Awesome news for newspaper nerds. The Library of Congress has released a bunch of old Kansas newspapers online, and it's freaking fascinating. Now let's all readjust our crotchal areas and dig in.
On December 20, 1883, The Wichita Eagle was reporting on a broad range of news and opinion. The only major disappointment of sifting through the ancient fish wrap is that there's no sports page.
A front-page article titled "A Memorable Game of Poker" documents a political
quasi-scandal of a gambler trying to get a former senator to pay off his debts. The article, with a comically not-current dateline of
"Washington, November 23," reads:
The Pitch wrote earlier this week about a new coal plant
slated to to be built in Holcomb. As this front-page advertisement shows,
some things never change. Although most of us aren't buying coal for
home consumption anymore.
The paper's front page was also littered with humorous anecdotes that
prove kids said the damnedest things even back in the day.
difference in how delicately we report on executions today and the blunt ways of the past. Is Rosie O'Donnell
appearing on Dancing With the Stars? HA! No, no, some guy was just hanged:
strategy than today.
Ah, back before the back page was used to advertise adult services ... we think.
