This week, Gordon Russ, another longtime volunteer, shares his impressions of early pioneer newspapers.

Early Gunnison, Colorado residents read newspapers inside their short walled canvas tent. Photo Courtesy of Western History/Genealogy Department, Denver Public Library

Since starting as a Washington State Library volunteer in 2006, I have come across numerous interesting historical discoveries.  One surprise was the amount of space devoted to government publications.  Papers often published local or national laws, town council minutes, legislative records, and speeches in their entirety.

In these papers you can read the “Proceedings of the Territory Convention” in The Columbian (December 11^th, 1852, Column 4), and the “Washington Legislature: First Session” in the Pioneer and Democrat (March 18^th, 1854, Column 3).  They were often published in full, a marked contrast to today’s emphasis on brief summaries and television sound bites.

One of my favorites is the published Audit of the U.S. Army for the Indian Wars of 1855 and 1856. The “Third Auditor’s Report,” Puget Sound Herald (June 17^th, 1859, Column 1), lists the contractors who provided the Army with various supplies.  The report also names individuals who claimed, sometimes falsely, that they joined the Army during that period and wanted to be paid.  These claims sparked great controversy. Letters to the Editor and Editorials confirming or rebuking the report surround the article.  The report was long awaited by the people of Puget Sound.

These articles suggest that political matters were of great interest to early settlers.  While they lacked many of the mass communication options available to us in the present, the pioneers were well-informed of current events.  The printing of these documents might also point to the limitations of early editors.  Not having a staff of reporters, it was easier to get a copy of the minutes, reports, speeches and just print them in full.  Whatever the reasons, the citizens of the territorial era were well-versed in the machinations of government, even before Washington gained statehood.