History of Butler County, Pennsylvania, Part 22

Author: Brown, Robert C., ed; Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.); Meagher, John, jt. comp; Meginness, John Franklin, 1827-1899, jt. comp
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Chicago : R. C. Brown
Number of Pages: 1658

USA > Pennsylvania > Butler County > History of Butler County, Pennsylvania > Part 22

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The obituary of William Johnson in the issue of December, 1872, after describing the life of the old printer, indulged in the following play upon chapel- words :

Poor Bill! His life was one of dashes, but his imprudence put a period to them. His , bed is now in the bosom of mother earth, and although his form no longer stands on its feet. we hope it is not beyond justification.

From 1867 up to the death of Mr. Ziegler, the Herald enjoyed a fair share of prosperity, and its pages bore the imprint of his originality. Coming from Get- tysburg to Butler in August, 1831, he entered the office of The Repository the following month as devil, where he soon became known as " The devil from Get- tysburg." He served an apprenticeship of two and one-half years, and was then

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graduated as a full-fledged typo. He worked as a journeyman in the same office up to the spring of 1842, when he became one of the founders of the Democratic Herald, and, with the exception of the period between 1855 and 1867, when the paper was in other hands, his was the master-mind that guided its destiny. For nearly half a century " Uncle Jake" was one of the best known and most highly respected men in Butler county ; while his strong and vigorous personality infused into the editorial pages of his paper, gave him a wide reputation among the journalists of Pennsylvania, and won for the paper the characteristic title of " Ziegler's Herald'

After his death, Judge James Bredin and Stephen Cummings, the adminis- trators of the estate, were the actual managers, Mr. Cummings giving it personal attention until October 26, 1>>8, when the office was sold to W. G. Ziegler (a nephew of " Uncle Jacob "), and James A. McKee, who have since been the editors and publishers. The circulation of the Herald is about 2,000. Since Jacob Ziegler's time, the office has experienced two removals, first from the old Beatty hotel to the frame building at the rear of the Troutman store, formerly the post- office, as kept by Thomas White. In August, 1893, the last move to the present Herald building was made. This is a three-story and basement structure, well lighted, and particularly adapted for a newspaper office. It was erected at a cost of $6,000.

The Butler County Whig was the Sentinel revivified in a new body and a new dress. In William Haslett's salutatory, as editor of The Whig, issued June 24, 1846, it is said, among other things :-

Secret and Outh-bound Societies we shall ever oppose, because we believe such societies unnecessary, Anti-Republican, and fraught with immediate or ultimate danger to the liberties of the country, especially if they are controlled, as they are known to have been, by the influence of evil or designing men.

Haslett continued its publication alone until October 10. 1850, when I. L. Bredin became associate publisher and editor; he, however, may be said to have been the sole worker in the office down to August 25, 1852, when he asked for and obtained a dissolution of the partnership. Mr. Haslett sold the Whig, in April, 1855, to William B. Lemmon, and the Herald, noticing the change said, in its issue of April 18, that " to Haslett must be credited the establishment of the Whig and its successful management for the past ten years."

The Butler American .- Following the purchase of the Whig, W. B. Lem- mon bought, in April, 1855, The Star Spangled Banner, the organ of the Know Nothings, from Johnston, its publisher. That he consolidated with the Whig, then known as the Butler American, under the title The Butler American and Star of Liberty, and declared the combination ready to espouse Know Noth- ingism in any shape. In September, 1859, Edwin Lyon became part owner of the Butler American, and with Mr. Haslett, who had again got control, carried on that journal. In January, 1861, this paper begged Congress to do anything for peace, although some years before under Lemmon it was engaged in sowing the seeds of political and religious intolerance. Haslett continued to publish the American up to October, 1865, when the plant was purchased by Thomas Robin- son and the material removed to the office of the Citizen.

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Mr. Haslett deserves special mention in this chapter because of his long and prominent connection with journalism in Butler. Two years after disposing of the American he established the Butler County Press, and continued its publica- tion until the spring of 1869, when he sold ont to John H. Negley, and retired permanently from the newspaper field, after an active career of twenty-three years. He was also prominent in the local political arena, and was elected to the legislature in 1844; to the State senate in 1849, and again to the legislature in 1863, and for several years held office under the National Government. Mr. Ilaslett was a leading spirit in the enactment of the railroad bill, which won for Butler county its first iron highway, and he always manifested a deep interest in the growth and prosperity of his home. He died December 10. 1872, three years after retiring from his last editorial charge.

