USA > Tennessee > Davidson County > Nashville > History of Nashville, Tenn. > Part 39
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The war compelled the press to secure fuller details of events, each. newspaper depending largely upon its own enterprise for special news. About this time six or eight of the New York newspapers formed a News Association, and after the occupation of the city by the Federal forces the Nashville papers purchased a limited amount of news from this asso- ciation. In 1869 the Western Association was formed, including Pitts- burg and the larger Western cities. In 1872 the American became a member of this association, and retains its membership to the present day ..
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The initial number of the Nashville Banner was issued April 10, 1876, by the Nashville Banner Company, composed of John J. Carter, W. E. Eastman, C. P. Bledsoe, Humes Carothers, Pleasant J. Wright, and R. J. Miller. The capital stock of the company was $2,500, divided into shares of $100 each. The Banner was twenty-four by thirty-six inches, four pages of seven columns each, and the subscription price was $8 per annum. Mr. Eastman was the President; and Mr. Carter, Secretary and. Treasurer of the company. Thomas Atchison was editor in chief; Mr. Miller, city editor; and Church A. Robinson, reporter. The publication of the Weekly Banner was commenced June 15, 1876, the subscription price being $1.50 per annum, afterward reduced to $1. Mr. Robinson resigned in the fall of 1876, on account of ill health, and several months afterward died at his home in Lebanon. Mr. Carothers, Mr. Wright, and Mr. Bledsoe retired during the same year. Messrs. A. B. Tavel, R. H. Howell, and N. B. Buck purchased the stock held by Messrs. Ca- rothers and H. A. Hasslock, the latter having purchased that held by Mr. Wright. In 1878 Mr. Tavel was elected President, and in the same year was succeeded by Mr. Carter; and Mr. Miller was elected Secretary. In 1879 Dr. W. M. Clark purchased the interests of Mr. Carter and Mr. Buck, and soon afterward Messrs. James T. Bell and George E. Purvis became associated stockholders. Dr. Clark was editor in chief; Mr. Bell, managing editor; Major J. D. Hill, associate editor; Mr. Caroth- ers, telegraph editor; and Mr. Purvis, business manager. In the latter part of 1879 Major Hill retired, and early in 1880 Mr. Purvis sold out, being succeeded by D. H. Rains as business manager. The capital stock was increased to $25,000, and later to $42,000.
In 1882 Messrs. Ira P. Jones and H. M. Doak purchased an interest, and in May a morning edition was commenced, the evening edition being continued. In August the morning edition was discontinued. Mr. Bell was President of the company; Mr. Jones, Treasurer; Mr. Miller, Sec- retary ; Mr. Doak, editor in chief. In 1883, Mr. Bell being elected City Recorder, Mr. Miller was chosen managing editor. A. L. Landis, Jr., purchased a controlling interest, and Messrs. Jones and Bell retired. Mr. Landis became President and General Manager; and G. H. Baskette, managing editor. In 1885 Mr. Landis retired, and Mr. Baskette be- came President and General Manager, as well as editor in chief. Mr. Miller became managing editor, and James D. Andrews was elected busi- ness manager, holding that position until 1890, when he was succeeded by Mr. Landis. The present staff is as follows: G. H. Baskette, Pres- ident, General Manager, and editor; R. J. G. Miller, managing editor ; John C. Cook, telegraph editor; Lee Fitzgerald, city editor: James B.
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Clark and G. T. Halley, reporters ; and A. L. Landis, business manager. The Banner claims a larger circulation than any other daily paper pub- lished in Tennessee. It receives the complete day reports of the West- ern Associated Press and United Press, and in addition has a full special telegraph service, covering the principal cities all over the country. To meet the increasing demand for advertising space it was permanently en- larged to eight pages of six columns each on its fourteenth anniversary, April 10, 1890. In politics the Banner is independent, approving of that which is good and disapproving of that which is bad in all parties. Its constant endeavor is to deal fairly and honorably with all parties and all men.
The National Review was established as a weekly Republican paper June 14, 1885, by the Tennessee Publishing Company, of which John J. Littleton was President and business manager. The office of the paper was for about two years in Room No. 65, Cole building. John J. Little- ton remained editor of the Review until he was killed by Joseph R. Banks, December 24, 1887, after which Mrs. John J. Littleton edited the paper until it was sold to A. M. Hughes and S. M. Haynes, early in 1888, who conducted it until December, 1888, when it was purchased by A. L. Landis, Jr. Mr. Landis conducted the Review until it was purchased by W. T. Ownby and L. C. Mills, January 17, 1890. The name of the pa- per was changed by them to the Nashville Review March 3, 1890, and they have secured a very large increase in its circulation.
