USA > California > Los Angeles County > Los Angeles > A history of California and an extended history of Los Angeles and environs : also containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present, Volume I > Part 67
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After the discovery of gold in 1848, news- papers in California multiplied rapidly. By 1850, all the leading mining towns had their news- papers, but Southern California, being a cow country and the population mostly native Cali- fornians speaking the Spanish language, no news- paper had been founded.
The first proposition to establish a newspaper in Los Angeles was made to the city council October 16, 1850. The minutes of the meeting on that date contain this entry : "Theodore Fos- ter petitions for a lot situated at the northerly corner of the jail for the purpose of erecting thereon a house to be used as a printing estab- lishment. The council-taking in consideration the advantages which a printing house offers to the advancement of public enlightenment, and there existing as yet no such establishment in the city: Resolved. That for this once only a lot from amongst those that are marked on the city map be given to Mr. Theodore Foster for the purpose of establishing thereon a printing house; and the donation be made in his favor because he is the first to inangurate this public benefit ; subject, however, to the following con- ditions :
"First. That the house and printing office be completed within one year from to-day.
"Second. That the lot be selected from amongst those numbered on the city map and not other- wise disposed of."
At the meeting of the council, October 30, 1850, the records say: "Theodore Foster gave notice that he had selected a lot back of John- son's and fronting the canal as the one where he intended establishing his printing house; and the council resolved that he be granted forty varas each way."
The location of the printing house was on
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what is now Los Angeles street, then called Calle Zanja Madre (Mother Ditch street), and sometimes Canal street.
This site of Foster's printing office was op- posite the Bell block, which stood on the south- east corner of Aliso and Los Angeles streets. On the lot granted by the council, Foster built a small two-story frame building; the lower story was occupied by the printing outfit, and the upper story was used as a living room by the printers and proprietors of the paper. Over the door was the sign "Imprenta" (printing of- fice). The first number of the pioneer paper was issued May 17, 1851. It was named La Estrella de Los Angeles (The Star of Los An- geles). It was a four-page, five column paper ; size of page, 12x18 inches. Two pages were printed in English and two in Spanish. The subscription price was $10 a year, payable in ad- vance. Advertisements were inserted at the rate of $2 per square for the first insertion and $1 for each subsequent insertion. The publishers were John A. Lewis and John McElroy. Foster had dropped out of the scheme before the pub- lication of the first issue. Two years later he committed suicide by drowning himself in the Fresno river.
In July, William H. Rand bought an interest in the paper and the firm became Lewis, Mc- Elroy & Rand. In November, McElroy sold his interest to Lewis & Rand. John A. Lewis edited the English pages and Manuel Clemente Rojo was editor of the Spanish columns of the Star for some time after its founding. The press was a Washington Hoe of an ancient pattern. It came around the Horn and was probably six or seven months on its journey. Even with this antiquated specimen of the lever that moves the world, it was no great task to work off the weekly edition of the Star. Its circulation did not exceed 250 copies.
The first job of city work done by La Estrella (as it is always called in the early records) was the printing of one hundred white ribbon badges for the city police. The inscription on the badge, which was printed both in English and Spanish, read "City Police, organized by the Common Council of Los Angeles, July 12, 1851." La Estrella's bill for the job was $25. In July,
1853, William H. Rand transferred his interest in the Star to his partner, John A. Lewis. Au- gust 1, 1853, Lewis sold the paper to James M. McMeans. The obstacles to be overcome in the publication of a pioneer newspaper in Southern California are graphically set forth in Lewis's valedictory in the Star of July 30, 1853:
"It is," writes Lewis, "now two years and three months since the Star was established in this city-and in taking leave of my readers, in saying my last say, I may very properly be per- mitted to look back through this period to see how accounts stand.
"The establishment of a newspaper in Los Angeles was considered something of an experi- ment, more particularly on account of the isola- tion of the city. The sources of public news are sometimes cut off for three or four weeks, and very frequently two weeks. San Francisco, the nearest place where a newspaper is printed, is more than five hundred miles distant, and the mail between that city and Los Angeles takes an uncertain course, sometimes by sea and some- times by land, occupying in its transmission from two to six weeks, and in one instance, fifty-two days. Therefore, I have had to depend mainly upon local news to make the Star interesting. And yet the more important events of the coun- try have been recorded as fully as the limits of the Star would permit. The printing of a paper one-half in the Spanish language was certainly an experiment hitherto unattempted in the state. Having no exchanges with papers in that lan- guage the main reliance has been upon transla- tions and such contributions as several good friends have favored me with. I leave others to judge whether the 'Estrella' has been well or ill conducted."
