Randy Seaver has his weekly Saturday Night Genealogy Fun challenge posted. This week it’s headline news the day my Dad was born.
My Dad was born 7 March 1927 in Oakland, California. The Oakland Tribune was the main newspaper for the city of Oakland during that time.
There wasn’t any one big headline, but it was a big day for news. Terrorists were killed and captured, there was a major earthquake in Japan, a woman was sentenced for beating her husband, the US sent troops to Nicaragua…busy day!
I think I’ll note them all. These are all the headlines on the front page of the Oakland Tribune for that day.
- Bomber at Church Slain in S.F. Trap: Fifth Attempt to Dynamite SS Peter and Paul Ends in Killing of Man Who Lit Fuse; Lookout is Shot: Nabbing of Terrorist at Work May Aid in Solving Mystery of Plot to Blow Up Blake Building Here
- Jailed for Beating Husband: Her Husband Insulted Her Gentleman Caller (she left him with a black eye, she got 30 days in jail)
- Suit Bares Geo. Sterling Suicide Clue: Error in Realty Deal Seen as Possible Motive Back of Poet’s Death by Own Hand in S.F. Recently
- U.S. Lands Army at Nicaragua: 1200 Marines Put Ashore; Force at Matagalpa to Defend City
- Colbourn to Enter Race for Mayor (Frank Colbourn, Commissioner of Public Health and Safety of Oakland)
- British Prince is Busiest Man: Wales Holds World Record But Finds Time Also to be “Good Fellow”
- Japan Quake Takes Heavy Death Toll: Richardson Periled: Ex-Governor, Family Caught at Kobe in Panic of U.S. Tourists on World Cruise, Woman Killed, Theater Collapse Traps 80 (the woman was killed in a panic on the dock)
If I read these headlines without knowing the date, I might mistake them for last week’s news. I always hear people talk about how times are different, there wasn’t much crime, and people behaved. I sometimes wonder if the lack of a 24 hour news cycle and television news allowed them to shut out most of what was happening outside their own community. It’s worth a thought.
Thanks to Randy for this interesting challenge! Newspapers are vital to genealogy. We learn about our ancestors, their communities, and the world they lived in when look at old newspapers. They can be very important to areas that have lost records as they may be the only place to find marriages, births, deaths, and other events that affected our relatives.
