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Value of the internet…
May 13, 2010 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
I never fail to be amazed at the incredible wealth of information which is available on the internet, and I never fail to be thankful for such an incredible resource, particularly remembering what it took thirty years ago to research a newspaper.
Back in the 1970’s and ’80’s, when I wrote up an issue for the catalog I had to pull out the encyclopedia if I was unsure of a specific date or consequences of a certain battle. And I also kept close at hand other resources which would document events I was finding in our inventory of newspapers.
But today, more information than I could possibly need flashes on my screen in a matter of seconds. What was the date James Buchanan died? Wikipedia tells me more quickly then it takes me to type “james buchanan”. Many times I’ll read an interesting article about a person which sounds intriguing but is lost to my memory. The web quickly provides a wealth of detail.
What brings this to mind is an entry I worked on this morning. The “Army & Navy Journal” of Dec. 3, 1864 has a touching item about a Mrs. Bixby who received a letter of condolence from Abraham Lincoln for her loss of five sons in the Civil War, the sixth was lying wounded in a hospital. The article includes the letter by Lincoln. Not having heard of this letter, as a whim I decided to Google “mrs. Bixby letter” to see if this was an “event”. To my surprise there is more to the story than the article could give, thanks to the “Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln”.
The touching letter by President Lincoln can be read in the photo. Below is the “rest of the story”:
Credit: “Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln”: In the fall of 1864, Massachusetts Governor John A. Andrew wrote to President Lincoln asking him to express condolences to Mrs. Lydia Bixby, a widow who was believed to have lost five sons during the Civil War. Lincoln’s letter to her was printed by the Boston Evening Transcript. Later it was revealed that only two of Mrs. Bixby’s five sons died in battle (Charles and Oliver). One deserted the army, one was honorably discharged, and another deserted or died a prisoner of war.
The authorship of the letter has been debated by scholars, some of whom believe it was written instead by John Hay, one of Lincoln’s White House secretaries. The original letter was destroyed by Mrs. Bixby, who was a Confederate sympathizer and disliked President Lincoln. Copies of an early forgery have been circulating for many years, causing some people to believe they have the original letter.
The point of this piece is to cite just one example how the internet opens a whole new world to the tidbits of history we find within early newspapers. A 150 year old article might pique the curiosity, but it is the internet which can satisfy. It’s a fascinating combination of very old & very new technology which fit so well in this hobby we love. Give the internet a try with some articles in your collection. You may be pleasantly surprised at what you will find.
Featured websites – The Liberator Files…
April 22, 2010 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Within the past few months, three members of Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers each recommended the same website, The Liberator Files, as a great resource for exploring this well-known abolitionist title from the early/mid 1800’s. This Boston paper was published by William Lloyd Garrison, and provides wonderful context for this formative period in U.S. history – from the early 1830’s through the end of the Civil War. The Liberator Files, developed and maintained by Horace Seldon, includes a wealth of abolitionist related commentary in conjunction with a host of scanned Liberator images from William Lloyd Garrison’s own collection, which are currently held at the Boston Public Library. Thanks Horace, for your significant contribution to the world of rare & historic newspapers. Please enjoy!
Feel free to share with the rare newspapers community other historical and/or rare newspaper oriented websites you’ve found to be of use.
The Civil War…
April 1, 2010 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Not too long ago we had a collector ask several questions regarding rare newspapers from the Civil War. We thought others might be interested in the questions and responses as well.
Most major city papers had a daily and bi-weekly edition, and some a tri-weekly edition. The cost of a newspaper from the pre-1890 era was no small expense, so the latter two were more affordable for many. I suspect the “Evening Edition” did not publish 7 days a week; perhaps 2 or 3, maybe 4 (?). If this was the case it was easy for them to fill in the balance of the issue with news from a day or two before as the type was already set and those who purchased it hadn’t read it. This was more clearly defined with the Phila. Inq. run we had because they had in the first column that it was the “tri-weekly” edition, and in the same issue was another masthead from the day before. The Tribune did not print such a notice, or at least I haven’t found it yet.
And such editions with 2 masthead are quite uncommon because libraries would have only subscribed to the regular daily edition, given their desire to document all news for every day, and 95% of early newspapers on the market came from some institution after microfilming. So the 2 masthead issues are typically only found as never-bound issues which have survived the years in attics, trunks, etc.
Thanks for the member inquiry which led to these responses from Tim. Feel free to send your questions, comments as well.
Featured websites – TeachHistory.com
March 18, 2010 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Teachers with a love of history, listen up! The following resource can improve your curriculum and make you a stronger educator. Students of history will enjoy the breadth and depth of the historical journey as well.