The Southern Lumberman was first issued December 15, 1880. It has always been published by the Southern Lumberman and Milling Company, which was organized a few weeks previous to the appearance of the first number of the paper, which is a semi-monthly publication. The compa- ny was originally composed of A. E. Baird, W. H. Harrington, S. S. Gause, R. L. C. White, and W. G. Baird. The company was organized by the election of S. S. Gause, President; R. L. C. White, Secretary. The Lumberman is devoted to the interests of lumber, timber, saw-mills, and wood-working industries generally. Each number contains sixty- four pages, each nine by twelve inches in size. It has always been ed- ited by A. E. Baird. This is the only paper of the kind in the Southern States, and circulates not only throughout the South, but also largely in the North, and has a fine subscription in Europe besides. The present officers of the company are: A. C. Campbell, President; J. H. Baird, Secretary and Manager; and A. E. Baird, Treasurer.
The Christian Advocate was established in 1834 in Nashville, as stat- ed in previous pages, and published in this city until the breaking out of the war, under the editorial management of Rev. H. N. McTyeire, who
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continued to serve in that capacity until elected bishop. At this time Rev. Dr. Summers became editor, and occupied that position until 1878, when he was succeeded by Rev. O. P. Fitzgerald, D.D., who is editor at the present time. The Christian Advocate has always been the central organ of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, as it was of Methodism in the South previous to the division in the Church in 1844. It has always exercised great influence in shaping the thought of the adherents of the Church and in directing their movements; and since 1878 its circulation has more than doubled, it being at the present time about thirty thou- sand.
The Sunday-school Visitor was established at Charleston, S. C., in 1851, with Rev. T. O. Summers, D.D., as editor. It was removed to Nashville in 1855, and has been published here ever since, except during an intermission caused by the war. Rev. Atticus G. Haygood, D.D., succeeded Rev. Dr. Summers in 1870, and was editor until 1875, when he was succeeded by Rev. W. G. E. Cunnyngham, D.D., who remained editor until 1883. He was then succeeded by Rev. J. A. Lyons, who was editor until 1887, when he was succeeded by Mr. J. L. Kirby, who has been editor up to the present time. This is a four-page paper, with four columns to the page, and is issued weekly, at 50 cents; semi-month- ly, at 25 cents; and monthly, at 12 1/2 cents per annum.
In previous pages a brief sketch of the Quarterly Review before the war is presented. After the war Dr. A. T. Bledsoe established the Southern Review at Nashville, and this periodical was adopted by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. It was continued until the death of Dr. Bledsoe in 1878, when a committee was appointed by the Confer- ence to manage the affairs of the Review; and this committee selected Dr. J. W. Hinton as editor. Dr. Hinton remained in this position until 1879, when Rev. T. O. Summers, D.D., was elected, and he continued to edit it until his death in 1882. At this time Dr. Hinton was again elected editor, and served in this capacity until 1886, when, declining a re-election, he was succeeded by Rev. W. P. Harrison, D.D., the pres- ent editor, who had been Book Editor since 1882. All books published by the Publishing House of the M. E. Church, South, except Sunday- school books, pass through the hands of and are approved by Dr. Har- rison. The name Quarterly Review was substituted in place of South- ern Review in 1879, and the magazine is devoted to the discussion of theology, philosophy, science, literature, education, and history.
The Sunday-school Magazine was established in 1870, and is conse- quently in its twentieth year. Rev. Dr. Atticus G. Haygood was editor from 1870 to 1875, since which time it has been edited by Rev. W. G.
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E. Cunnyngham. It contains the monthly lessons with expository notes, practical applications, etc., and is designed to assist the highest grade of Sunday-school workers. Each number contains fifty-six octavo pages, and it is published monthly at 50 cents per year.
The Senior Quarterly was established by Dr. Cunnyngham in 1878. It is a thirty-two page publication, and contains brief expository notes. It is designed for the first class of Bible scholars, and its subscription price is 15 cents per year.
The Intermediate Quarterly was established shortly after the Senior Quarterly. It is a thirty-two page 12mo publication, designed for the second class or grade of Sunday-school scholars. It contains lessons for the quarter, with brief expository notes, questions, and practical points. The subscription price is 71/2 cents per year.
The Illustrated Lesson Paper is designed for primary Sunday-school classes, and is a four-page 12mo publication. It contains lessons in a simple form with illustrations. The subscription price is 10 cents per year.
Our Little People is a four-page 16mo publication designed for the use of teachers of infant classes. It is published at 6 cents per year.
