RESEARCHING MAYNARD USING PRINT NEWSPAPERS
The digitization of newspapers that can be searched on-line makes digitized papers a wonderful research tool. This is a guide to researching those print newspapers that: (a) regularly covered Maynard, its people and its institutions from and after Maynard’s founding in 1871, and (b) intermittently covered the Maynard area before its founding. Brief histories of the four print newspapers (now all extinct) that explicitly covered Maynard appear at the back.
Note – For best results when searching digital papers, researchers are strongly encouraged to work with local library staff.
Background to Maynard and Newspaper Coverage
For many decades after first being settled by Europeans, Stow and Sudbury share a common border along a stretch of the Assabet River. The shared stretch of river is exclusively rural until the early 1800’s when a grist mill and paper mill appear on a run of falls on the river’s Sudbury side. A few houses appear. A hamlet forms. Then, in the 1840’s Amory Maynard and William Knight build a carpet mill just upriver from the paper mill. This mill truly changes the area by attracting permanent residents and businesses. A true village is born beside the mills on the Assabet.
This village, while officially existing partly in Stow and partly in Sudbury, acquires the informal name Assabet Village. In 1871, Assabet Village officially becomes the Village of Maynard within the newly formed Town of Maynard, with the town carved from adjoining portions of Stow and Sudbury.
This document looks at how can a researcher best access (a) any newspapers that might have referenced life along the Assabet River in Stow and Sudbury prior to 1847, (b) any newspapers that might have referenced the birth and growth of Assabet Village between 1847 and 1871, and (c) the newspapers that covered Maynard from and after its founding in 1871 until 2022 when the last print paper covering Maynard ceased publication.
As to (a) above, the period prior to 1847, we believe there is little (if any) newspaper coverage since prior to1847 (i) newspapers were relatively uncommon, and (ii) the area that would become Maynard was so rural that it offered little of interest to those towns and cities that had a paper.
As to (b) above, there is some newspaper coverage between 1847 and 1871 of Assabet Village, the mill complexes and the people living in Assabet Village.
As to (c) above, newspaper coverage of Maynard from and after 1871 is relatively limited until the mid-1880’s. That is when Maynard and the nearby towns of Acton, Stow, Gleasondale and Sudbury have a sufficient number of residents willing to subscribe to a paper, and a sufficient number of local businesses prepared to pay to advertize to those people, that entrepreneurs start a newspaper with a Maynard focus.
We begin the story of newspaper coverage with Maynard’s founding in 1871. We then consider possible newspaper coverage prior to 1871 for the area that will become Assabet Village and then Maynard. For that, see: “Pre-1871 Newspapers in Boston and in Towns Adjoining Maynard.”
Maynard Print Newspapers – Coverage 1871 to 2022
The Maynard Journal was published for some time in the 1870’s. A few editions from 1874 have been digitized and can be found through the website of the Hudson Public Library. We believe The Maynard Journal was short-lived.
The following papers covered Maynard over substantial time periods from and after 1888. All were weekly papers.
The Enterprise Weekly with coverage from 1888 to1915; renamed the Maynard Enterprise with coverage from 1915 to1959.
The Maynard News with coverage from 1899 to1943.
The Beacon with coverage from 1947 to 1963. Renamed The Assabet Valley Beacon from 1963 to 1991. It evolved into the Maynard Beacon 1991-1997, and then the Beacon-Villager from 1998 until publication ceased in 2022.
Note that the first regular Maynard-centric paper begins in 1888, which is seventeen years after Maynard’s founding. Between 1871 and 1888, Maynard is covered to a limited extent by papers whose primary focus is Concord, Acton or Hudson. Several of the longer-lived of those papers are noted later under the heading “Post-1871 Newspapers in Towns Adjoining Maynard.”
How to Access the Four “Maynard” Papers Described Above
As noted, the Hudson Public library has digitized a few editions of The Maynard News.
The Maynard Public Library has digitized many years’ worth of editions of the other three papers. The digitized papers can be searched on the library website. The Mayard Public library is working to digitize more recent editions of these papers. It has microfilm of most of the non-digitized editions. There are some gaps in what the library has available to research as certain copies of one or more of these papers cannot be located.
