This Month in History – February…
February 3, 2025 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Today “This Month in History” turns the spotlight on the shortest month of the year – February. While searching through the available newspapers in order to select one to use as the representative photo, my initial short-list of possibilities included newspapers featuring coverage of the St. Valentine’s Day massacre in Chicago, the sinking of the Battleship Maine (which led to the Spanish-American War), the Death of Geronimo, the assassination of Malcolm X, and similar. As I pondered which to pick, it occurred to me all of my selections were focused on the reporting of “bad news”. Wishing to take a different approach, I searched again for reports of positive events and discovered coverage of the passage of the 15th Amendment, the founding of The Boy Scouts of America, Nelson Mandela’s release from prison, one with a mention of the opening of the first publicly funded school in the U.S., Abraham Lincoln’s famous “Cooper Union” speech, and more. Finally, after much consideration, I landed on the perfect choice – a newspaper announcing…
If you think this was a poor or inappropriate selection you probably haven’t seen the movie. While it may not be anywhere close to the most important, historic, or “collectible” newspaper published in the month of February, it nails the age-old proverb regarding a cure for much of what ails us: “A cheerful heart is good medicine…” (Proverbs 17:22).
So, as you take a gander at the list of newspapers published in the month of February, although a smidge belated, the Rare & Early Newspapers Family wishes you a cheerful and healthy New Year!
NEWSPAPERS PUBLISHED IN FEBRUARY
Announcing: Catalog #351 for February 2025 – Rare & Early Newspapers…
January 31, 2025 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.]
The reason I collected it: never-bound issues…
January 24, 2025 by TimHughes · 1 Comment
For the serious collector, the ideal state for a collectible newspaper is one as sold on the streets or delivered to a subscriber, meaning never having been bound nor trimmed at the margins, and almost certainly read by someone on the day of issue. They are, however, in the minority of those available on the collector market.
Most newspapers found today were, at one point, bound into a volume, either 3 months, 6 months, or a full year’s editions per volume depending on the number of pages. Binding consecutive issues was an efficient way for institutions to store newspapers on their shelves, making them easily available for researchers, looking much like a large book with the spine noting the title and time period. Most were guillotined at the edges to make the three exposed margins even and more aesthetically pleasing, albeit with the loss of a small portion of the original newspaper.
With the advent of microfilm and microfiche–and now digital storage–institutions began converting their holdings to such user-friendly formats, often discarding the hard copies to save space on their shelves. Such discarded volumes often found their way into the hands of collectors who disbound the volumes to secure those issues of significance for their collections. Disbound newspapers are usually easy to spot as they often have glue remnants at the spine and/or binding slits, holes or irregularity where strings once held the issues into the volume. Issues as sold on the streets will not have binding evidence at the spine and their margins are wider and typically uneven, evidence of the limitations of paper-making in the era.
Not surprisingly, disbound issues tend to be in better condition having been protected by the bindings for 100 years or more. They are also far more plentiful than never-bound issues. Never-bound newspapers did not enjoy such protection through the years and tend to show more wear or staining, most having been lost or destroyed in time. So when a never-bound newspaper is found in great condition, it is a rarity and a prime choice for a personal collection.
There is an emotional intrigue to never-bound issues as well which no collector should overlook.
Bound issues were more typically set aside on the day printed, stacked, and later bound into a volume without having been read by anyone on the date issued, and perhaps by no one for hundreds of years. It’s the same paper, original to the date, but more emotionally sterile.
Never-bound newspapers were once owned by a subscriber (name typically handwritten at the top) or purchased at the corner newsstand allowing today’s collector a sense of fascination in holding & reading a newspaper once read by someone many years ago. One gains a more personal appreciation of history knowing the subscriber first learned of Lincoln’s assassination from the newspaper now in your collection. Remember, no radio, television, or internet announcing the event within moments of it happening.
Enjoy the hobby, and when the option permits, think about being more discriminating in what ends up in your collection.
This Month in History – January…
January 10, 2025 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
When considering the month of January, what historical events come to mind? Perhaps Lincoln signing the final version of the Emancipation Proclamation, Fidel Castro seizing power in Cuba, the discovery of King Tut’s sarcophagus, Greenland becoming America’s 51st U.S. (joking, but Alaska did become the 49th state in the month of January), the first U.S. commercial bank’s opening in Philadelphia, the ratification of the 11th Amendment, and/or cigarettes finally declared to be hazardous to one’s health would be among your list. Whereas reading books about such events is common practice – and if well-written, informative, reading the actual newspaper accounts of these events within 24 hours of their occurrence within the context of other news of the day has the power to provide a breadth and depth of understanding which is hard to achieve through other primary sources.
The link below will take you to a chronological list (1600’s-20th century) of our currently available newspapers from the month of January. There’s no need to buy anything. Simply enjoy your trek through time via the eyes of those who were present.
NEWSPAPERS PUBLISHED IN JANAURY
Announcing: Catalog #350 for January, 2025 – Rare & Early Newspapers for collectors…
January 3, 2025 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.]
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!
The reason I collected it: The Spy…
November 14, 2024 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
Sometimes newspapers are just so odd that they defy description, and when we encounter such, they were added to the private collection.
One such title is “The Spy” (see below), or as noted inside “The Village Spy”. The masthead does not include a city or state of publication, other than: “Printed In Recluse” and the date: May 13, 1824. Printed on page two the title is actually: “The Village Spy” noting the publication place as: “City of Mud” along with the date.
This is the volume 1, number 7 issue, about which we can find nothing online. Noted in the masthead: “Edited by Gen. Consequence, and His Associates”.
This would appear to be an early comic or satirical newspaper. All of the front page is a play: “…to be performed soon at some place in the city of Mud.” Other odd notes take up pages 2, 3 and 4 including two poems.
We offer this post to allow others to do a bit of investigation if they find this intriguing, or perhaps someone already knows of this newspaper?
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)
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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