TeachHistory is a fantastic website (blog), developed and maintained by Ben Edwards, which provides engaging information & a plethora of useful educational resources related to history. It describes itself as:
“a blog dedicated to social studies and history teachers across the United States who use Colonial American history, imagination and multisensory teaching methods to inspire their students. Our goal is to provide a resource where teachers like you can access information about colonial history plus technologies, methods and products that are making a difference in education today.”
While Ben’s experience with teachers and students is varied, perhaps the most useful channel for keeping him in touch with the pulse of teacher/student interests and needs occur via the many intimate conversations had while engaging teachers and students through his Walking Tours of Historic Boston. Combine this with both his (historic) heritage and his natural love of history, and you have the making of a blog which is sure to stay relevant over time. Some of the recent posts include:
Colonel Shaw, Sergeant Carney and the 54th Massachusetts
Remembering Alex Haley and Roots
Black History Month: A Tribute to Phillis Wheatley
Young Ben Franklin and the Silence Dogood Letters
Teachers: Are You Engaging AND Empowering Your Students?
Many of the posts include detailed images and reference accounts of actual Rare & Early Newspapers – most of which come from his personal collection. Ben fully grasps a foundational truth regarding primary sources: “History is never more fascinating than when it is read from the day it was first reported.” Thanks Ben, for your contributions to both the Rare Newspapers and Educational communities.
Yes, he’s dead again (but not really)…
March 13, 2010 by TimHughes · 1 Comment
Given that newspaper reporting from the 18th and 19th centuries was as much hearsay as factual, it was not uncommon for many reports to be refuted in the same newspaper a few days later. This included deaths as well. I suspect all of us collectors have found false reports deaths of someone notable.
The “New York Tribune” was not immune to this problem, and even seemed to make light of it in their front page headlines when they reported the Battle of Antietam in their Sept. 20, 1862 issue. Among the heads is “Stonewall Jackson Dead Again” (see photo). But they only rubbed salt in their own wound—he (Stonewall Jackson) actually didn’t die until seven months later, the result of being shot at the battle of Chancellorsville (by one of his own soldiers).
What a name…
February 13, 2010 by TimHughes · 1 Comment
The “Illustrated London News” from England, August 16, 1862, contains a report headed “Sir E.P. Coffin”. The simply last name is interesting but not terribly unusual. It’s his full hyphenated last name which intrigues.
A related collectible…
January 14, 2010 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
Newspapers were subscribed to for almost as long as they existed, and if subscriptions existed so did subscription receipts and notices. But rarely did they survive the years as they were truly ephemeral–never meant to be kept beyond the length of the subscription.
Typically they were just small slips of paper, usually part-printed & part manuscript, with the subscriber’s name & length of subscription penned in. The subscription notice in the photo for the “Charleston Mercury” is larger and more detailed than most (thanks to collector Doug Owen for providing).
Such items are an interesting related collectible, particularly if one can find a newspaper to match a receipt.
From the military presses during World War II…
January 11, 2010 by TimHughes · Leave a Comment
Many military units during World War II produced their own little “in-house” newspaper, typically crudely done on a typewriter and reproduced on a mimeograph machine. The reports typically had a more local theme on events happening in camp than reports on the national or international events of the day.
The large number of such newspapers from just World War II–they existed in the Civil War, Spanish-American War and World War I as well–would allow a hobby onto itself. Their quaintness is often interesting to today’s hobbyists, and their titles and mastheads were often clever. Some of the titles I’ve seen include:
“Medico” “The Stalker” “G.I. Galley” “Dog Tags” “Bulletin Diarrhea” “Airflow” “Mosquito” “Buckaroo” “Prop Wash” “Guinea Gold” “The Saddle Blanket” “The SSHHH” “Garble” “The Bulldog” “Come What Will” “Army Talk” Spacific News” “Poop From Group” “Life O’Reilly” “Goat’s Whisker” “News Jabs” and on and on. It seems like each year a new title crosses my desk.
The photo shows a typical camp newspaper from World War II, this one produced by the “Fourth General Hospital” in New Guinea. Given their focus, their title is both clever and somewhat morbid.