Under Lewis' management the Star was non- partisan in politics. He says, "I professed all along to print an independent newspaper, and although my own preferences were with the Whig party, I never could see enough either in the Whig or Democratic party to make a newspaper of. I never could muster up fanaticism enough to print a party paper."
McMeans went to the States shortly after assuming the management of the paper. Will- iam A. Wallace conducted it during his absence.
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Early in 1854 it was sold to M. D. Brundige. Under Brundige's proprietorship, Wallace edited the paper. It was still published in the house built by Foster.
In the latter part of 1854, the Star was sold to J. S. Waite & Co. The site donated to Foster by the council in 1850, on which to establish a print- ing house for the advancement of public enlight- ment, seems not to have been a part of the Star outfit. A prospectus on the Spanish page informs us that "Imprenta de la Estrella, Calle Principal, Casa de Temple"-that is, the printing office of the Star is on Main street, in the House of Tem- ple, where was added, the finest typographical work will be done in Spanish, French and Eng- lish. Waite reduced the subscription price of the Star to $6 a year, payable in advance, or $9 at the end of the year. Fifty per cent advance on a deferred payment looks like a high rate of interest, but it was very reasonable in those days. Money, then, commanded five, ten and even as high as fifteen per cent a month, compounded monthly; and yet the mines of California were turning out $50,000,000 in gold every year. Here is a problem in the supply and demand of a cir- culating medium for some of our astute financial theorists to solve.
Perusal of the pages of the Star of fifty years ago gives us occasional glimpses of the passing of the old life and the ringing in of the new. An editorial on "The Holidays" in the issue of Jan- uary 4, 1855, says: "The Christmas and New Year's festivities are passing away with the us- ual accompaniments, namely, bullfights, bell ringing, firing of crackers, fiestas and fandangos. In the city, cascarones commanded a premium and many were complimented with them as a finishing touch to their head dress."
In the early '50s a Pacific railroad was a stand- ing topic for editorial comment by the press of California. The editor of the Star, "while we are waiting and wishing for a railroad," advo- cates as an experiment the introduction of cam- els and dromedaries for freighting across the arid plains of the southwest. After descanting on the merits of the "ship of the desert," he says : "We predict that in a few years these extraor- dinary and useful animals will be browsing up- on our hills and valleys, and numerous caravans
will be arriving and departing daily. Let us have the incomparable dromedary, with Adams Company's expressmen, arriving here tri-weekly with letters and packages in five or six days from Salt Lake and fifteen or eighteen from the Mis- souri. Then the present grinding steamship monopoly might be made to realize the fact that the hard-working miner, the farmer and the me- chanic were no longer completely in their grasp- ing power as at present. We might have an overland dromedary express that would bring us the New York news in fifteen to eighteen days. We hope some of our energetic capital- ists or stock breeders will take this speculation in hand, for we have not much faith that Congress will do anything in the matter."
Notwithstanding our editor's poor opinion of congress, that recalcitrant body, a year or two later, possibly moved by the power of the press, did introduce camels into the United States, and caravans did arrive in Los Angeles. To the small boy of that day the arrival of a caravan was a free circus. The grotesque attempts of the western mule whacker to transform himself into an Oriental camel driver were mirth-provoking to the spectators, but agony long drawn out to the camel puncher. Of all the impish, perverse and profanity-provoking beasts of burden that ever trod the soil of America, the meek, mild- eyed, soft-footed camel was the most exasperat- ing. That prototype of perversity, the army mule, was almost angelic in disposition compared to the hump-backed burden bearer of the Orient.
In July, 1855, the subscription price of the Star was reduced to $5 a year. The publisher in- formed his patrons that he would receive sub- scriptions "payable in most kinds of produce after harvest-corn, wheat, flour, wood, butter, eggs, etc., will be taken on old subscriptions." In November, 1855, James S. Waite, the sole proprietor, publisher and business manager of the Star, was appointed postmaster of Los An- geles. He found it difficult to keep the Star shining, the mails moving and his produce ex- change running.
