XXXVI.

THE NEWSPAPER IN NEENAH.

The press does more for its adopted town than any other one
enterprise, and the editor has less return for his labor than most
any other enterprise. The first newspaper in Neenah was "The
Conservator," established by Harrison Reed, the founder of the
"Milwaukee Sentinel."  His first issue was May 21, 1856. It
was a good weekly, well written, full of news, and boomed the
village in every issue. It was a weekly and Whig Republican
in politics. It was sold to B. S. Heath in 1858 and moved to
Menasha. Established at the same time, almost the same date,
was the "Neenah Bulletin," by W. H. Mitchell. It did not sur-
vive many weeks. It was succeeded by the "Neenah Demo-
crat," published by D. Hyer, unfortunately located at the period
in which it was published, the stirring days before the war,
when there were few of that kind.
When Captain J. N. Stone came out of the civil war with an
honorable discharge he located in Neenah and established the
"Island City Times," the first issue appearing October 22,
1863, and continued to appear regularly until July 15, 1870,
when Captain Stone sold out and moved to Appleton, the press
and material were taken over by Mr. Tapley from the Green
Bay "Advocate," and Mr. W. G. Rich from the Oshkosh
"Courier," who changed the name to "Winnebago County
Press."  Mr. Tapley soon sold to W., G. Rich his interest in
the paper and moved away. Mr. W. G. Rich continued the
paper until 1871, when he sold the office to Thomas B. Reid,
who moved the press and material to Menasha and changed
the name to the "Menasha Press," who edited it until 1877.
The Verbeck Brothers commenced to publish a small sheet
in 1871, which they called the "Neenah Times," and subse-
quently enlarged and conducted by them until February 6,
1876, when it was purchased by Brown & Maxwell and given
the new name the "Teetotaller."  This paper survived for
eighteen months.
Captain J. N. Stone had meantime returned and commenced

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