The Star Spangled Banner never was so illy used as when the name was placed by one Johnston at the head of a little paper which he printed here in 1853-55. It was an organ of discord. publishing as many lies to the square inch as the most vicious publisher of our own day could desire. The Butler American and Star of Liberty was little better while under the control of W. B. Lemmon.

The Butler Union was suggested late in 1860. S. P. Irvin, as the publisher, wished to unite all parties, regardless of political bias, in a bond of Union, which would insure the more prompt subjection of the armies of the Confederacy. There was little use for such a journal a few months later : for, however much men differed on the method of subduing the Confederates, all men here were determined that there should not be two nations between the Gulf of Mexico and the St. Lawrence. On December 11, 1>61, the Union merged into the Dem- ocratic-Herald, and for the nonec. the title The Union-Herald was adopted. In fact, on December 4, the Butler Union ceased publication.

The Union-Herald was issued by J. C. Coll & Company, December 11, 1861. On January 21, 1863, its volume number was XXI. and issue number 29, showing it to be the Democratic-Herald of 1842 under a new name. Clark Wilson was then editor and publisher. It, too, lost its identity in the Herald.

The American Citizen was established by Thomas Robinson and Maj. Cyrus E. Anderson, and issued December 9. 1863. At the head of the editorial column was the name of Abraham Lincoln, and this, with the fact that Mr. Robinson was to be political editor and Mr. Anderson local editor, tell at once that the new journal was a Republican paper. The motto was, " Let us have faith that Right makes Might ; and in that faith let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it."-A. Lincoln. The office was in the brick building formerly tenanted by Reiber & Yetter, opposite Jack's Hotel, now the Lowry House, with entrance from Jefferson street. Paper could not be obtained to print the Citizen of April 20, 1864, and this reason was given for its non-appearance. On Janu- ary 9, 1865, Major Anderson retired, owing to his duties in the provost marshal's office requiring all his attention. The surrender of Lee was announced in the issue of April 12, 1865. On the editorial page appears the picture of an eagle, holding four spears in his claws and a small flag in his mouth, bearing the words: " Lincoln and the Union, forever." Above the picture are the names : Grant, Sheridan, Sherman, Thomas and llancock. The issue of April 19 was in

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mourning over the assassination of Lincoln. On October 11, 1865, William Haslett closed his connection with the Butler American and the office became the property of the American Citizen.

On December 12, 1866, Cyrus E. Anderson succeeded Mr. Robinson as owner and editor. and filled that position for nearly two years and a half. In the vale- dictory of Major Anderson, which appeared in The American Citizen of April 14. 1869. he says : "The paper has passed into experienced hands. Mr. Negley has previously occupied the editorial chair, and will, no doubt, conduct the paper with marked ability." On the same date the greeting of the new editor was issued. April 7. 1869, Mr. Negley purchased the Citizen, and in May he bought the office of The Butler County Press with all Haslett's rights in that journal.

The Butler Citizen is the lineal descendant of the Centinel of 1820, and all the Federal. Whig, American and Republican newspapers, published here prior to 1870, are its foundation stones. The venerable Centinel, the Butler County Whig, the well edited American Citizen, and the Press, as well as the Butler American and the Star Spangled Banner, are in its foundation. William C. . Negley was admitted a partner of his father in November, 1872, and in Septem- ber. 1888, became sole owner. The Citizen is particularly noticeable for its attention to pioneer matters, such as deaths of old residents, and historical notices. Its news paragraphs are well written ; while its editorials show a desire for fair play between parties and for justice to the country at large.

The Butler County Press was established by William Haslett August 14, 1867. and carried on by him until its suspension in 1869. As stated previously, the office was purchased by Mr. Negley a short time after the publication ceased.

The Fair and Festival, the first daily bulletin issued at Butler, was offered for sale December 26, 1868, and continued publication until January 14. 1869. It was suggested by Maj. J. B. Butler for benevolent purposes, and it may be said that he was the editor. Though only a one-column daily, it showed the editorial, news and advertisement divisions of a modern journal. The little paper was devoted in toto to the interests of the Ladies' Fair and Festival, containing notices of its progress, advertisements of the prizes offered, and names of the daily win- ners. Major Butler, with whom the idea originated, died only recently. Though not a resident of Butler, he was buried here, and his remains rest in the old grave- yard opposite St. Paul's Catholic church, in the building of which he was interested enough to aid in organizing the fair of 1868-69 as a means of collect- ing funds for its construction.

