(03-07-2013 06:44 PM)historybuff22 Wrote:  The biggest difference is the amount of coverage. Today, when a major news event happens, we are lucky if there are 300-500 words on the event and there are lots of "sound bites," e.g. "It was horrible." "It was awful," etc. For Lincoln's assassination, the typical length of the articles were 10,000 words or more. Eyewitness accounts ran 300-600 words each. For major battles of the Civil War, like Gettysburg, Bull Run, etc. they too contained 10,000 words or more. Even minor battles utilized a couple thousand words.

These days, alas, nobody would read newspapers publishing that way. Unless, maybe, they were about that Kardashians or Dancing With the Stars.

Craig,

There were no reprints made for the assassination of Lincoln in Massachusetts newspapers. It was likely an original. To be original, it should have been near-white, NOT yellowed or brittle. If it was dated April 15, 1865, collector value today would have been around $350-$500.

Rick Brown
HistoryBuff.com
A Nonprofit Organization

Rick,

Unfortunately I do not remember the date on the newspaper that I lost 33 years ago. However, I do rememeber vividly that the paper was not brittle, and was in great condition. Looks like i had an original

Craig

Does anyone know when it was first announced that Powell attacked Seward?

It was announced that Powell was captured on the morning of April 18, 1865, identifying him as "Paine" with the name taken off of his Oath of Allegience. It was also recorded that Seward was attacked as early of course, as April 15, 1865. But until he was captured on April 17, no one knew who the attacker was....and even after, during the trial there was immense speculation as to Powell's real name. Which only added to his mystery. It wasn't brought out that he was Powell until early June during the trial when he asked for the Grants to testify as well as asking for his Dad, Reverend George C. Powell....

Thank you, Betty. That helps me greatly

Rick,
I looked at the link you posted (and thanks in advance for doing such amazing work on the topic). I'm well aware the majority of Lincoln assassination articles are fakes but does your non-for profits look at articles of this event for authenticity still? From my research mine looks authentic but of course I'm no expert on the topic. Another limitation I have is that my husbands (grandparents)...which is where we got it...framed it to keep it safe and thus I cannot read the subsequent pages (or even count how many there are (except I see more than one and the first page is numbered). Anyway to keep this short(ish) do you still do authentications? If so how would I go about doing this? This is a great piece of history and want to protect it as it should be if it is indeed an original. If not...would be good to put a little less effort into keeping this safe and away from sunlight, etc and just hang up for fun! Thank you in advance for any help!!
--Lauren

So far I have been offered "original' April 15, 1865 New York Herald's at least 10,000 times in the past 30 years. Only ONCE was it truly an original.

I classified 2 different categories of reprints:

1) Advertising - These were put out by mostly patent medicine companies.Pages 2 and 3 are filled with large ads for their product. ALL of these claim to be an 8:10 AM EXTRA. There was no original 8:10 AM EXTRA edition. Most have a portrait of a beardless Abe Lincoln on the front page - but not all.

2) News - These do not have the large patent medicine ads and look more like a traditional newspaper. Only a few of these have a portrait of a beardless Abe Lincoln on the front page.

As to seeing the inside pages, go ahead and remove it from the frame and examine the inside pages. Even if it is an original, it WILL NOT do harm to handle it. Originals were printed on high-quality paper made from fabric that contains NO acid and thus does not deteriorate or become brittle. Upon opening the pages, they are brittle IT IS A REPRINT.

If your specimen has turned yellow, IT IS A REPRINT!!! If near white or very light tan, it could be an original.

Good luck on your quest.

Rick Brown

(03-28-2013 10:45 PM)Craig Hipkins Wrote:  Rick,

Unfortunately I do not remember the date on the newspaper that I lost 33 years ago. However, I do rememeber vividly that the paper was not brittle, and was in great condition. Looks like i had an original

Craig

1-what did your grandfather say when you told him it was gone???

