You never know what you’ll find on the Internet…

In writing the newspaper history essay for the Burns Times-Herald, our essayist, Isolde Raftery, was trying to discover the full name of one D.L. Grace.  Along with his wife, Nellie, D.L. Grace founded the East Oregon Herald — an important predecessor of the Times-Herald — in 1887.  In common with many men of the 19th Century, Mr. Grace seems to have preferred to use his initials in place of his full name.  Thus far, we have been unable to discover any clues about what “D.L.” might stand for.  (Please contact us if you have any insights.)

What Isolde did find, however, is this image, courtesy of the nonprofit USGen Web’s Tombstone Transcription Project:

According to the source, this grave is located at Cove Cemetery in Union County, Oregon.  The adjacent grave site of  “Nellie R. Grace” is also recorded, so we’ve almost certainly located the man we’ve been looking for: although, even on his memorial stone, only his initials are given!

While this photo brought us no closer to the specific information for which we were searching, it was nonetheless fascinating to find further visual evidence of a person who previously was known to us only as a name on the masthead of old newspapers.  Little discoveries like this certainly help to enliven the process of historical research.

Agriculture has always played an important part in the economy of our state and the greater Northwest as a whole.  This week, we’re highlighting an historic Pullman Herald (WA) article that offers a thoughtful and detailed analysis of the dairy industry in our region.  Note the central role that geographic and climate diversity play in the production of dairy products: dairymen on the “dry side” of the Cascades face a different set of opportunities and challenges than their colleagues on the “wet side.”  Also of interest is the prescience displayed by the author of this article (published in 1915)  in his anticipation of certain supply-and-demand trends that would continue to impact the dairy industry throughout the remainder of the century.

• The newspaper synonym ‘gazette’ comes from a Renaissance-era Venetian currency, the gazetta.  One of these small coins was the price a citizen paid in 1556 for the Notizie scritte, official printed announcements of government affairs.
• Our project’s digitization efforts encompass the years 1890-1920; the  period known as the “Golden Age” of print media.  Newspapers had their widest readership and greatest influence during this era.
• Increasingly, the Web is the contemporary medium of choice for accessing newspaper content.  According to the Newspaper Association of America, newspaper Websites draw over one-third (37%) of all Web users—an average monthly unique audience of 72 million as of 2009.
• According to 2008 figures collected by the World Association of Newspapers, the top newspaper by circulation is the Japanese-language Yomiuri Shimbun, with an average daily circulation of 14,067,000.  (This is about 6 times the circulation of USA Today!) In fact, the top five papers by circulation are all from Japan. While no one disputes that Japan is a nation of dedicated newspaper readers, some have claimed that the circulation numbers of Japanese papers are routinely inflated by “Oshigami,” the institutionalized process of circulation exaggeration.
• What are the oldest newspapers still being published today?
  • Oldest in the World:  Post- och Inrikes Tidningar (Sweden), began 1645
  • Oldest in English Language:  The London Gazette (UK), began 1665
  • Oldest in the United States:  The Hartford Courant (CT), began 1764
  • Oldest in Oregon:  The Portland Oregonian, began 1850

This week, we’re returning to Chronicling America to highlight a 1907 front page article from the National Tribune of Washington, D.C., reporting the creation and extension of the U.S. National Forest system.

It is interesting to note the environmental consciousness expressed in this piece.  Cautionary lessons drawn from the deforestation of the Old World are cited, and “avaricious and unscrupulous timber grabbers” are railed against.  The story editorializes in favor of government intervention, not only to protect the woodlands and waterways of the West, but also to insure that all the Forests’ resources–including agricultural land, grazing and mineral rights–are fairly allocated and utilized in a wise way.  In the first decade of the 20th Century, the concepts of environmental protection and economic development often went hand-in-hand.

Of course, Oregon receives a good deal of coverage in this article, as our state boasted no less than eight of the new National Forests: Ashland, Cascade, Coquille, Imnaha, Siskiyou, Tillamook, Umpqua and Wenaha.  The topography and resource profile of each of these Forests at the time of their founding is described in good detail.  The article is also well-illustrated with etchings of the U.S. Forest Service badge, a ranger’s cabin, and a man at work marking timber for cutting.