The Northwestern Independent, a monthly paper, was issued at Butler in July, 1869, by Clark Wilson. Of course, when he established the Oilman's Four- nal, the Independent ceased.

The Butler Eagle was established in February, I>70, as a Republican journal. A company, the greater number of the members of which were veterans of the War of the Rebellion, was organized with the object of giving to the county a newspaper which would expound the ideas of the soldier or military element of the Republican party, and inculcate lessons of patriotism from their point of view. The directors of the company were W. L. Graham, president ; F. M. Eastman, Hugh Morrison, J. B. Story and Cyrus E. Anderson. The officers were

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Thomas Robinson, political editor; John M. Greer, local editor; Edwin Lyon, agricultural editor, and F. M. Eastman, business manager. In fact, there was too much organization in all this, and serious differences of opinion were expected from the beginning. Those expectations were realized ; for in a little while Hugh Morrison and J. B. Clark were appointed editors vice Thomas Rob- inson, resigned. In 1871 Mr. Robinson became sole owner, and from that period down to January 1, 1879, his trenchant pen was made visible in the editorial pages and often in the news columns.

The Eagle was purchased by Eli D. Robinson, a son of the founder, January 1, 1879, and edited by him solely until February 7, 1881, when James M. Carson purchased an interest and at once assumed the position of associate editor. It is needless to speak of the progress of this paper under the management of Robin- son & Carson. While they did not surrender a single Republican idea, they made politics, even in bitter campaigns, agreeable ; for they surrounded attacks on the opposition with credits for the good parts of the enemy, and thus, giving justice where due, won respect. The Eagle is credited in Rowell's Newspaper Directory with a weekly circulation of 1,800. It is well printed and edited, while its news columns tell of the thorough effort made by the publishers to gather the news item -. From March, JESS, to October. 1889, Professor Bancroft held a position in the local department of this paper. The Eagle was Issued at first from the old George W. Smith building on the northeast corner of the Dia- mond, late the law office of Thomas Robinson. In 1885 Robinson & Carson erected the present Eagle Building, on Main street, on a lot purchased, in 1884, from the Dougal heirs. In February, 1895, Mr. Robinson purchased Mr. Carson's interest, and is now sole proprietor.

The Oilman's Journal was established by Clark Wilson, at Parker. Volume III., Number 11, is dated August 31, 1872. In November following, his son, II. C. Wilson, was admitted a partner and, in January, 1877, the office was moved to Butler, where the fournal was issued February 16, 1877, being Number 11, of Volume VHI. Clark Wilson was then editor and proprietor. Knowing Butler in the days of Civil War, when he tried to Unionize the conflicting sentiments of the people, he came now to aid the old capital of the new oil field and carried out his intention in the matter. In June, 1877, the devil, in the office of The Oilman's Fournal, demonstrated his possession of the gift of poetry in the following verse :

The first moskeeter's come, We heard him blow his horn, While catching minnows In the creek, the other morn, Down by Boos' mill.

The Butler County Record, formerly The Petrolia Record, was founded Octo- ber 27. 1877, at Petrolia, by Charles E. Herr, in connection with a printing office car- ried on there by the publisher. In April, 1878, the size was increased from the original folio of twenty columns to a folio of twenty-eight columns, and in every respect the Record was made worthy of the busy oil center, which Petrolia then was. The editor gave time and attention to his work and painted in glowing words each week's doings in that interesting oil field. Among the reporters and

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contributors at Petrolia were D. W. Moorehouse, now a preacher of the gospel, at Newburyport, Massachusetts; Dr. B. L. Davis. F. F. Herr, W. F. Jordan and L. H. Patterson.

On removing the office to Butler, the name was changed to the Butler County Record, and the first number, under this new name, was issued June 6, 1888. On October 1, 1889, Prof. P. S. Bancroft, formerly of the Witherspoon Institute, and later in the local department of The Eagle, was engaged as associ- ate editor-a position he still holds. Messrs. Herr and Bancroft are earnest workers in the newspaper field and aim to make their columns as interesting and newsy as they were in the lively days when the great Petrolia oil field yielded up its surprises, jokes and tragedies daily. It is now a neatly printed journal of thirty-six columns, politically independent and carefully edited. The certified circulation is 1,700.

The Semi-Monthly was established in September, ISS1, by C. M. and W. J. Heineman, as a magazine, and issued from their office in the Heineman build- ing until 1884. Two or three other little papers were published at intervals. .

