Clarendon’s first newspaper will be featured in a new exhibit at the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum in Canyon, which opens this Saturday, March 21.
In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Amarillo Globe-News, the Museum will journal the life of the Amarillo newspaper with a special exhibition called “Extra! Extra! Read All About It” in the Mary E. Bivins Gallery.
This exhibit will relate today’s Amarillo Globe-News as the lone survivor of more than 30 newspapers published in the city since its founding in 1887.
The exhibit will also touch on the history of journalism in the area, and among the items on display will be the first edition of Texas Panhandle’s first newspaper, The Clarendon News, which was published on June 1, 1878.
“This is the only known copy of our first edition,” said Clarendon publisher Roger Estlack, who agreed to loan the paper to the Museum. “This exhibit will be the first public display of this copy since it was discovered.”
Lost for many years, the 1878 paper was obtained in 2006 from an antique book dealer in Pennsylvania along with many early local papers. A reproduction of the first edition is on permanent display at the Saints’ Roost Museum in Clarendon along with an original copy of the second edition dated July 1, 1878.
The Clarendon News began as a monthly publication and went through many changes to become what is now known as The Clarendon Enterprise. Articles for the first papers were prepared in Old Clarendon and then sent to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where the paper was printed. The paper was then transported by train to Texas and then by stage to Clarendon.
Another interesting part of the exhibit will be the permanent plaque for the Panhandle Press Association’s Hall of Fame, which features many former Globe-News employees and three former publishers from Clarendon.
A brief history of the PPA will also be on display, and the association will kick off its annual convention this year with a reception at the Museum next Thursday.
Also featured in the exhibit will be descriptions of the Amarillo Globe-News radio, TV, and newspaper media giant; influential figures who helped mold and shape the paper into what it is today; a replica of a 1950’s reporter’s space; memorable comics and political cartoons; and exceptional and award-winning front pages.
This exhibit will continue through September 7, 2009.
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