The Rochester Courier Collection, 1850-1903

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Collection Overview

Creator:

Folsom, C. W. (Charles William), 1826-1904

Title:

The Rochester Courier Collection

Repository:

Manuscripts Division

Permanent URL:

http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/pv63g0286

Dates:

1850-1903

Size:

1 box and 0.20 linear feet

Storage Note:

ReCAP (scarcpxm): Box 1

Language:

English

Abstract: The Rochester Courier was a weekly, local newspaper published on Friday nights in Rochester, New Hampshire, beginning in 1864. The collection consists of manuscript speeches, articles, editorials, and correspondence from the newspaper, reflecting some of the national issues which dominated American political life leading up to and following the Civil War, including the antislavery movement, the Missouri Compromise, and temperance.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of manuscript speeches, articles, editorials, and correspondence related to The Rochester Courier, a weekly newspaper first published on January 22, 1864, in Rochester, New Hampshire, by J. Frank Place. The topics deal mainly with the antislavery movement, the Missouri Compromise, temperance, and other national issues which dominated American political life leading up to and following the Civil War. Included is a notebook journal outlining the history of the Courier, its mission, political views, physical setup, and its owners, and providing a profile of Charles Folsom, proprietor after October 1, 1868; its last page gives a summary of existing newspapers in Rochester in 1872 and of the progress of the Sons of Temperance of North America.

There are several speeches addressed to "Mr. President," including a four-page speech by a "Paddy A. Rafferty" delivered at the "Grand Rally of the Democrats of Rochester" and another about freedom, slavery, and the Missouri Compromise. There is an editorial that cites Thomas Jefferson about the abolition of slavery laws and denounces the Democratic Party for wavering on slavery issues. In a one-page manuscript titled "No Hand Lost" the writer declares that Abraham Lincoln is a good candidate for the presidency. Another article relates the beginning of the American Civil War with an armed raid on Lawrence, Kansas, in May 1856. There is a "Fourth of July speech" written on Congressional letterhead stationery criticizing the presidency and mentioning "Miss Columby", a character featured in the "Lincoln cartoons."

Temperance-related material includes a speech about temperance written on "Harrison Mills" notepaper, a list of names of members of a temperance lodge, "An Appeal" by the Women's Christian Temperance Union regarding liquor, and a two-page editorial written and signed by Charles Folsom. Other material includes a notebook containing drafts of editorials, articles, poems, and correspondence; a list of items to be donated; a program for a "Grand Concert On Behalf of Sailors Orphans," dated April 21, 1900; two drafts of an article titled "Walking with God" or "Closer to God"; an editorial about summer, dated June 25, 1873; an eight-page editorial about "Romance"; and a receipt for $1000 signed by A. M. Nason, dated February 16, 1876, and with The Rochester Courier letterhead..

Arrangement

The folders are arranged alphabetically by title or subject in one series.

Collection Creator Biography:

Folsom, C. W. (Charles William), 1826-1904

The Rochester Courier was first published by J. Frank Place as a weekly newspaper published only on Fridays nights, beginning on January 22, 1864. He distributed a prospectus, tried to get as many sponsors as he could, sold advertising space, and also printed business cards. Place was not interested in local news, and he only published the paper for a little over three years. On May 31, 1867, he sold the Courier and the printing office to Gen. C. Foster, who in turn sold half the business to Charles W. Folsom. On October 1, 1868, Folsom bought out his partner's interest in the newspaper, and he continued to publish it for the next eighteen years. Folsom was interested in publishing local as well as national news, and tried to keep his readers up to date with what was happening in the rest of the country. At that time, the subject of utmost importance was the abolition of slavery, followed by prohibition and temperance.

Collection History

Acquisition:: Gift of Bruce C. Willsie, Princeton Class of 1986, on November 26, 2007 .
Appraisal: No appraisal information is available.
Processing Information: This collection was processed by Dina Britain on January 15, 2008. Finding aid written by Dina Britain on January 22, 2008.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

The material was in an original morocco and marbled boards salesman display portfolio for advertisements that were sold by the newspaper. This one being for business cards as indicated by the label.

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