Pre-1871 Newspapers in Boston and in Towns Adjoining Maynard
Newspapers that reported (or might have reported) on people or businesses in (a) the areas of Stow and Sudbury that would become Assabet Village in 1847, and (b) the newly born Assabet Village of 1847 to 1871, include the following.
The Boston Courier from 1826 into the late 1890’s
The Boston Investigator from 1831 into the mid-1890’s.
The Atlas (a Boston paper) from 1832 to 1857.
The Boston Daily Advertiser from 1855 into the late 1890’s.
[All four of the above are digitized and are word searchable through the Boston Public Library (bpl.org/resource.) You need an e-library card to conduct a search. A card can be obtained for free by applying online. Since several of these papers ran for some years after Maynard’s birth in 1871, they may be useful to those interested in Maynard’s early years.]
The Middlesex Gazette started in Concord by Peters and Betters in 1816. The Gazette ran until sometime in the 1840’s, with the name changing in 1830 to Yeoman’s Gazette.
The Marlboro Mirror. Editions from 1869-1870 have been digitized by the Hudson Public Library and can be found through that library’s website.
The Freeman, and sometimes the Concord Freeman, ran from December 1834 into 1848. It was published by Francis Gourgas and William Robinson of Concord. The Freeman became the Middlesex Freeman in 1848. The paper was taken over by the Lowell Patriot and Advertiser early in 1859. The Concord Public Library is a good source for this paper.
Post - 1871 Newspapers in Towns Adjoining Maynard
A researcher focused on Maynard between 1871 and 1888 (when Maynard began to have its own papers) might research newspapers from adjoining towns. The research librarians for each town library can help guide your research to the relevant local papers. We suggest looking at the following.
In the prior section we mentioned The Boston Courier, The Boston Investigator and the Boston Daily Advertiser. They can be a resource for the period from and after 1871.
The Acton Monitor ran at least from 1874 to 1883, and The Acton Patriot (and later The Acton Weekly Patriot) ran at least from 1874 to 1886. The Monitor was edited and published by The Friends of the Evangelical Society of Acton. The Patriot was published in South Acton by Johnson and Fletcher out of the Dwight Block. A few editions of both these titles can be found on the website of the Acton Historical Society. The date ranges of 1874 to 1886 are based on the copies noted as in the possession of the Acton Historical Society. Each paper may have had a longer life than that. The Acton Historical Society hopes to digitize these papers.
The Marlboro Mirror 1879-1880 is digitized at the Hudson Public Library.
The Concord Enterprise which ran from 1883 on.
The Hudson Enterprise 1883-1887.
Regional and National Papers – Also A Resource
There have been times when large regional papers such as the Boston Globe and national papers such as the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal ran articles relating to Maynard. That was certainly true as to important news concerning the two largest employers in Maynard’s history, first American Woolen and later Digital Equipment. Both those businesses and their managements generated substantial regional and national coverage.
Where to Start Your Search
Many papers have been digitized by libraries, universities, historical societies, state governments and agencies of the federal government. The research department at the Maynard Public Library is excellent and can assist in getting you started.
However, once you have the name of a paper you wish to check, do not simply look for the paper through the website of the Maynard Public Library or through the websites of the library or historical society for a neighboring town. You should also do on-line research to see whether what you want exists outside the Maynard area.
Some libraries subscribe to newspapers.com which is in orbit of ancestry.com. A subscription is necessary. The site hosts digital versions of thousand of newspapers. It is a remarkable resource and growing daily.
Maynard Newspapers – Brief Histories
The Maynard Journal
Regrettably, we have no information on the origin or duration of this paper. The Hudson Public Library’s digitized collection begins with an edition for September 18, 1874, identified as Volume 1, Number 35. Given the volume and edition numbers, it is likely the paper begins publication early in 1874. The paper is a weekly. A yearly subscription is two dollars. The September 18, 1874 edition covers Maynard, Hudson, Marlboro, Stow and Berlin. Advertising from Hudson and Marlboro dominates.
Maynard Enterprise - Initially The Enterprise Weekly
Apparently founded as the Enterprise Weekly in 1888. It is published by Wood Brothers in Hudson. In 1915, the Enterprise Weekly is renamed The Maynard Enterprise. For many years, and perhaps for all the years of its existence, the paper is printed in Marlborough or Hudson.