The Times, an evening paper, was founded April 14. 1884, by Charles M. and W. J. Heineman and W. G. Ziegler. as " The Times Publishing Company," with the object of furnishing the public of Butler and neighborhood the cream of the daily news and details of the oil field. At that time it was a four-page journal, neatly printed, each page being eleven by eight inches. On January 1, 1885, The Times was enlarged to eleven by fifteen inches, and the news col- umns extended, and on August 3. 1885, the size was again increased to twenty- two by fifteen inches. Later that fall W. G. Ziegler sold his interests to the Heinemans, since which time the brothers have carried it on with good success. The circulation of the Times daily is about 800.

The Weekly Times, established in August, 1884, as a seven-column, four- page journal, is now an eight-page paper of forty-eight columns. The job department of this office is very complete and the patronage quite large; while the new two-story printing office erected in 1894 is one of the most complete in the county.

The Orphan's Friend was a periodical issued by Rev. P. C. Prugh of St. Paul's Orphans' Home in 1882. It was established by Rev. T. F. Stauffer, who was editor down to December, 1882. Like other denominational journals it has . passed away.

The Tidings, published by Rev. J. Q. Waters of the Butler English Lutheran church, was issued in April, 1883, but its life was not of long duration.

The Magnet, a semi-monthly magazine, is published by the students of the Butler High School, Edgar H. Negley being editor-in-chief. Nine other editors, a business manager and an assistant manager find mention on the editorial page. Number 14 of volume 11. dated May 29, 1893, is a very creditable specimen.

MILLERSTOWN NEWSPAPERS.

The Sand Pump, the first half-sheet of a daily paper, was issued at Millers- town, by O. H. Jackson, in August, 1873. It was a trial issue to learn how far he could depend on the busy oil men and business community for support in pub-

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lishing a daily journal. How far the trial warranted success is shown by the fact that the Daily Sand Pump was issued regularly in September, 1873, and, to use the words of a contemporary, " went like hot cakes." It was an eight by ten inch sheet filled with oily paragraphs and advertisements. The people tired of it, however, in a little while, and the Sand Pump ceased working.

The Millerstown Review was a venture of the Rev. A. S. Thorn, who attempted to monopolize the advertising patronage of the oil field. It was established in 1875. after an experience at Greece City and other places. It was published with some degree of regularity until 1879, when Thorn, driven off by competitors, removed to Atwood, Kansas, to begin the publication of The Pioneer.

The Millerstown Herald was founded by S. J. Small in Centennial year. On May 19 1877, he sold his interest in the paper and material to P. 1. Ratti- gan, who made it a photograph of the oil field, as well as a stanch supporter of the Democratic party. During the last few years the Millerstown Herald obtained a large circulation, and has become a popular vehicle of news for the whole county. Nothing escapes its watchful editor, and, as a result, its news columns are replete in paragraphs bristling with common sense, while its editorials are read with interest by Republicans as well as Democrat ..

NEWSPAPERS OF PETROLIA AND VICINITY.

The Advertiser was the pioneer journal of that borough, antedating the Record ( the history of which has been previously given ) by a few months. Lerch & Mapes, the publishers, surrendered the field to Charles E. Herr, when he made known his intention of starting the Petrolia Record in 1877.

The Producers' Free Press was established early in 1875, by Lerch & Mapes, as a journal wholly devoted to the oil interests of the Petrolia field. To insure the success of their second venture here, they engaged P. C. Boyle to take edi- torial charge, and while he edited the Free Press it met with a fair measure of success. Subsequently, the owners made the way clear for the Record, finding the battle for precedence to be against them.

The Fairview Reporter was founded in 1872 by Col. Samuel Young, and continued publication for about twelve months, when he sought a more promising field. Among his aids was R. W. Crisswell, afterward a good describer of the oil fields in the Oil City Derrick and other papers.

The Advertiser was issued at Buena Vista, in December, 1873, as a tri-weekly paper, by J. D. Springstead. Old newspaper men at Butler do not remember such a journal ; but yet it is of record.

The Item was established at Greece City in March, 1873, by Rev. A. S. Thorn, a Presbyterian preacher and principal of West Sunbury Academy. W. W. McQuistion and Andrew Fitzsimmons, typos, assisted him in the office. It called the place " Grea-e City," said other disagreeable things about the extraor- dinary little oil town, and went the way of such journals in a very short period.