Rev. Dr. W. G. E. Cunnyngham has been editor of all of the Sunday- school publications since their establishment, except the Sunday-school Magazine and Sunday-school Visitor, the facts connected with the edit- orship of which are given above. From 1883 to 1886 he was assisted by Rev. J. A. Lyons, and since that time he has been assisted by Mr. J. L. Kirby.
The Woman's Missionary Advocate was established in 1880 as the organ of the Woman's Missionary Society, which was organized a few years earlier. The Advocate has been edited ever since its establish- ment by Mrs. F. A. Butler. The paper is devoted to the cause of Mis- sions. It is a sixteen-page quarto, published monthly at 50 cents per year.
The Missionary Reporter was established in 1880 by the Board of Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, with Rev. A. W. Wilson (now bishop) as editor. He remained in that position until 1882, when he was succeeded by Rev. R. A. Young, D.D., who was editor until 1886. The present editor, Rev. I. G. John, D.D., then took charge. Under his administration the Reporter was changed from a monthly paper to a monthly magazine of thirty-two octavo pages. It is devoted exclusively to mission work, first to that which is in charge of the Board, and secondly to general information as to other missionary fields.
The Board of Missions, above referred to, was incorporated April 8, 1881. Of this Board Rev. I. G. John is Secretary ; and Rev. J. D. Bar-
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bee, Treasurer. In addition to the Missionary Reporter, the Board pub- lishes an annual report of its work in all fields of missionary efforts. Its forty-third annual report was published in May, 1890.
The Cumberland Presbyterian is an outgrowth of a weekly Church paper established at Princeton, Ky., under the name of the Religious and Literary Intelligencer. In 1832 the paper was moved to Nashville and the name changed to the Revivalist, with Rev. James Smith as editor. Its business management for two years was such as to bring it to the verge of bankruptcy, and the Church at large came to its relief. In 1840 the paper passed into new and stronger hands, and the name was changed to the Banner of Peace, with Rev. F. R. Cossitt, D.D., as its editor. Its publication was continued until 1874, when the Board of Publication purchased all the papers of the Church, the other two being the Cumberland Presbyterian, of St. Louis, and the Texas Cumberland ยท Presbyterian, and consolidated the three papers under the name of the Cumberland Presbyterian. The Cumberland Presbyterian was edited by Rev. J. R. Brown, D.D., until 1883, when Dr. D. M. Harris became associate editor. In 1885 Dr. Brown retired, and since that time the paper has been edited by Dr. Harris and Dr. J. M. Howard. The Pres- byterian is an eight-page weekly paper, devoted to the interests of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and has a circulation of 12,000.
The Theological Medium was a quarterly publication, established in 1869, by Rev. T. C. Blake, D.D., who continued to edit it until 1874. Then Rev. M. B. DeWitt, D.D., became the editor, and the proprietor- ship passed to the Cumberland Presbyterian Board. After a few years the publication was transferred to the Theological Department of Cum- berland University, at Lebanon, Tenn., which soon afterward transferred it to St. Louis parties, who discontinued its publication.
The Cumberland Presbyterian Review was resumed as a quarterly in January, 1889, with Rev. J. M. Howard, D.D., Rev. D. M. Harris, D.D., Rev. M. B. DeWitt, D.D., and Rev. W. J. Darby, D.D., editors. This periodical is devoted to the discussion of theological and scientific subjects, each number contains one hundred and twenty-five pages, and it has attained high rank in this field of literature.
The Sunday-school Gem is a semi-monthly periodical started in 1867 by Rev. T. C. Blake, D.D., and edited by him until 1873, when Rev. M. B. DeWitt, D.D., became its editor. Rev. R. V. Foster was editor in 1882, and was succeeded the next year by the present editor, Mrs. C. M. Harris. Each issue of the Gem contains four pages. the subscription price is 50 cents per year, and the circulation is 17,500.
Sunday-school Comments is a quarterly, established in 1879 by the
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Board of Publication, with Rev. R. V. Foster, editor. He was succeed- ed in 1888 by Rev. M. B. DeWitt, D.D., the present editor. Each num- ber contains thirty-two pages, the subscription price is 20 cents per year,. and the circulation is 30,000.
Our Lambs is a four-page weekly paper, started in 1877 by the Board. of Publication, with Rev. M. B. DeWitt, editor, who served in that ca- pacity until 1882, when he was succeeded by Rev. R. V. Foster. He was succeeded in 1884 by Mrs. C. M. Harris, the present editor. The subscription price is 20 cents per year, and the circulation is 25,000.
