The Civil War… 150 years ago today… April 6, 1861

April 6, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 
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With the 150th anniversary of the outbreak of the Civil War just days away, we begin today a weekly feature of reflecting upon the appropriate 150 year old issue of “Harper’s Weekly” from the perspective of a subscriber in 1861.

The success of “Harper’s Weekly” was in presenting illustrations of the war, as visual presentations–today commonplace in almost all forms of media–were almost unknown in the mid-19th century. The subscriber in 1861 could now “see” rather than just read about the battles and the famous names who lead the war effort. We hope to share with our blog readers that novel experience and how those in 1861  would have reacted as they opened their issue of “Harper’s Weekly” .

I always look forward to my “Harper’s Weekly‘ issue in the mail as this new type of newspaper provides the graphics of everyday life which my daily newspapers don’t provide. What a treat it is to see what is happening rather than just read about events of the day!

Today I received the April 6, 1861 issue, and as per usual, the prints were outstanding.  The front page is a nice illustration of the “Hon. William H. Seward, Secretary of State” about whom I’ve heard much as a key member of the new Lincoln Administration. He looks much younger than his 60 years the article mentions. Other prints inside provide military scenes concerning the inevitable crisis between the North and South, with a print of Fort Pickens in Florida, another of Pensacola Harbor, a nice doublepage spread of various “Virginia Sketches” one showing the huge Richmond Armory & another the frigate Merrimac–a mammoth ship which would be a formidable foe in any naval conflict. A full page is taken up with the “Coats of Arms of the Several States of the Union” which make a fascinating display with their various themes and mottoes. How many will still be part of our Union if war breaks out?

With rumblings of war noted in the daily newspapers I suspect more war-themed prints will find their way into my future editions of “Harper’s Weekly“.  I look forward to the illustrations which will put a “face” on the news reports.

To enjoy the images (and some of the text) from this issue, please go to:  Harper’s Weekly, April 6, 1861

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Collecting Ideas: Charles Dickens…

April 4, 2011 by · 2 Comments 
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An area of collecting interest which continues to draw interest is collecting newspapers with Charles Dickens related content.  Whether one’s passion is Harper’s Weekly Illustrated issues containing serialized versions of his writings, issues published by him directly (All the Year Round & Household Words) , or newspapers with news concerning his travels and/or his thoughts on various topics, there certainly are a host of ways to enjoy this particular area of newspaper collectability.

Although not directly related to the hobby, we recently came across a post we thought our Dickens-collecting friends might enjoy:  15 Things You Never Knew About Dickens, by Emma Taylor.  Feel free to share your Dickens knowledge with the collecting world via responses to this post.

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Filed under: Civil War, Collecting Newspapers, Harper's Weekly, Newspaper Collecting Ideas, Post Civil War, Pre Civil War, The Hobby
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War makes “sad havoc” among the newspapers…

April 2, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 
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This item provides some interesting facts on what war does to newspaper publishing. It appeared in the “Daily Richmond Examiner” issue of February 4, 1864.

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Rare Newspapers… What to collect?

March 31, 2011 by · 1 Comment 
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There are an infinite number of ways to approach collecting rare newspapers.  The History’s Newsstand Blog is pregnant with suggestions.  Over the course of the next several months we will begin to explore the topic in earnest.  For those who are new to the hobby, and are anxious to explore what has been written to-date, the following links are to help bring you up to speed:

Feel free to share your thoughts on ideas for collecting rare and early newspapers: themes, eras, topics, etc.

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Filed under: Common Questions, Newspaper Collecting Ideas, The 1500's - 1700's, The 19th Century, The 20th & 21st Centuries, The Hobby
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The “experts” don’t always get it right…

March 28, 2011 by · 2 Comments 
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We recently unearthed two different newspapers which scream the reality “the experts are often wrong”.  The first report was an early review of “Gone With The Wind” which was not favorable (issue #580564).  The 2nd was a statement concerning Babe Ruth which occurred soon after he was traded to The New York Yankees which questioned whether he would be an impact player (issue #581104).  Interestingly enough, the opinion was given by Billy Evans, one of the most famous umpires (and member of the Hall of Fame) of all time.  Feel free to comment on similar finding of your own.  In the meantime, enjoy the reports:

