselves, we’ll be anxious to discover their exact titles and dates. While we have several authentic issues from the 1700’s with either Boston mentions or which were printed in Boston, it will be interesting to see if those placed within the capsule were included due to noteworthy content, their containing Paul Revere engravings, or for yet another reason. A video and related article covering the opening of the capsule is available at: 18th Century Time Capsule
The Traveler… Johnson’s “Great Society”… death of a poet…
January 5, 2015 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
Today I traveled back to January 5, 1965 by way of The Springfield Union, Massachusetts (January 5, 1965). There I found the reporting of President Johnson’s 
State-of-the-Union message in which he presented several new programs. “…These are all parts of the Johnson design for a ‘Great Society’, he hopes will develop through decades ahead… the search begins for a way to ‘elevate the quality of our civilization.’…” This was to be for a better health care program for the elderly under the Social Security, to help develop regions suffering from distress and depression, new education programs, and more.
Also in the issue was the report of the death of poet and playwright T. S. Eliot. He won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1948 “for his outstanding pioneer contribution to present-day poetry”. His book of poetry “Old Possum’s Books of Practical Cats” is what the musical “Cats” was based on, which has been the third longest running show in Broadway history.
~The Traveler
When “white paper” was unavailable the presses kept running…
January 2, 2015 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
We recently came across an interesting issue of “The Daily Rocky Mountain News” from Denver, dated Oct. 4, 1864. The uniqueness was not in the reporting; it was in the newspaper itself. Rather than printed on traditional newsprint stock, this issue is printed on pink-colored tissue paper. Fortunately, although very flimsy, it is not the least bit fragile.
It was not unusual for print shops to run out of newsprint and to become inventive in finding ways to get out the day’s edition, particularly for newspapers in remote parts of the country as most paper mills were located in the Northeast. Think of the famous wallpaper issues from the Civil War. Some investigating came across the reason. One website on the history of the “Rocky Mountain News” noted that: “…When the Indian outbreak caused an embargo on traffic over the Western plains in 1864-5, he frequently ran out of white paper, and in such emergencies he printed the news on wrapping paper gathered from Denver stores…”. So this pink paper was wrapping paper. I wonder how long the need for “necessity paper” lasted. We also have two more issues with a similar date which are printed on yellow and green paper. In any case, very interesting curiosities for this fascinating hobby.
Before heading out to Your New Year’s Eve Party…
December 31, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
While celebrating the onset of the New Year through alcohol-blurred eyes has become an international tradition for many, before heading out to this year’s party, perhaps a gander at Dr. Benjamin Rush’s well known “Moral & Physical Thermometer” from the 18th century is in order (see below). While this work certainly holds a degree of validity, I wasn’t aware God measured morality according to such a scale, and I’ve searched without success to find such a tool within His Word. Might Dr. Rush have been using a different translation – or was this creation garnered from years of observation??? 🙂 Regardless, while no such measuring stick has been bestowed upon humanity by their Creator, taking heed to the inherit dangers of over-consumption and His warnings regarding drunkenness would be both a wise and safe way to begin the new year. The passengers and drivers of vehicles you’ll be passing on your way home thank you in advance. Cheers!
Great Headlines Speak For Themselves… Graf Zeppelin’s flight…
December 19, 2014 by The Traveler · 1 Comment
The best headlines need no commentary. Such is the case with The New York Times, October 16, 1928: “ ZEPPELIN SAFE AT LAKEHURST AFTER 111-HOUR FLIGHT; SOARS OVER THE WHITE HOUSE AND THEN OVER NEW YORK; MOORED TO MAST TILL WIND DROPS AT 2 A.M.; NOW IN HANGAR”…
The Traveler… capturing Pensacola… plundering away…
December 15, 2014 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
Today I traveled by the means of the Boston Patriot, December 17, 1814 (shown below) to Boston, Massachusetts. There I found that under the leadership of Maj. Gen. Jackson, Pensacola, West Florida, had been captured.The first portion of the report did not have details yet, however there is a “from an Office in Gen. Jackson’s army” letter. “I write you a few lines to tell you that I am alive and well. We took the town by a coup de main the 7th,… The Baranca has been blown up, and the object intended to be effected, to wit, preventing the British from entering the Bay, cannot now be obtained, so that we shall to day return to Mobile.”
Also reported is “The Brutal Enemy!”. “We learn that the enemy have descended the Rappahannock. Accounts from there state that their ascent up there was marked by a conduct every way worthy of the infamous Cockburn, plundering and burning on both shores and almost everything within their reach… They have laid in ashes the Court-house, prison, collector’s office, clerk’s office, and a large ware-house, and scarcely a building escaped plunder or damage… they broke into the family vault of Col. Richie, and ransacked the ashes of the dead…”.
~The Traveler
They sure don’t make’em like they used to…
December 12, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
How many things can you think of that are simply not made to the same quality standards as they once were? It would be fun to comprise such a list. However, when someone makes the statement, “They sure don’t make’em like they used to”, it is interesting to note the assumption that the object in question is no longer made as well. However, as the following article from a November 21, 1858 National Intelligencer reveals, thankfully, there are a few things which buck this assumption. Please enjoy… and feel free to send on your own list of things that are actually made better than they were in the past. Let’s transform this common phrase from a negative to a positive.
Note: The Hadley Falls Dam disaster (above), in what is currently Holyoke, Connecticut, drew considerable attention in the 19th century. In 1896, a Harper’s Weekly writer reflected, “The engineer took great pride in his work, and when it was finished, and the gates shut down, he is said to have irreverently exclaimed: ‘There! Those gates are shut, and God Almighty himself can not open them!’” Yet another example of man underestimating the power of God… or perhaps overestimating his own. 🙂