Lesson Leaf, a two-page weekly, was started by the Board in 1877, with Rev. R. V. Foster, editor. He was succeeded in 1888 by Rev. M. B. DeWitt, the present editor. The subscription price is 6 cents per year, and the circulation is 24,000.
Bible Study, a monthly of thirty-two pages, was started in 1887, with Dr. J. I. D. Hinds, editor. He was succeeded by Rev. M. B. DeWitt, the present editor. The subscription price is 50 cents per year, and the circulation is 4,000.
Rays of Light is a quarterly publication, started in 1885 with Rev. R. V. Foster, editor. He was succeeded in 1888 by the present editor, Rev. M. B. DeWitt. Each number contains sixteen octavo pages, the: subscription price is 12 cents per year, and the circulation is 23,000.
The Missionary Banner was started in 1887, with Mrs. C. M. Harris, editor. It is a monthly paper, each number containing four pages, the. subscription price is 25 cents per year, and the circulation is 8,000.
The Baptist Reflector was established at Morristown, Tenn., in De- cember, 1875, by O. C. Pope, as the organ of the East Tennessee Bap- tists. Rev. W. D. Mayfield became joint editor and proprietor, and the paper was moved to Nashville in February, 1876. About this time Mr. Pope retired to become editor of the Baptist Herald, Texas. Mr. May- field was sole editor until January, 1879, when Rev. J. B. Chevis, of Macon, Ga., purchased the office, and Rev. B. R. Womack became as- sociate editor. It was then a four-page paper with eight columns to the page. Soon afterward M. Womack retired, and in 1882 Mr. Chevis. sold the paper to the American Baptist, published at Chattanooga, J. M. Robertson, editor. The word American was dropped, and the paper was published under the name of the Baptist Reflector. In 1887 the Baptist Publishing Company was organized with head-quarters at Chatta- nooga, the Baptist Reflector being owned by them, J. M. Robertson still editor. In 1888 Mr. Robertson retired, and Rev. R. J. Willingham, A. W. McGaba, and others became editorial contributors, A. McHan being business manager. November 29, 1888, Rev. Edgar E. Folk, of
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Albany, Ga., bought out the Baptist Publishing Company, and became editor and proprietor.
The Tennessee Baptist was published at Memphis by Rev. J. R. Graves, and in 1886 it was consolidated with the Baptist Gleaner, pub- lished at Fulton, Ky., by J. B. Moody, and the consolidated paper was called the Baptist. It was still published at Memphis, with both Graves and Moody editors. August 13, 1889, this paper was consolidated with the Baptist Reflector at Chattanooga, and the name changed to the Baptist and Reflector, with Rev. J. R. Graves, J. B. Moody, and Rev. Edgar E. Folk as editors. At the time of consolidation it was moved to Nashville, where it is now published. In October following Rev. Mr. Graves retired, turning his interest over to his son-in-law, Rev. O. L. Hailey, of Knoxville, Tenn., who then purchased the interest of Mr. Moody, and since then the paper has been published by Rev. Edgar E. Folk and Rev. O. L. Hailey. It is now a four-column sixteen-page publication, and is devoted to the interests of the Baptists of Tennessee and the South-west. It is now in better financial condition than for years previous, and has a circulation of 6,500.
The Baptist Watchman was established at Jasper, Ala., in 1868. It was moved to Murfreesboro in 1869, and to Nashville by C. W. Nance in 1872. B. E. Mullins and R. W. Fain were at that time the editors, and J. Bunyan Stephens associate editor. Mr. Stephens afterward became editor of the paper. It continued to be published in Nashville until Oc- tober, 1880, when it was suspended. The Watchman was devoted to the interests of the Primitive Baptists.
The Sunday Morning was established November 24, 1889, by the Sunday Morning Publishing Company, composed of Dr. C. W. Parker and R. L. Hoke. Each number of this paper contains eight five-column pages, each page being 1712x121/2 inches. It is a personal, dramatic, social, artistic, humorous, and political journal, independent in all. Dr. C. W. Parker is the business manager; and R. L. Hoke, editor.
The Round Table is a literary journal of the higher class. It was es- tablished February 2, 1890, and published weekly by a company with a capital of $50,000. It is a literary venture, but hopes for its success are founded on the fact that there is in the South no such periodical, and that at the same time there is a field to be filled by just such a journal. The circulation is to be kept up to 20,000 copies each week during the first year. It has now a bona fide list of 8,000 subscribers. More than thirty of the most eminent American writers have each agreed to con- tribute twelve articles during the first year. The Round Table contains articles on politics, religion, science, art, short stories, etc. The writers
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for the Round Table are from both the North and South, and it is the de- . sign to make this a medium through which they can speak to each other. Among the Nashville contributors to this paper are Colonel A. S. Colyar, Professor J. H. Kirkland, Charles Forster Smith, W. M. Baskervill, Dr. J. P. Dake, Edward W. Bemis, Marks Whit Handley, R. L. Hoke, Mrs. H. M. Doak, Colonel H. M. Doak, Professor W. L. Dudley, S. A. Link, E. J. Crockett, and Miss Kate Lupton.