19th century newspapers… revisited…
December 26, 2009 by GuyHeilenman · 1 Comment
Over the past three weeks Timothy Hughes has explored his thoughts concerning what he believes to be the top ten newspapers from each of the pre-18th, 18th, and 19 centuries (see below), the most recent being the latter. Some of his thoughts concerning the 1800’s historic newspapers were captured in the following video:
Collecting authentic rare and historic newspapers from the 1800’s can be exciting, rewarding and surprisingly affordable. Daily newspaper reports of America’s tumultuous 19th Century included first hand accounts of historic turning-points like….. the Louisiana Purchase…the Civil War…and Spanish-American conflict. As cries of “manifest destiny” signaled America’s unbridled expansion west, newspapers became a crucial link for a people suddenly united in a common quest that would set their young nation on a course of unprecedented and historic prosperity.
There are many sought after “holy grails” from the 19th century, including: o President Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination o Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Address o Battle of the Alamo o Deaths of Jessie James and Billy the Kid o Issue from Tombstone Arizona (Tombstone Epitaph) o Winslow Homer’s “Snap the Whip”
Of course, select accounts of the most historic & desired events of 19th century America are available for premium prices.
However, a wealth of fascinating original newspapers from the vast inventory of Timothy Hughes Rare & Early Newspapers are available for much less…often as little as $30 – $50. These include first-hand news from the War of 1812, Yankee & Confederate Civil War battle reports, slave ads from the South, the California Gold Rush with outlaw & Indian battle accounts, the Mormon migration to Utah and fascinating reports of when baseball was in its infancy.
The “Old West” and America’s westward expansion are represented in genuine newspapers from California, Utah, Nevada, Montana, and Arizona. You’ll also find affordable issues from the illustrated press which graphically documented every aspect of 19th century America in the pages of Harper’s Weekly, Frank Leslie’s Illustrated, Gleason’s, Ballou’s, and The London Illustrated News.
Whether your interest is in the War of 1812, westward expansion and the gold rush, the Civil War, and/or the Wild West, original newspapers provide an excellent view of history in context. History is never more fascinating than when when it’s read from the day it was first reported. If you love history… you deserve to have it in your hands. Rare newspapers make this possible. Please enjoy the hobby.
Top ten newspapers: 16th and 17th centuries…
Top ten newspapers: 18th century…
Top ten newspapers: 19th century…
The “top ten”: 19th century…
December 21, 2009 by TimHughes · 3 Comments
This was a difficult century for selecting the top ten significant events or newspapers. Certainly an argument could be made that some specific newspapers–particularly from the Civil War era–could achieve retail values far in excess of those noted on the list, but their rarity as unique items pretty much removes them from the “accessible” list of collectibles.
My focus is more on including newspapers which have a certain degree to attainability and at the same time representing the broad range of events which helped to define the United States during the 19th century. I think I’ve achieved a happy compromise among desirability, rarity, and historical significance. Fully half of my choices are specific issues. I would be curious to hear of your comments:
10) Vicksburg Daily Citizen, July 2/4, 1863 This wallpaper edition from when the town was captured by the Yankees turns up very frequently as a reprint, adding enhanced appeal to a genuine issue.
9) Battle of the Alamo, 1836 In a Texas newspaper. Any Texas newspaper from this notable year in the war for Texas independence would be great, and one with one of the more famous battles of the century would be better yet.
8.) Leslie’s Illustrated, April 22, 1882 The full front page is a terrific print of Jesse James, recently murdered. A very rare print of one of the more infamous characters of the century.
7) Lincoln’s assassination, 1865 Arguably the most noted death of the century, and great to have in a Washington, D.C. title. Very historic & desirable, but not terribly difficult to find so it doesn’t rank higher on my list.
6) Tombstone Epitaph, gunfight at the O.K. Corral, 1881 I know of at least one genuine issue. Certainly a very romanticized event in a equally romanticized title and incredibly rare but not high on my historic list.
5) Baltimore Patriot, Sept. 20, 1814 First newspaper appearance of the Star Spangled Banner, and great to have in a Baltimore newspaper.
4) Gettysburg Address, November, 1863 This remains the most requested speech by our collectors–regardless of century–and is likely the most known by school children across the country. A front page account is best, such as the New York Times.
3) Louisiana Purchase, 1803 Who could argue with an event which doubled the size of the country.
2) Charleston Mercury–Extra, Dec. 20, 1860 It’s a broadside so perhaps some will argue not a bona fide newspaper, but we collect Extras as well so I include this notable issue. This newspaper’s “The Union is Dissolved” broadside was the first Confederate publication as South Carolina was the first state to secede. It went to press 15 minutes after the secession ordinance was passed.
1) The California Gold Rush in a California newspaper, 1849. Three California newspapers existed at the time so issues do exist yet extremely rare. Combining the great rarity with a event which did so much to spawn migration of the people across the country, and another very romanticized event in American history, and you get my top pick.