Gone With The Wind…

Babe Ruth…


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Filed under: Noteworthy Issues, The 20th & 21st Centuries, The Hobby, Unusual, Fun & Bizarre
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It never caught on…

March 26, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 
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This “Novel Hydraulic Railway Locomotive” made the front page of “Scientific American” on Feb. 10, 1877, with a descriptive article which begins: “A new mode of traveling has lately been invented…”.  Apparently it never caught on:

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The Traveler… Booker T. Washington facing court… “Reach out, reach out and touch someone”…

March 24, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 
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A few days ago I traveled to New York City through the New York Tribune dated March 21, 1911 (I’m running a little behind schedule). The front page of the issue carries the report of “Dr. (Booker T.) Washington Too Ill To Go To Court”. I found that this was an interesting assault case between Dr. Washington and Henry A. Ulrich, re: who attacked whom. I had to google this case to find the verdict.  What I found was that this case/verdict has become known for extreme injustice due to Mr. Ulrich acquittal. However, he was re-arrested in the courtroom for desertion of his wife!

Also in this issue is the reporting of the funeral for John B. M’Donald, the builder of the subway system in New York… I guess he made his final stop.

Do you remember when you actually were able to talk with a “live” operator when calling information? When Henry McGinn reached the operator and conversation ensued, he found that the operator was his sister whom he had not seen or heard from for seventeen years! A reunited relationship occurred from the “reach out, reach out and touch someone…” archives.

~The Traveler

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First newspapers in Ohio…

March 21, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 
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Ohio was still part of the vast Northwest Territory when the first newspaper in present-day Ohio was published in 1793.  The date was November 9 and William Maxwell’s newspaper the “Centinel of the North-Western Territory” was the first product of the printing press anywhere north of the Ohio River & west of the Allegheny & Blue Ridge mountains. The city of publication was Cincinnati, but just a few years earlier it’s name had changed from “Losantiville”. The newspaper would continue until June of 1796, although records show the newspaper was sold to Edmund Freeman in 1796 who changed the name to “Freeman’s Journal“. Records show, however, that it did not publish until July of 1800 and lasted less then 6 months.

The second newspaper published in Ohio was also done in Cincinnati, called the “Western Spy and Hamilton Gazette“, begun in May of 1799 and lasting till the end of 1822. Only one other pre-statehood (1803) newspaper published in Ohio, being the “Scioto Gazette” published in Chillicothe, it beginning  January 8, 1801 and lasting through the end of 1803.

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A proportionate reward…

March 19, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 
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Sometimes we read things which drive home the futility of human wisdom.  Solomon would certainly have cringed at the following verdict which appeared in the “Democratic Watchman” newspaper from Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, dated February 23, 1877:

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Galt, California, among our Old West titles…

March 17, 2011 by · Leave a Comment 
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We have many issues of the “Weekly Galt Gazette“, California, in our Old West inventory, but perhaps few of our collectors know this city–current population of some 23,000, in Sacramento County–had its start in the California Gold Rush.

In 1850, a group of farmers settled around the banks of a small stream, Dry Creek, close to Galt. Their plans were to grow beef and dairy products. In the year 1869, the town of Galt was laid out by the Western Pacific Railroad Company. The name Galt was given at the request of John McFarland, a local rancher, in honor of his home town in Canada. It was previously called Dry Creek Township after the stream by which they settled. By 1869, the community consisted of blacksmiths, dairymen and cattle ranchers. Raising cattle was the main occupation.

Galt was built almost entirely of wooden structures making fires the biggest problem for the town. However, many of the old original homes are still standing, in excellent preservation, around town.

In 1880, Galt had two general merchandise stores, one variety store, one hotel, one harness shop, two blacksmith shops, two wagon and carriage manufacture and repair shops, one wood yard, one livery stable, two barber shops, two shoe stores, two saloons, one meat market, one barely mill, Wells Fargo & Co.’s Express Office with three physicians and one attorney-at-law in town.

By the turn of the century, cattle raising and dairying gradually decreased and agriculture took over. The principal grain was wheat.

(credit: City of Galt)

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