The Nashville Journal of Medicine and Surgery was established in February, 1851, by W. K. Bowling, M.D., and was the first medical journal in Tennessee. Paul F. Eve, M.D., was associate editor with Dr. Bowling until January, 1858. The first year the fournal was pub- lished bi-monthly, in order to learn whether such a publication would be sustained, and the experiment proving a success, it became a monthly journal after the issue of six numbers. The first number that was issued contained articles from Drs. John M. Watson, C. K. Winston, David W. Yandell, R. C. Foster, and William T. Briggs. The other numbers of the first year contained articles from Drs. B. W. Avent, R. M. Porter, W. H. Gant, John W. King, W. D. Dorris, George M. Wharton, Paul F. Eve, John Travis, J. S. Parr, Walter J. Byrne, Robert N. Fleming, W. L. Sutton, B. W. Wood, Thomas J. McKie, and George W. White, most of them Nashville physicians. From January 1, 1858, to the break- ing out of the war Dr. Bowling was assisted by R. C. Foster, 4th, M.D., and George S. Blackie, M.D., and himself remained editor until 1875. Upon his retirement from the fournal his publisher said that " Dr. Bowl- ing had never kept the printer waiting for copy or money." The four- nal has always been an exceedingly able and interesting periodical. In 1875 it became the property of C. S. Briggs, M.D., its present proprie- tor and editor, who has labored successfully to maintain the high rank to which it attained under Dr. Bowling.
The Southern Practitioner is devoted exclusively to medicine and surgery. It was established in Nashville, January 1, 1879, by George S. Blackie, A.M., M.D., T. Chalmers Dow, M.D., Duncan Eve, M.D., and Deering J. Roberts, M.D., each of whom was at the time a professor in the Nashville Medical College. Its first numbers, twelve constituting a volume, contained thirty-two octavo pages of reading-matter, consisting of original and selected articles, besides editorial comments. The three departments of the journal have been kept about equal in extent. In January, 1883, the reading-matter was increased to forty-eight pages. Among its early contributors may be mentioned Dr. William K. Bowling, Dr. Theodore Lipscomb, Dr. Samuel D. Gross, Dr. Austin Flint, Sr., Dr. N. S. Davis, and many others equally earnest in their devotion to
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the advancement of medical science. Dr. Dow died January 7, 1879, and Dr. Blackie, June 19, 1881, from which time, up to the beginning of 1889, Drs. Eve and Roberts continued to conduct the journal. Dr. Eve at this time disposed of his interest to its present proprietor, Dr. Deering J. Roberts, who has been editorial manager since the beginning.
The Southern Law Review was established in 1871, by Reid & Brown, Frank T. Reid and Neill S. Brown, Jr. It was published monthly, and was a law journal of very high character. In 1874 it was sold to parties in St. Louis, and subsequently consolidated with the American Law Re- view, of Boston, Mass.
The Religious Historian was started in January, 1873, by Tolbert Fanning. It was a thirty-two page monthly, devoted to religious instruc- tion and the history of the Christian religion. The periodical was pub- lished by Mr. Fanning until May, 1874, in which month he died.
The South-western Journal of Education was established in 1884, by L. Trousdale, and in 1886 was published by the Wheeler, Osborne & Duckworth Manufacturing Company. It is now published by the Wheeler Publishing Company, and edited by Professor John L. Lamp- son, teacher and librarian at the State Normal School. The Journal is devoted to the interests of education.
The Commercial Reporter was established in November, 1871, by James Browne as a weekly price current. After the first three months the size of the paper was doubled and it became a five-column paper at $I per year. In 1873 it was again enlarged to a seven-column, and in 1879 to a nine-column paper. At this time a legal department was add- ed for the publication of the decisions of the Supreme Court of the State. In June, 1878, Mr. Browne sold the commercial part to W. Hooper Harris & Co., who suspended in six months, but continued the legal part himself in magazine form under the name of the Legal Re- porter. In 1879 this paper was transferred to Jere Baxter, and soon aft- erward transferred by him to Tavel, Eastman & Co., law publishers on Union Street. It was afterward sold to H. McCall, who consolidated it with the Southern Law Journal of Alabama and published it in Nashville until the latter part of 1881, when he discontinued it.
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