In the issue of February 2, 1856, he offers the "entire establishment of the Star for sale at $1,000 less than cost." In setting forth its mer- its, he says: "To a young man of energy and
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ability a rare chance is now offered to spread him- self and peradventure to realize a fortune." The young man with expansive qualities was found two months later in the person of William A. Wallace, who had been editor of the Star in 1854. He was the first principal of the school-house No. I, which stood on the northwest corner of Spring and Second streets, where the Bryson block now stands. He laid down the pedagogical birch to mount the editorial tripod. In his salutatory he says: "The Star is an old favorite of mine, and I have always wished to be its proprietor." The editorial tripod proved to be as uneasy a seat for Wallace as the back of a bucking bronco; in two months it landed him on his back, figurative- ly speaking.
It was hard times in the old pueblo. Money was scarce and cattle were starving; for 1856 was a dry year. Thus Wallace soliloquizes : "Dull times, says the trader, the mechanic, the farmer-indeed, everybody echoes the dull sen- timent. The teeth of the cattle this year have been so dull that they have been scarcely able to save themselves from starvation; but the buyers are nearly as plenty as cattle and sharp in pro- portion to the prospect of starvation. Business is dull-duller this week than it was last; dull- er today than it was yesterday. Expenses are scarcely realized and every hole where a dollar or two has heretofore leaked out must be stopped. The flush times are past-the days of large prices and pockets are gone; picayunes, bad liquor, rags and universal dullness-sometimes too dull to complain of-have usurped the minds of men and a common obtuseness prevails. Neither pistol shots nor dying groans have any effect; earthquakes hardly turn men in their beds. It is no use talking-business stepped out and the people are asleep. What is to be done? Why, the first thing, of course, is to stop off such things as can be neither smoked or drank; and then wait for the carreta, and if we don't get a ride it will be because we have become too fastidious, or too poor and are unable to pay this expense."
Henry Hamilton, the successor of Wallace, was an experienced newspaper man. For five years previous to purchasing the Star he had been proprietor of the Calaveras Chronicle. He
was an editor of the old school-the school that dealt out column editorials, and gave scant space to locals. Hamilton's forte was political editor- ials. He was a bitter partisan. When he ful- minated a thunderbolt and hurled it at a polit- ical opponent, it struck as if it came from the hand of Jove, the god of thunder and lightning. He was an able writer, yet with him there was but one side to a question, and that was his side of it. He was a Scotch-Irishman, and had all the pugnacity and pertinacity of that strenuous race. His vigorous partisanship got him into trouble. During the Civil war he espoused the cause of the Southern Confederacy. For some severe criticisms on Lincoln and other officers of the government, and his outspoken sympathy for the Confederates, he was arrested. He took the oath of allegiance, and was released, but the Star went into an eclipse. The last number, a single page, appeared October 1, 1864. The press and type were sold to Phineas Banning, and were used in the publication of the Wil- mington Journal.
On Saturday, the 16th of May, 1868, the Star emerged from obscurity. "Today," writes Ham- ilton, "we resume the publication of the Los An- geles Star. Nearly four years have elapsed since our last issue. The little 'onpleasantness,' which at that time existed in the family, has toned down considerably, and if perfect harmony does not yet pervade the circle, our hope is this brother- ly feeling will soon be consummated."
The paper was no longer the bitter partisan sheet that it had been during the early '60s. Hamilton now seldom indulged in political lead- ers of a column length, and when he did they were of a mild type. The new Star was a seven column blanket sheet, and was devoted to pro- moting the welfare of the county. It was ably conducted, and was a model newspaper for a town of 5,000 inhabitants. June 1, 1870, the first number of the Daily Star was published by Ham- ilton & Barter. Barter retired from the firm in September and founded the Anaheim Gasette, the pioneer newspaper of Orange county. He bought the old press and type of the Wilmington Journal-the first press of the Star-and again the old press became a pioneer. When the Ana- heim Gazette office burned down in 1877, the
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old press perished in the flames. The last time I saw it it was lying in a junk pile, crooked and twisted and warped out of shape or semblance of a printing press. If the spirit of the inani- mate ever visits its former mundane haunts, the ghost of that old press would search in vain for the half dozen or more office buildings where in the body long ago it ground out weekly stents of news.