The paper covers Maynard and neighboring towns. As an example of its coverage, take page one of the July 26,1915 edition. In addition to news as Maynard, there are articles as to West Acton, Marlboro, Bedford, Concord and Concord Junction. On the last page of this edition are articles focused on South Acton, West Acton and South Sudbury. In between, Hudson and Sudbury also get shout-outs. The bulk of the narrative on local news does seem to be as to Maynard.
The edition for December 31, 1959, doesn’t state a geographic focus, but there are page one articles on Maynard, Stow, Acton, South Acton, Lincoln and Littleton. The paper ranges farther afield after page one with articles on Sudbury, South Sudbury, Stow and other nearby towns.
It seems the Enterprise had specific editions for various towns. For example, the Concord Public Library has copies of the Concord Enterprise from 1888-1963, a near perfect match for the lifespan of the Maynard Enterprise reflecting the papers’ likely common ownership.
The Maynard News:
The July 7, 1899 edition at page one identifies that edition as Volume 1, Number 9. Since the paper is published weekly, the paper’s first printing is presumably an issue published in May 1899.
Page one of that July 7, 1899 edition has articles on Maynard, West Acton, and South Acton. Page two has a Hudson article. This edition has subsequent articles on Bolton, Berlin, and Stow. The emphasis in this edition is on Maynard and Hudson.
For its existence, the paper will cover news from Maynard and nearby towns. For example, the edition for April 1,1943 (at the end of the paper’s existence) has page one articles on Maynard, Acton and West Acton. Later in that edition is an article on Stow.
The printing history of this paper is hard to verify, The Maynard News in various editions from 1899 ran ads for: “Job Printing of All Kinds at the Office of News Publishing Co, Hudson, Mass. B. J. Coughlin Agent for Maynard.” News Publishing may have been the printer for the paper.
The Assabet Valley Beacon – The Beacon Until 1963
The history of The Beacon is well covered in a lengthy February 11, 2024, letter to the Maynard Public Library from Arthur E. Rowse III. Mr. Rowse’s account is supported by a letter to The Beacon from Mrs. Beatrice Parsons, which letter is published in The Beacon’s February 16, 1960. Mr. Rowse’s letter can be found on the MHS website.
According to Parsons and Rowse, and confirmed from other sources, Beatrice Parsons launches The Beacon on February 14, 1947. The paper evolves from a newsletter (the Acton Beacon) begun by Mrs. Parsons with the first issue being January 2, 1945. The Acton Beacon is published by-weekly until the war’s end in August 1945. The Acton Beacon provides a forum for Acton people to send local news and well-wishes to Acton troops stationed overseas.
When Mrs. Parsons restarts the paper in January 1947, the name changes since the paper now covers Boxborough and Maynard as well as Acton.
On August 31, 1950, the paper adds Sudbury and Stowe to its coverage.
Arthur Rowse purchases The Beacon in 1950. (Note reference to him above.)
In late 1952, Rowse sells the Beacon to Earle Tuttle of South Acton who operates under the corporate name Beacon Publishing Company.
In time, Beacon Publishing Company also comes to publish the Hudson News Enterprise, Concord Free Press, Littleton Independent, Nashoba Free Press, Sudbury Citizen, Marlboro City Post, Northboro Star, Chelmsford Sentinel, Westford Eagle and Westboro Independent.
In May of 1953, the Beacon is the first business to move into Maynard’s former American Woolen Mill after the mill’s conversion to offices.
In 1963, the paper changes its name to The Assabet Valley Beacon.
In May of 1969, groundbreaking ceremonies are held for the Beacon Publishing Company plant at 20 Main Street, South Acton. The business moves into this new facility in October 1969.
As noted earlier, starting in 1991 and until its demise as a print paper in May 2022, The Assabet Valley Beacon goes through at a variety of ownership and name changes.
[A request – if anyone uncovers errors or material omissions in this document, or if anyone develops further specific information about the papers covering Assabet Village between 1847 and 1871, or Maynard between 1871 and 1888, please share that information with the Maynard Historical Society through the Society’s website. Thank you.]