Newspaper Pokrok Západu (Omaha, Nebraska) 189?-189?
About Pokrok Západu (Omaha, Nebraska) 189?-189?
Beginning on August 1, 1871, Pokrok Západu, or “Progress of the West” was published as a weekly Czech-language newspaper in Omaha, Nebraska, by the well-known publisher and editor of the Omaha Daily Bee, Edward Rosewater (1841-1906). Born in Bohemia, Rosewater immigrated to the United States in 1854. Known for his feisty temper, Rosewater aggressively espoused in his papers Republican Party views on issues such as slavery and immigration. The success of Pokrok Západu was immediate, in part because one in five immigrants of Czech descent lived in Omaha and other Nebraska communities. Sold at $1.00 per week, the paper often included works of fiction and poetry, articles on farming, reminiscences of the Old Country, as well as news of the day. Pokrok Západu was a large format paper at 15″ x 22″ and had a circulation of 20,000 by 1880.
In March 1876, Jan Rosický (1845-1910), also originally from Bohemia, became the editor of the paper, purchasing it from Rosewater in 1877. Previously, Rosická had edited the Hospodář (“Farmer”), an important agricultural magazine that encouraged Czechs to immigrate to the United States. Under his leadership, the Pokrok Publishing Company was formed, and gradually Pokrok Západu became an important regional newspaper for Czech communities in Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, and the Dakotas. In the years that followed, the Pokrok Publishing Company produced various local editions of the newspaper. They included: Creteský Pokrok (Omaha & Crete, Nebraska), or “Progress of Crete,” 1905-19??; Pokrok (Clarkson, Schuyler & Omaha, Nebraska), or “Progress,” 1903-20; Kansaský Pokrok (Wilson, Kansas), or “Progress of Kansas,” ;19??- 20; Iowský Pokrok (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), or “Progress of Iowa,” 1906-19??; Minnesotský Pokrok (Minneapolis, St. Paul & Omaha), or “Progress of Minnesota,” 1908-20 (formerly St. Paul’s Minnesotský Noviny, or “Minnesota Newspaper,” 1904-19??); and, finally, Dakotský Pokrok (Tindall, South Dakota), or “Progress of the Dakotas,” 19??-19??
Following Jan Rosický’s death in 1910, the publishing enterprise continued under the direction of his daughter, Rose Rosický (1875-1954). Pokrok Západu and its extant local editions were finally absorbed into Chicago’s Hlasatel, or “Newsreader,” in 1920. Rose Rosický later published A History of Czechs in Nebraska in which she praised her father as a pioneer and leading newspaperman of his day.
Provided By: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NEAbout this Newspaper
Title
- Pokrok Západu (Omaha, Nebraska) 189?-189?
Names
- Rosický, Jan, 1845-1910
Dates of Publication
- 189?-189?
Created / Published
- Omaha, Nebraska : [Jan Rosický]
Headings
- - Czechs--United States--Newspapers
- - Czech Americans--Newspapers
- - Czech American newspapers
- - Omaha (Neb.)--Newspapers
- - Czech-American newspapers
- - Czech Americans
- - Czechs
- - Nebraska--Omaha
- - United States
- - United States--Nebraska--Douglas--Omaha
Genre
- Newspapers
Notes
- - Semiweekly
- - Editor: Jan Rosický, -July 31, 1900.
- - Archived issues are available in digital format from the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
- - Edition of: Pokrok západu.
- - Description based on: Ročník. 22, číslos 9 (21. r̆íjna 1892); title from masthead.
- - Latest issue consulted: Ročník. 22, číslos 12 (1. listopadu 1892).
Medium
- volumes
Call Number/Physical Location
- Newspaper
Digital Id
Library of Congress Control Number
- 2017270206
OCLC Number
- 990281385
- n990281385
ISSN Number
- 2577-9745
Related Titles
LCCN Permalink
Additional Metadata Formats
Availability
- View All Front Pages
- Check the “Libraries that Have It” tab for additional newspaper issues, or, if present, select the LCCN Permalink for more LC holdings