After G. W. Barter sold out the Anaheim Gazette in 1872, he leased the Daily Star from Hamilton. He ran it less than a year, but that was long enough for him to take all the twinkle out of it. It had almost sunk below the horizon when Mr. Hamilton resumed its publication. In July, 1873, he sold it to Ben C. Truman. The genial Ben put sparkle in it. He made it in- teresting to his friends, and equally so to his enemies. Truman continued its publication until July, 1877, when it was sold to Paynter & Com- pany. Then it passed to Brown & Company. The Rev. Campbell of the Methodist Church South conducted it for a time. In the last year of its existence it had several different publish- ers and editors. Its brilliancy steadily dimin- ished until in the early part of 1879 it sunk be- low the horizon, or, to discard metaphor and states facts, the sheriff attached it for debt, and its publication was discontinued. Its remains were not buried in the graveyard of unfelt wants. A more tragic fate awaited them-they were cre- mated. The plant and the files were stored in an outbuilding of Mr. Hollenbeck's, who was one of the principal creditors. His Chinese laborers roomed in the lower part of the building. In some of their heathen orgies they set fire to the house. For a few minutes La Estrella blazed up into a star of the first magnitude, then disap- peared forever,
Such in brief is the story of La Estrella, the pioneer newspaper of Los Angeles. Its files con- tain a quarter century's history of our city and its environs. It is to be regretted that its early editors deemed political essays of so much more importance than local happenings. If these ed- itors could crawl out of their graves and read some of their political diatribes in the electric light of the twentieth century they no doubt
would be moved to exclaim, "What blind lead- ers of the blind were we!"
The Southern Californian. The second pa- per founded in Los Angeles was the Southern Californian. The first issue appeared July 20, 1854, C. N. Richards & Co., publishers; William Butts editor. November 2, 1854, William Butts and John O. Wheeler succeeded Richards & Co. in the proprietorship. In November, 1855, A. Pico was the proprietor and J. P. Brodie the ed- itor. In January, 1859, it died. It is said to have cost Pico $10,000. One page of the paper was printed in Spanish.
El Clamor Publico was the first paper in Los Angeles that was entirely printed in Spanish. The first number appeared June 8, 1855, Fran- cisco P. Ramirez, editor and proprietor. It was the organ of the better class of the native Cali- fornians of the south and was the first Repub- lican newspaper published in Los Angeles. It warmly advocated the election of John C. Fre- mont to the presidency in 1856. It suspended publication December 31, 1859, for want of sup- port.
The Southern Vineyard was founded by Col. J. J. Warner, March 20, 1858. The press and material used in its publication had formerly be- longed to the Southern Californian, in which pa- per Warner had an interest at the time of its suspension. The Vineyard was a four-page week- ly, 22x30 inches in size. December 10th of the same year it became a semi-weekly, issued Tues- day and Friday mornings. It was mildly Demo- cratic in the beginning, but bolted the regular Democratic ticket in 1859. At the time of its demise, June 8, 1860, it was leaning towards Republicanism. The plant was transferred to the Los Angeles News.
The Los Angeles Daily and Weekly News. The Semi-Weekly Southern News, independent, issued every Wednesday and Friday, was estab- lished in Los Angeles by C. R. Conway and Alonzo Waite, January 18, 1860. The sheet was enlarged July 18, 1860, and again August 13. 1862. The name was changed to the Los Angeles Semi-Weekly News October 8, 1862. January 12, 1863, it appeared as the Los Angeles Tri- Weekly News, issued Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It was Republican in politics in
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1864. During the presidential campaign of that year it advocated the election of Lincoln and Johnson. Political animosities were very bitter. The defenders of the Union were in the minority and publishing a Union newspaper in Los An- geles was not a profitable business.
Conway & Waite sold the News to A. J. King & Co., November II, 1865, A. J. King becom- ing editor. It was again changed to a semi- weekly. After its transfer it became the organ of the Democratic party.
January 1, 1869, the semi-weekly was discon- tinued and The Los Angeles Daily News ap- peared, King & Offutt, publishers. The daily was enlarged in May, 1869. This was the first daily published in Los Angeles. It was issued every day except Sunday, subscription price $12 a year. October 16, 1869, R. H. Offutt sold his interest to Alonzo Waite and the firm name be- came King & Waite. January 1, 1870, A. J. King retired from the editorial management and was succeeded by Charles E. Beane. October 10, 1872, Mr. Waite sold his entire interest to Charles E. Beane. The paper suspended in 1873.
