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Newspaper Wessington Springs Herald (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891

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About Wessington Springs Herald (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891

The Wessington Springs Herald was a six-column, eight-page weekly originally published on Saturdays in Wessington Springs, Dakota Territory. The Herald began on March 3, 1883, in Aurora County. After publishing its first four issues, the county was reorganized, and Wessington Springs became part of the new Jerauld County. Editors W. I. Bateman and Charles W. McDonald had quickly set up premises in Wessington Springs, with some claiming that they began their business even before buildings had been erected on Main Street.

Bateman and McDonald — along with being early settlers of Wessington Springs — were also enterprising businessmen. In addition to publishing a newspaper, McDonald was also a practicing attorney, and for a time both men ran a real estate, loan, and insurance operation out of the front of their office while continuing to publish the Herald in the back. Since the Herald began at the same time as Wessington Springs, it provides interesting insight into the origins and early history of the town and the surrounding area. The Herald also survived to see the Dakota Territory divided into North and South Dakota. The Herald was non-partisan in its politics, and under Bateman and McDonald the paper strived to “convince its readers that Wessington Springs is a desirable place for … all who desire a home for themselves and their families which shall have the advantages of cultured and refined society and as few of the drawbacks and evils of it as possible.”

On February 5, 1886, Bateman and McDonald sold the Wessington Springs Herald to T. Linus Blank and his wife LoElla H. Blank. The Blanks controlled the Herald directly for five years. The paper had the following sections: agriculture headed by the Farmers Alliance; education run by a local educator, temperance covered by the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union; and a “Woman’s Realm” headed by LoElla Blank, who served as associate editor. LoElla Blank’s articles often promoted women’s sufferage and highlighted female entrepreneurship throughout the country. When taking control of the Herald the Blanks stated, “We may need advice, but do not think that we will cater to the whims of every one whom we chance to meet, or that we will be the organ of any particular set, party, ring, or clique.” In May of 1891, the Blanks leased the Herald to L. W. Kreidler who took over as business manager and H. Harry Gunderson who became editor. The Wessington Springs Herald remained in operation until December 18, 1891, when it was sold and merged into the True Republican, a paper lead at the time by Burt B. Blosser.

Provided By: South Dakota State Historical Society – State Archives

About this Newspaper

Title

  • Wessington Springs Herald (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891

Dates of Publication

  • 1883-1891

Created / Published

  • Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.] : W.I. Bateman, C.W. McDonald, 1883-1891.

Headings

  • -  Dakota Territory--History--Newspapers
  • -  Wessington Springs (S.D.)--Newspapers
  • -  Jerauld County (S.D.)--Newspapers
  • -  South Dakota--Jerauld County
  • -  South Dakota--Wessington Springs
  • -  United States--Dakota Territory
  • -  United States--South Dakota--Jerauld--Wessington Springs

Genre

  • History
  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Weekly
  • -  Vol. 1, no. 1 (Mar. 24, 1883)-v. 9, no. 45 (Dec. 18, 1891).
  • -  Available on microfilm from: State Archives, South Dakota State Historical Society.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format from the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  True Republican (Wessington Springs, S.D.) (DLC)sn 99067991

Medium

  • v.

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn99067997

OCLC Number

  • 41965864

ISSN Number

  • 2475-4439

Succeeding Titles

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

Rights & Access

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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:

Wessington Springs Herald Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota S.D. -1891. (Wessington Springs, SD), Jan. 1 1883. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn99067997/.

APA citation style:

(1883, January 1) Wessington Springs Herald Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota S.D. -1891. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn99067997/.

MLA citation style:

Wessington Springs Herald Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota S.D. -1891. (Wessington Springs, SD) 1 Jan. 1883. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, aj.sunback.homes/item/sn99067997/.