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Reflections: 'The muscle behind our newspaper'

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Leslie Belland

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Stratford-Perth Archives

This photograph from the Stratford-Perth Archives was originally published in the Oct. 11, 1950, edition of the Stratford Beacon Herald and captioned as “ Scene at Detroit Hotel as Beacon Herald carriers enjoy weekend tour.”

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Having your newspaper delivered to your home by a newspaper carrier, or more commonly referred to as a paperboy or girl, dates back to the Great Depression, and lasted, basically unchanged, for more than half a century. Before then, working class kids known as “newsies” hawked papers on street corners. They were considered as entrepreneurs as well because newsboys were not newspaper employees, but rather free agents who bought their papers at a discount, unable to return unsold papers. They were tough kids, hollering and fighting their way in an attempt to dominate a street corner. They would stray far from their own neighbourhoods if necessary and worked long hours.

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The home delivery newspaper carrier has long been the first paying job available to young boys, girls, and adolescents. Numerous successful business men and women can recall learning the rudiments of business as a newspaper carrier, and many of those who once delivered the Stratford Beacon Herald throughout the County of Perth and beyond were no exception. In June 1956, the Beacon Herald reported that, after a careful interview was conducted with parents, only boys and girls of good character qualified as carriers. Preliminary instruction by a representative of the newspaper’s circulation department was given, and in addition to what a carrier learned from experience, he was offered advice, assistance and training throughout his carrier career. These young newspaper employees learned the importance of their work and the usefulness of the money they earned while gaining an appreciation for courtesy, punctuality, honesty, diligence, courage, persistence, and responsibility.

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The Beacon Herald’s distribution of their newspaper, at one time or another, has reached all areas of the county and district requiring large numbers of carriers to deliver the paper. However, it seems that, in more recent years, there has been a major decline in the number of paper carriers due partly to changing demographics, the availability of news and newspapers online, and the safety of unescorted children, all of which have led many newspapers, including the Beacon Herald, to include delivery by adults, often in cars.

International Newspaper Carrier Day is an annual observance created by the Newspaper Association of America and celebrated in October. The day is scheduled in association with the Newspaper Association Managers’ National Newspaper Week that is celebrated during the first full week in October, and Newspaper Carrier Day is observed on the Saturday of that week. News Media Canada – the national association representing the newspaper industry in Canada – also observes this particular date, noting newspapers may choose to observe the day by running an ad, or organizing special events or activities. The purpose of National Newspaper Week and Newspaper Carrier Day is to highlight the contributions that newspapers, their staff and carriers make to gather and deliver the news to their communities.

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In 1974, the Beacon Herald saluted those who delivered the news, stating “… we at the Beacon Herald are proud of our carriers and the fine job that they are doing. We think the 157 Beacon Herald carriers who deliver their papers in Stratford and throughout the county are a special group of fine young people. Today is International Newspaper Carrier Day and we at The Beacon Herald salute these young people for their spirit and co-operation. They are an indispensable part of The Beacon Herald’s team of newspaper men and women serving their community six days a week in all kinds of weather. We hope that you on this special day will give a second thought to that particular boy or girl who leaves The Beacon Herald at your home and will pay him or her tribute too.”

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In 1979, when the Beacon was, on average, a 28-page paper, a carrier moved close to 3,150 kilograms of newsprint along his or her foot route. Subscribers to the Beacon were asked to think about the mountains of information the paper reported on in one year and those 80-pound kids moving that much weight in newsprint, trying their best to deliver the paper when and where it was wanted – every day.

The Beacon Herald has been generous with their praise of their carriers and the rewards given for excellent service has been noteworthy. On Jan. 6, 1947, it was reported that Beacon Herald carrier boys and girls from seven towns and villages were treated to a weekend trip to Toronto, where they visited Maple Leaf Gardens Saturday afternoon to see the Leafs play the New York Rangers, stayed overnight at the King Edward Hotel, and visited Riverdale Zoo and the Royal Ontario Museum on Sunday. The winners of the weekend trip were successful in showing quick and efficient service over a period of time in delivering their papers, had a lack of complaints from their customers, and also had to show an increase in the number of regular customers on their routes. Among those who made the trip were Kenneth Anderson and Leslie Martin of St. Marys, Wilbert Dick of New Hamburg, Douglas Nuttall and Ray Ruby of Tavistock, Ronald Wilkinson of Hickson, Wilma Ebel and Georgina Potts of Listowel, Robert McCreight of Atwood, and Arnold Matthews of Milverton.

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October 1950 was when another group of successful carriers enjoyed a weekend tour of Detroit, the   same weekend the NHL All-Stars were in town to play the Detroit Red Wings. It’s not clear whether the carriers were lucky enough to be in attendance at that game to see the All-Stars get battered by the Red Wings 7-1. The attached photo, taken by Sydney J. Gibson of the Beacon’s circulation staff, shows, from left to right, Frank MacDonald, Clinton; Wayne Pauli, Mitchell; Bob Frier, Mitchell; and Ted Heinze, Wellesley, each attempting to eat a breakfast that included half a grapefruit, two fried eggs and six slabs of bacon, plus buns, toast, and double milks all round at a Detroit hotel. The girls on the trip, chaperoned by Ms. Mabel Lougheed, also had a time taking in all the sights and did some serious shopping. Margaret Potts, Listowel; Donna Knoblauch, Listowel; Doreen Jackson, Shakespeare; and Lorraine Dawson, Brooksdale also enjoyed big breakfasts at the same hotel.

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Dean Robinson recalls accompanying some carriers to Toronto to see the Argonauts in a Canadian Football League game. He was sports editor at the Beacon Herald from 1968 to 1975.

“I think it was in the early 1970s, and I remember we had a full bus of excited kids,” says Robinson. “The paper’s circulation manager was also a chaperone. I think it was Gerry Doney.”

On International Newspaper Carrier Day 1979, the Beacon acknowledged all the carriers for their great work and for being “The Muscle Behind Our Newspaper!” – a statement that has rung true the entire life of the Stratford Beacon Herald. The next International Newspaper Carrier Day will be observed on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020.

The Stratford-Perth Archives is located at 4273 Line 34 (Highway 8), just west of Stratford. We are open for research from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday to Friday. Please call 519-271-0531 ext. 259 or email archives@perthcounty.ca with any questions.

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