2-I bought my reprint copy at Fords Theater back in 1974. I still have it framed and hanging on the wall, about 4 feet from where I sit.
Wish I had a $1 for every person who looked at it and asked me if it was real!!!

Thanks for this info, Rick. I've bid on what I thought were real papers, but was always outbid. I do have one that is white, non-brittle, with nothing to indicate it is a reprint (except for what I consider a weak type strike), but tonight I'll see what the insides are like.

There is a piece of Madam Surratt's hair, with COA on ebay now, but I looked at it and went, "nah".

Question - There are a lot of papers from the 16, 17, 18, etc. that turn up on ebay. Are those likely to be reprints also, or does fakery diminish with time?

(09-16-2014 04:19 PM)Warren Wrote:  Thanks for this info, Rick. I've bid on what I thought were real papers, but was always outbid. I do have one that is white, non-brittle, with nothing to indicate it is a reprint (except for what I consider a weak type strike), but tonight I'll see what the insides are like.

There is a piece of Madam Surratt's hair, with COA on ebay now, but I looked at it and went, "nah".

Question - There are a lot of papers from the 16, 17, 18, etc. that turn up on ebay. Are those likely to be reprints also, or does fakery diminish with time?

Out of every 1,000 "Original April 15, 1865 New York Herald's" offered on eBay only one MIGHT be an original. I have an online atlas of originals and reprint versions -- So far I have documented 51 different reprint versions of this edition. View my atlas at http://www.historybuff.com/newspapers/assassination

Two facts you should be made aware of:

1) The pieces of famous people's hair are only about 1/8 inch long! The piece is so small there is no chance of obtaining DNA that would cost hundreds of dollars to do if it could be done.

2) COA's (Certifiate of Authenticity) can be made easier than verifying if the item is original or not. Create one on your computer printer and now it becomes "authentic" --- Right!!!!!!!!!!

I have not found any reprints of newspapers dated April 16-July 6, 1865.

Are you aware of my "Annotated Index of Newspaper Editions Known to Have Been Reprinted" monograph? It lists the 687 reprints produced between 1825 and the 1990s. Over 200 of these reprints have been offered on eBay at one time or another.

Monograph: http://www.historybuff.com/reprints/

Rick Brown
HistoryBuff.com
A Nonprofit Organization

Over the past 10-15 years, so many people have tried to sell locks of Mrs. Surratt's hair to the Surratt House Museum that I have truly lost count. I believe there was once a posting on this forum discussing who had access to her body in order to chop off the hair. The executioner, Christian Rath, claimed that he let no one else touch her. I can't remember if her coffin was opened when the bodies were moved in 1867, but a newspaper account of her reburial in Mt. Olivet Cemetery does speak of Annie Surratt being given a lock.

Don't even get me started on all the offers of photos of Mrs. Surratt that have been made to us. That is a very frustrating topic for me, and it was not helped any when a gentleman (whose name I forget) actually advertised "to the world" that the museum had no photos of the Surratts and were looking for some. I'm sure that he thought he was helping, but trying to tell people politely that you really do not think they have a photograph that they purport it to be is a tricky business. In essence you are telling them that they have not hit the jackpot and they will have to continue working for a living. It does occasionally happen that a rare photo appears - and when it does, I hope they clue us in on it!

(09-16-2014 05:01 PM)L Verge Wrote:  Don't even get me started on all the offers of photos of Mrs. Surratt that have been made to us. That is a very frustrating topic for me, and it was not helped any when a gentleman (whose name I forget) actually advertised "to the world" that the museum had no photos of the Surratts and were looking for some.

Does this mean you're not interested in my three Mrs. Surratt antique Polaroid photo's? I guess I'll have to call the office and let then know I will be in tomorrow morning

At an estate sale I attended, up front by the cashier and jewelry, was a card containing a 1 karat cubic zirconium, clearly labeled as such, along with a very important looking COA that attested it was a REAL cubic zirconium! God forbid that you buy a fake CZ; you would be doubly fooled!