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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFirst Daily Paper article• . ,� "Well, he asked for it, didn't he ?" said Frank Conroy, author of the memoir Stop -Time and director of the University of Iowa's Writers' Workshop. "Hemingway was absolutely outrageous, the way he lived. He tried to be this big, burly guy, who wasn't afraid of anything, and it turns out he had feet of clay." • The sign leading to the house where Hemingway died, a short drive from First daily paper in college Statio ■ Editor's Note: As the new millennium approaches, it is an appropriate time to look back on our community and reflect on where we have come from. In this continu- ing series of articles from the archives of The Bryan - College Station Eagle, we will look back at those historical moments. This installment looks at the history of publica- tions in Brazos County. It was written by Bill Page, the library program coordinator in Humanities /Social Sciences Services in the Sterling C. Evans Library at Texas A &M University. COLLEGE STATION NEWSPAPER The first daily newspaper in College Station appeared in 1915. Titled the Daily Bulletin, it served as Texas A &M University's official publication. This work included some news and also list- ed class changes, official announce- Ernest Hemingway poses with a dead leopard in this 1953 photo through Nov. 7. Hemingway, who from an exhibit at Washington's National Portrait Gallery on display have been 100 on July 21. downtown Ketchum, does not welcome tourists or even mention his name. Like a cold -eyed guard dog, it appears just to glare at you and growl: "Private Property. No Trespassing. Violators will be prosecuted." Hemingway's concrete lodge, built into ments, schedules for recreational activi- ties and other college information. The title changed to the Reveille in 1918, and reverted to the Daily Bulletin in 1919. The paper ceased publication in 1926. In January 1916, Marvin Eclipse Wallace purchased the publishing plant formerly known as the Sun Printing Office. Wallace was probably the only local editor named after an astronomi- cal event — his middle name resulted from his having been born on "the day of the memorable eclipse of the Sun" in 1878. Wallace began his journalism career by working as a printer's devil for The Bryan Eagle and eventually had risen to more prominent positions with that firm. When Wallace bought the Sun office, the paper probably had been the foothills and stained brown to look "She w like wood, can be entered only by special much in appointment. When Mary Hemingway, said Guy his fourth and final wife, died in 1986, she Idaho din donated the 14 -acre property to the wouldn't Nature Conservancy, an international Hemin€ nonprofit organization. around ti THE MILLENNIUM PROJECT 2000 THE BRYAN - COLLEGE STATION EAGLE closed for some time, with the printing company remaining in business print- ing specialty items or contract jobs. In 1916, M.E. Wallace founded the Bryan Daily Herald, but the paper apparently lasted only a short time. Wallace probably used printing equip- ment from the Sun to produce the Bryan Daily Herald. When A.J. Buchanan left The Bryan Eagle in 1917, Ed E. Talmadge and A.B. O'Flaherty purchased a controlling interest in the firm's stock. Both men were vet( ing previ O'Flaher employee ROUNTREI Mr. an chased 7 several Rountree voters se resentati counties. Rountr ishing a urging ci ple while the speec The c death an teed that devoted lcome Like a just to rivate rs will t into d leopard in this 1953 photo nal Portrait Gallery on display activi- ille in ulletin ion in clipse plant inting e only nomi- ulted e day un" in career ✓ The isen to that e Sun been the foothills and stained brown to look like wood, can be entered only by special appointment. When Mary Hemingway, his fourth and fmal wife, died in 1986, she donated the 14 -acre property to the Nature Conservancy, an international nonprofit organization. AP file photo through Nov. 7. Hemingway, who killed himself July 2, 1961, would have been 100 on July 21. College Station debuted in 1915 THE MILLENNIUM PROJECT vass• 2000 TFIE BRYAN - COLLEGE STATIOA EAGLE closed for some time, with the printing company remaining in business print- ing specialty items or contract jobs. In 1916, M.E. Wallace founded the Bryan Daily Herald, but the paper apparently lasted only a short time. Wallace probably used printing equip- ment from the Sun to produce the Bryan Daily Herald. When A.J. Buchanan left The Bryan Eagle in 1917, Ed E. Talmadge and A.B. O'Flaherty purchased a controlling interest in the firm's stock. Both men "She wanted the land preserved as much in its natural state as possible," said Guy Bonnivier, the conservancy's Idaho director. "The intention was that it wouldn't be overrun with people." Hemingway's books are still popular around the world and his centennial has were veteran journalists, Talmadge hav- ing previously worked in McGregor and O'Flaherty having earlier been employed in San Antonio. ROUNTREES PURCHASE `THE BRYAN EAGLE' Mr. and Mrs. Lee J. Rountree pur- chased The Bryan Eagle in 1920. Like several other area journalists, Lee Rountree sought elected office, and local voters selected him to serve as state rep- resentative from Brazos and Grimes counties. Rountree died on May 2, 1923, after fin- ishing a speech in the Texas Legislature urging citizens to honor noteworthy peo- ple while they lived. Rountree completed the speech, sat down and died. The combination of his dramatic death and his being a journalist guaran- teed that most newspapers in the state devoted considerable space to his obitu- eaI — nevv Hemingway kids were so destined, thanks to their father's devotion to a "normal, rational view of life." (Three siblings eventually killed themselves. So did their father.) From an early age, Ernest liked to read, write, hunt and fish. As a teenager, he worked for his high school newspaper and longed for far away adventures, in the spirit of the great adventurer -hero of his childhood, Theodore Roosevelt. When the United States entered World War I, Hemingway enlisted and ended up working for the Red Cross in Italy. He was wounded in an explosion at an obser- vation post, which led to his first great love affair, with his nurse, Agnes Von 5. See AUTHOR, Page D8 ary. After her husband's death, Mrs. Rountree began editing The Bryan Eagle. The governor appointed her to succeed her husband as state represen- tative, and she later won that office in her own right. To date, she remains the only woman elected as a state represen- tative from Brazos County. Active in community affairs, Mrs. Rountree organized what became the United Fund in Bryan and served as the president of the Chamber of Commerce. She was the first woman president of the Texas Editorial Association and held the office of vice president of the National Editorial Association. In addition, she ardently supported the Bryan Public Library. Mrs. Rountree died Dec. 5, 1956. NEXT: Bryan High School newspaper