EXTRA, EXTRA! Archives of Humboldt’s largest local newspaper are up for grabs, and on display in Samoa!
Reams of newspaper from a bygone era are stacked on tables arranged inside the old Samoa Machine Shop Building now cared for by the Timber Heritage Society, offering a vivid throwback into history. [Photo by Ryan Hutson]
An old building, a former machine shop in Samoa, not far from Eureka, has been transformed temporarily into a treasure trove of local history—with years and years of old Times Standards and Life and Times from SoHum. This unique exhibit breathes new life into past headlines, offering a tangible link to the stories that once dominated the local news landscape, from lost nuclear fuel to homeless encampments moved, inviting the community to reconnect with its collective memory and, if they want, take home a copy or two of their favorite editions.
Part of the exhibit seen here – one of the first medical pot developments covered in the county, on display complete with a fresh pre-rolled joint – illustrates just how far Humboldt has come on that topic. within a glass display case. In 1998, reporter Suzanne Zalev for the Times-Standard covered new developments related to Prop 215, you remember that, right? [Photo by Ryan Hutson]
According to Steve Lazar of the Humboldt County Historical Society, “The exhibition seeks to celebrate and illustrate the role of local journalism while profiling the remarkable changes that have occurred to the newspaper over this time period. During the event, attendees will be able to browse from a large volume of thousands of surplus newspapers and bring home free copies of the paper for articles or other items of interest. The duplicate papers are organized and grouped by month and year and copies will be made available to the public on a first come, first served basis. Space will also be available for attendees to review the papers and select articles or items of interest and post them in the exhibition area. The exhibition and newspapers will be open to the public from 10am to 6pm on each day.”
When faced with the question of what to do with the expansive archives left behind by the Times-Standard when it shifted home base from Eureka to Chico, Humboldt County Historical Society Director Steve Lazar was inspired to preserve what originals were best for posterity – with clear images and print in tact for future digitizing – and so organized an exhibition space where the papers could be viewed and appreciated once again, before being finally disposed of.
Lazar announced to members of local media that the project was underway, writing that articles were being selected by community members, who were “sorting through the duplicate papers and pulling out articles and clippings for the exhibition.” Lazar admitted that the task was overwhelming, simply due to the sheer amount of newspapers available, and noted, “[r]eviewing all of the newspapers for content is a daunting task given the volume and range of materials involved –and we need all the help we can get!”
Veteran local newsman, Bob Doran, is seen here curating a section of the exhibit related to Headwaters Forest news. [Photo by Ryan Hutson]
As diligent local journalists and editors continue to plug away, key by key, page by page, constantly feeding the collective need for local news, there is simultaneously a growing stockpile of archives kept in dusty office corners, storage spaces and warehouses, often put out of sight and out of mind for decades.
According to the HIstorical Society, “In May 2020, when the [Times-Standard] closed their Eureka print shop and began printing the paper in Chico, the archive could no longer be housed at their facility and stood in jeopardy of being lost to the landfill.” Then, the collection needed a place to be stored safely until a plan could be made to catalog and digitize the collection in color, with searchable keywords, which could open up new doors for research and historical understanding of local events for teachers, students, and community members in general. Additionally, the improvement in image quality, with color and better visibility will be a great improvement over the grayscale black and white, often fuzzy or simply unintelligible images found in older scanned versions of the paper viewable at the library, for example.
The Timber Heritage Association generously assisted, and offered to house the collection temporarily at their Samoa facility. HCHS has made a valiant effort to sort, organize, catalog, and box up the collection for safe keeping, while “saving the best copies for future digitization,” according to the statement from HCHS March 18, announcing the exhibit. The goal, according to Lazar, is “to perform targeted digitization with the goal of creating a digital archive that includes color images and is keyword searchable.”
The developing pop-up exhibit space within the old Machine Shop building at 930 Vance Avenue in Samoa is a staging ground for local news bits that have captured our attention or imagination, where the recent past (1995-2015) is reflected in print news for real time review and reflection. [Photo by Ryan Hutson]
Folks interested in helping grow the exhibit during the week are encouraged to reach out to Steve Lazar at the Humboldt Historical Society, at (707)445-4342, or email [email protected] with questions.
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Oh how time flies..
I see no reason why our civilization couldn’t have paused for a few centuries where we were at, pre-internet.
we could have consciously decided to stop there, fine tune out the problems and build out the culture.
stabilized and equalized.. imagine that.
but…. looks like it’s all set up to just keep moving along like a big bumbling juggernaut of incoherence, as we throw out the past and go headlong into a unknown technological future that will define the terms outside of any democratic process.
I liked newspapers quite a bit, but letters to the editor really took some time!
todays news blogs make interaction a cinch.
always a trade off.
Time paused, like the Matrix, in a perpetual 1980s, early ’90 loop.
Can’t wait to check it out. I haven’t forgot the days where I awaited with anticipation and then proceeded read the newspaper every single day to keep up with the world. Then of course, there’s the memory of the years I spent in my youth delivering the Times Standard, door to door on my bike.
Did that a few times. Stayed at a buddy’s over night, woke up before dawn, stuffed and rolled Sunday papers. He always had the most complaints the day after I “helped” him. Good fun.
Comics online just aren’t the same. Even just ten years ago, at the coffee shop on Sunday, eating a breakfast bagel with coffee, my wife would read the local news and I’d read the funnies. When I was done, I’d look around the cafe, see a kid with their elbows on the table and chin in hands while the adults chatted about grownup stuff. I’d walk over, get a parent’s attention, motion the funny pages toward the kid, the parental frown usually turning to an accepting smile. The kid would see this larger than life paper full of color and their eyes would open up like a child tasting candy for the first time. Even if they weren’t old enough to read or get the jokes, it was like a world created just for them. Then we’d walk up the street to the bakery and get a giant cookie to help finish the coffee.
Sounds like a good project for high school and college journalism students.
The only times standards I ever bought. We’re the years we got CAMP(Ed). I always thought they would be a novelty and a true blast from the past. I still have them and cherish them to this day. The kids times standard birth announcements were always gifted by a lovely woman in the community.
I’d like to re-read about that renewable energy fair that kept humming during a blackout (late 80’s/early 90’s). I think it was Earthquake-related. I somewhat recall the band Clan Dyken played off the back of their bus “Solar Betty” with instruments and amplifiers powered by roof-panels…
Couple questions. As I think the Times Standard ended up owning Southern Humboldt’s Redwood Record paper, are those archives also available? And, I assume the only way to ‘search’ these historic documents is by date and turning the page, right??? (Just gotta ask to know how accessible they might be for locating news of certain organizations).
Yes, much of those Redwood Record archives do exist, although my understanding is that they are not accompanies by duplicates, and were not a part of this particular event. The Humboldt Beacon, and the Life & Times archives are also collecting dust, set aside until or unless a solution for digitizing them or storing them long term comes about.
Picture shows that tree-hugger type getting pepper juice or something not good being dabbed into her eyes. It’s called “pain compliance,” a euphemism for torture. Just sayin’.
That sadistic maneuver was cruel and unusual punishment, and cost the Humboldt County Taxpayer’s Sheriff’s Department a pretty penny or two, and also maybe a Sheriff job or two…