The Wilmington Journal. The first newspa- per published in Los Angeles county outside of the city was the Wilmington Journal. The old press of the Star, as previously stated, was sold to Phineas Banning in 1864. The first number of the Journal was issued in November, 1864. The Los Angeles Tri-Weekly News thus notices its appearance :
"The Los Angeles Star, after a few kicks and a struggle, has gone down for ever. The Wil- mington Journal, a neatly printed paper, has sprung from its ashes. We have perused its col- umns closely in search of the name of its editor ; its tone denotes, however, that the Journal rose into existence without 'Viejo' (Hamilton). He has probably left it an abandoned child-to hon- esty. We have received the first number of the above-named paper, and welcome it on our ex- change list."
Wilmington, during war times, was the liveli- est town on the coast. After the removal of the troops it declined and the Journal, in 1868, sus- pended publication.
THE LOS ANGELES EXPRESS.
The Los Angeles Express, the oldest daily
paper now published in Los Angeles, was found- ed March 27, 1871, by an association of prac- tical printers, comprising Jesse Yarnell, George Yarnell, George A. Tiffany, J. W. Paynter and Miguel Varela. It was Republican in politics, with Henry C. Austin, editor. The members of the association dropped out until, in 1873, only George A. Tiffany and J. W. Paynter were left; James J. Ayers having taken the place of H. C. Austin as editor.
March 15, 1875, J. J. Ayers and Joseph D. Lynch purchased the paper from Tiffany & Co. The new firm enlarged the paper to eight col- umns and later in the year it was enlarged to nine columns to the page. On October 3, 1876, Mr. Lynch retired from the Express and took editorial charge of the Daily Herald; Ayers con- tinuing in charge of the Express, which was virtually an evening edition of the Herald. In 1882 Governor Stoneman appointed Colonel Ayers state printer and Mr. Lynch, who had re- tained his interest in the Express, conducted both papers, but with separate editorial and local staffs. In 1884 H. Z. Osborne and E. R. Cleve- land bought the Express. In 1886 these gentle- men organized the Evening Express Company, an incorporation. J. Mills Davies became a stockholder and business manager of the com- pany. C. C. Allen, after completing his term of office as adjutant-general of the state, became a member of the Express Company. J. Mills Da- vies retired. In 1896 H. Z. Osborne was presi- dent of the company, C. C. Allen, vice-president, and E. R. Cleveland, secretary and treasurer. H. Z. Osborne was appointed United States Marshal of the Southern District in 1897 and C. D. Wil- lard became general manager of the paper. He was succeeded by J. B. Abell. In January, 1900, John M. Miller, W. A. Kelsey, Richard G. Beebe, William F. Botsford and Edwin B. Has- kell bought up the various interests represented in the old Evening Express Company and took charge of the paper. John M. Miller was elected president of the new firm; W. A. Kelsey, vice- president and general manager; and Richard G. Beebe, secretary. In 1900 E. T. Earl bought the Express, and erected a three-story brick build- ing for the publication and offices of the paper on Fifth street, between Broadway and Hill street.
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The Express plant, which has had many stopping places in the thirty-two years of its existence, finally took possession of a home of its own. The price of the paper has recently been re- duced to one cent a copy.
LOS DOS REPUBLICAS.
Los Dos Republicas (The Two Republics), successor to La Cronica, was established June 2, 1872, by M. S. Arevalo and B. F. Teodoli, B. F. Ramirez, editor. Ramirez retired shortly after the paper was founded, and was succeeded by E. F. de Celis. Under his editorship the paper became the most influential journal published in the Spanish language in the state. In the year 1880 Mr. Arevalo organized the La Cronica Publishing Company-a joint stock association. Mr. Teodoli withdrew from the company, and after a time the stockholders leased the paper to Pastor de Celis and Miguel J. Varela. From them its management passed to Cordona Broth- ers, then to E. F. de Celis, next to S. A. Corona and from him to Thomas Temple. Temple shortly before his death, in 1892, sold it to A. J. Flores, who changed its name to its present form. It is devoted to general news, independent in politics and religion.
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