On Thursday, April 21st, the Spring Cluster Meeting of local historical societies and libraries took place at the Brighton District Library (BDL).  Thirteen representatives from local organizations were in attendance from 6-9 pm.

The cluster meetings allow the representatives from local libraries and neighboring historical and genealogical societies to meet and share information.  Sharing of information is valuable because these organizations share their various activities and programs with their peers throughout Livingston County.  Frequently, new ideas for projects and fund raising get their start at this forum.

 

A presentation by Mark Mullinax, genealogy and local history librarian for the BDL, examined all the newspapers that have been published in Livingston County since the early settlers arrived in the 1820-30s.  The presentation included publication names and editors, publication start and end dates, different mastheads used over time, and the publication total circulation quantity.

Most of the early publications started out as weekly papers.  Their titles often indicated their political leanings.  There were independent, republican and democrat papers in Livingston County.  Several papers shared various theological views in accordance with their church affiliation.  Publication lengths were in some cases, as short as a single issue.  Overall, there were about 58 papers that presented opinions and news to the local citizens.

This program was very interesting and will be available on the BDL web site in the near future.  I am sure that you will enjoy this information and the accompanying pictures.