The Karns City Item was the first newspaper issued at Karns City. It may have been the same as that at Greece City, with the title changed to suit Karns City or vice versa. It was a small sheet, yet it held the field for almost a year.

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The Telephone was established at Karns City by J. Borland, in 1-75, and was regularly published there until 1882, when he moved the office to Pine Grove, Mercer county.

Labor's Voice was founded at Martinsburg by Patrick C. Boyle. He was born in Donegal county, Ireland, came to the United States in 1846, with his parents, and was raised at Brady's Bend, Armstrong county. In January, 1862, he entered the Fifty-fourth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and re-enlisted in March, 1864. From 1868 to 1874, he was connected with wells and pipe lines in this field, but in the latter year entered the domain of journalism. In 1877 he estab- lished the first labor journal in the oil region at Martinsburg, in Parker township. To-day Mr. Boyle is publisher of the Oil City Derrick, and one of the best known citizens in Western Pennsylvania.

NEWSPAPERS OF PROSPECT.

The Prospect Record published by John S. Fairman and edited by Dr. D. H. B. Brower, was issued at Prospect in July, 1>53. It was a newsy local paper on which Fairman and Brower lavished much labor. They had some hope of educating the people of that village up to the point of reading, and further still of supporting a paper printed entirely in the village. Twelve months of " Love's Labor Lost" convinced them that their hopes were groundless.

The Mirror and News was issued at Prospect in September, 1854, by Spear & Fairman, in the form of a six-column folio. Like the pioneer venture, the pub- lishers learned within a year that Prospect would not recognize their efforts as necessary to the life of the villagers and they suspended publication.

The Trump, issued in 1856, proved that it was not a trump, for within three months the editor threw down his hand, declaring he could not play a square game with the people.

The Camp-MMeeting Register, a daily morning paper, was issued at Pros- pect, August 26, 1859, by John S. Fairman. It was part and parcel of the great camp-meeting which was organized there by Rev. Samuel Crouse and local preachers.

The Prospect Leader grew up in S. B. Martincourt's job printing office, and appeared as a four-column, eight-page newspaper in December, 1879. Pub- lication was continued until the beginning of April, 1880, when it became evi- dent to the publisher that Prospect had not the enterprise to support a news- paper.

NEWSPAPERS OF ZELIENOPLE.

The Zelienople Recorder, the first newspaper published in the county, out- side Butler borough. was a thing of a few days and full of trouble. Little more is known of it.

The Connoquenessing Valley News, Number 1. Volume I, is dated October 30, 1878. In the salutatory of the publishers, Samuel and J. R. Young, it is written :

In obedience to the wishes of a large majority of the citizens of this valley, and the enterprising towns that have so long prospered upon its banks, we send forth the initial number of the Valley News. * *

* In conducting the paper, nothing of a

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sectarian or political character shall occupy its columns; but our purpose shall be to advance the varied local interests of the region and advocate every idea that is calcu- lated to benefit them.

On July 10, 1879, Samuel Young became sole proprietor. In December, 1981, the editor of the News quoted the following sentence from the Millerstown Herald:

Sam Young is almost as heavily crowded up with advertisements as we are. Sam, let us arise und bless our friends.

The Zelienope man responded thus :

We do, Pete, but your modesty overcomes ns. Did you measure matter, Pete? Taking a short column rule and measuring the matter in both papers, we found we have just four and one-half columns more than you, allowing time tables and everything else to count. Now go to work and kick yourself just twenty-five minutes.

Colonel Young died at Zelienople, March 27. 1891, in his seventieth year, and his son, J. R. Young, succeeded him as editor and proprietor. The News is printed at Zelienople, where a well equipped office speaks of enterprise and success.

CENTREVILLE AND SAXONBURG PAPERS.

The Centreville Casket ceased publication, August 8, 1879. It was edited by W. S. Fulkman. known as Stanley Fulkman, for about two years, then closed its short career and editor and office moved to the town of Beaver.

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History of Butler County, Pennsylvania, Part 22

Author: Brown, Robert C., ed; Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.); Meagher, John, jt. comp; Meginness, John Franklin, 1827-1899, jt. comp Publication date: 1895 Publisher: Chicago : R. C. Brown Number of Pages: 1658

Author: Brown, Robert C., ed; Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.); Meagher, John, jt. comp; Meginness, John Franklin, 1827-1899, jt. comp
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Chicago : R. C. Brown
Number of Pages: 1658