The Civil War… March, 1865
March 5, 2015 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment

March, 1865
The Traveler… the first admission… “black is beautiful” 1st coined…
February 2, 2015 by The Traveler · Leave a Comment
Today I traveled to New York City by the means of two different titles… The New York Times of February 2, 1865 and the Harper’s Weekly of February 25, 1865. In the New York Times I found “J. S. Rock (Colored,) of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts, was to-day, on motion of Senator Sumner, admitted an Attorney and Counselor in the Supreme Court of the United States.”
The Harper’s Weekly includes a nice illustration of “John R. Rock, Colored Counselor”. Within the article reads “…Mr. Rock is known in Boston as a first-class lawyer. This even, following two days after the passage by Congress of the proposition to amend the Constitution so as to abolish slavery in the United States, will be regarded by the future historian as a remarkable indication of the revolution which is going on in the sentiment of a great people. Mr. Rock has never been a slave. He represents the colored freeman, as Mr. Douglass represents the freeman. This extraordinary reversal of the Dred Scott decision is an act almost sublime…”
In doing further research on Mr. Rock, he is also credited with coining the phrase “black is beautiful” while giving a speech in Boston in March of 1858 as a refutation of the western idea that the physical features of African Americans were unattractive. However, further research has found that he did not say those exact words but did in essence about the beauty of the black people.
~The Traveler
The Civil War… January, 1865
January 15, 2015 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment

January, 1865
13th to 19th Amendments and Beyond…
September 29, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · 1 Comment
The National Park Service recently posted a page on one of their park sites titled: “Brown vs. Board of Education – The 13th to 19th Amendments and Beyond”. The post certainly is informative and their use of historic newspapers and magazines (Harper’s Weekly, Frank Leslie’s Illustrated, The Crisis, Taunton Daily Gazette) to provide visual and historic depth to the topic will be of particular interest to rare & early newspaper collectors. Please enjoy: Brown vs. Board of Education
Arlington Cemetery is consecrated… 150 years ago…
May 25, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Memorial Day – Unfortunately, for most, this hallowed holiday has degraded into nothing more than a day off to have family picnics and to rest. While these activities have value, too often we forget the cost paid by many to both provide and then preserve our ability to do so in a free and safe society. However, we recently discovered a video (see below) made to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the consecration of Arlington Cemetery which helps to bring us back to our roots. This also led us to explore our inventory to see if we could find any coverage which might relate – which, as you can see, we did in a New York Times from June 20, 1864.(see right) and a Harper’s Weekly from June 20, 1868 (see above). Feel free to read, watch, ponder… and be thankful.
Greater love has no One than this, that One lay down his life for His friends. (John 15:13)
Exploring Mother’s Day with Rare Newspapers…
May 2, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
With not much more than a week to go: Flowers… a card… taking her out for dinner… going to visit her… While these may be the most common gift ideas for Mother’s Day, another source are the beautiful prints found on the covers of and within historic newspapers. We’ve created a number of Pinterest Boards which feature such decorative prints. Please enjoy:
Valentine’s Day flowers… chocolates… rare newspapers?
February 13, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
“I love you!” Why is this so hard to say to those whom we love? The old adage goes that when I seasoned relic from the mid-20th century school of cold-knocks was asked why he never tells his wife he loves her, he replied, “I told her I loved her the day we married. If anything changes I’ll let her know.” While a bit humorous, one can’t help but hear the sad sound of little-girl dreams gone unrealized. Valentine’s Day has certainly served its role in helping to remind us to say the things that often go unsaid. Chocolates, flowers, and cards are great tokens of our love, but they pale in comparison to the very words themselves: I love you!
The following historic newspapers, like the February 16, 1861 issue of Harper’s Weekly (shown to the right), provide a chronological look through time at how the holiday has been viewed: Newspapers with Valentine’s Day coverage.
A New Year’s Retrospective thru Historic Newspapers…
December 31, 2013 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Pinterest has certainly become a wonderful forum for sharing favorite pictures, recipes, ideas, and more. While most historic and rare newspapers are known more for content rather than images, illustrated newspapers, especially from the 19th and early 20th centuries, are quite striking. Below please find a link to a collection of such original newspapers centered around a New Year’s theme. Please enjoy.
A New Year’s Retrospective thru Historic Newspapers…
The Gettysburg Address… What did he actually say?
November 19, 2013 by GuyHeilenman · 1 Comment
“Four score and seven years ago…”
150 years ago this month, President Abraham Lincoln delivered what we now consider to be one of the greatest speeches of all time. Interestingly enough, since 5 different manuscripts exist, there is some disagreement amongst historians concerning what he actually said. Might original newspapers of the day with eye witness accounts provide the answer? If the speech had been long we probably wouldn’t have a high degree of confidence in the newspaper reporters’ accounts, but the brevity of the speech certainly increases the probability of an accurate transcription. Original reports may not have the definitive answer to this question, but they certainly provide reasonable evidence regarding what was actually spoken. Once again, “History is never more fascinating than when it is read from the day it was first reported.“
View Authentic Newspapers with Gettysburg Address Coverage
A video look at Rare & Early Newspapers – revisted…
September 23, 2013 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Over the past 10 years we (RareNewspapers.com) have put together a series of videos designed to help educate novices about the hobby of collecting historic newspapers. While some may be a smidge old (compared to today’s high-tech standards), the information within is still pertinent. Pick a topic of interest, turn up the volume, and enjoy our perspective on the collectible.
Collecting 20th Century Authentic Newspapers
Enhance Your Sports Collectible with Historic Ne…
Collecting Scientific American Issues w/ Historic Content
Collecting 19th Century Authentic Newspapers
Original Wild West Era Newspapers – Rare Newspapers
Meet the Staff of Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers
Harper’s Weekly & The Civil War – Illustrated Collectibles!
The History of Rare & Historic Newspapers & The Hobby!
Collecting 18th Century (and earlier) Authentic Newspapers
The Rare Newspapers’ Private Collection – Collecting Ideas
Rare Newspapers as an Educational Tool