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Chronicling America
National Endowment for the Humanities

Newspaper The Brownsville Daily Herald (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910

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About The Brownsville Daily Herald (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910

During the 1892 state Democratic convention, James B. (“Jim”) Wells, local Democratic Party boss, persuaded Jessie O. Wheeler of Victoria to publish a Democratic-affiliated newspaper in Brownsville. Wheeler had experience managing The Victoria Advocate and The Victoria Review. Soon after arriving in Brownsville, Wheeler purchased the Daily Cosmopolitan, renamed it The Daily Herald, and published its first issue on July 4, 1892. Wheeler published the paper under this title until 1897. Succeeding titles of The Daily Herald (for example, The Brownsville Daily Herald), have been published continuously in Brownsville to the present day. The Daily Herald was issued daily in the afternoon, except for Sundays, at an annual subscription rate of $8.00. By the end of its run, The Daily Herald enjoyed a modest circulation of 480 subscribers, and throughout its lifetime it measured 15 by 22 inches.

Born in Alabama, a veteran of the Confederate Army, and described by a journalist colleague as an “energetic newspaper man,” Wheeler brought an outspoken, enterprising flavor to The Daily Herald. The paper’s editorials championed Democratic policies and candidates (likewise denouncing Republicans and Independents), and it also published proceedings from the Cameron County Democratic Convention. Its energy was not only confined to politics; the paper also emerged as a prominent booster for Brownsville and Cameron County. An 1893 advertisement stated it well: The Daily Herald “is entirely devoted to development and progress [of] Cameron, Hidalgo, and Starr Counties, Texas.”

Wheeler used The Daily Herald to campaign for local railroad connections and to promote the bountiful business, agricultural, and distribution opportunities in Brownsville. He advocated for the area’s real estate riches through The Goodrich Real Estate and Southwest Immigration Bureau, of which he was secretary and Herald columnist. In the paper’s early years, Wheeler’s wife acted as assistant editor and writer, and, on at least one occasion, when her husband was ill, served as business manager.

The paper’s masthead maintained a clean, uncluttered banner, employing an Old English font for its simple title. Furthermore, no advertisements appeared in the masthead. Below the masthead, however, a host of advertisements occupied half of the front page, and one business card in particular appeared above the fold in most issues: James B. Wells, Attorney-at-Law.

Wheeler, along with Wells and his faction of Democratic supporters, withstood the criticisms and attacks from Independent and other Democratic papers such as The Lower Rio Grande to become the dominant newspaper in Brownsville.

Provided By: University of North Texas; Denton, TX

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Brownsville Daily Herald (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910

Dates of Publication

  • 1897-1910

Created / Published

  • Brownsville, Tex. : Jesse O. Wheeler

Headings

  • -  Brownsville (Tex.)--Newspapers
  • -  Cameron County (Tex.)--Newspapers
  • -  Texas--Brownsville
  • -  Texas--Cameron County
  • -  United States--Texas--Cameron--Brownsville

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Daily (except Sunday)
  • -  Vol. 6, no. 254 (Aug. 2, 1897)-
  • -  Ceased in 1910?
  • -  Available on microfilm: New York : Recordak Corp.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format as part of the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  Description based on: Vol. 17, no. 157 (Jan. 1, 1909).
  • -  Latest issue consulted: Vol. 18, no. 278 (Oct. 8, 1910).
  • -  Brownsville herald (Brownsville, Tex. : 1910) 0894-2064 (DLC)sn 86063730 (OCoLC)12903289

Medium

  • volumes : illustrations ; 56 cm

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper
  • AN

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn86099906

OCLC Number

  • 13107739

ISSN Number

  • 2159-4015

Preceding Titles

Succeeding Titles

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress believes that the newspapers in Chronicling America are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions. Newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety. Any newspapers in Chronicling America that were published less than 95 years ago are also believed to be in the public domain, but may contain some copyrighted third party materials. Researchers using newspapers published less than 95 years ago should be alert for modern content (for example, registered and renewed for copyright and published with notice) that may be copyrighted. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

The Brownsville Daily Herald Brownsville, Tex. -1910. (Brownsville, TX), Jan. 1 1897. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn86099906/.

APA citation style:

(1897, January 1) The Brownsville Daily Herald Brownsville, Tex. -1910. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn86099906/.

MLA citation style:

The Brownsville Daily Herald Brownsville, Tex. -1910. (Brownsville, TX) 1 Jan. 1897. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, aj.sunback.homes/item/sn86099906/.