“your community connection”
23-YEAR-OLD THOMAS SMITH
STARTED A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
The newspaper hasbeen acrazy business that’sforsure Its offices and equipment were destroyed by two fires ,
FROM THE EDITOR
When the first edition of the Star Democrat rolled off the press on Aug. 21, 1799, the United States was in its early years.
John Adams was the second president of the United States, which was just 23 years from its declaration of independence from England.
The Star Democrat is one of the longest continuously published newspapers in the country. To give you an idea of how that rates, the New York Times didn’t begin publishing until 1851, the Washington Post in 1887. In Maryland, the Baltimore Sun began publication in 1837, and the Capital Gazette in Annapolis predates all of those with the Maryland Gazette launched by a British publisher in 1727.
In other words, the Star Democrat has a storied history that parallels the history of the United States and, locally, the Eastern Shore.
In 1799, the newspaper was the Republican Star, a nod to its support of Republican Thomas Jefferson, who would succeed Adams in the presidency. Since then, the newspaper has been committed to providing Easton, Talbot County and the surrounding counties of Dorchester and Caroline with the news and advertising residents needed.
When the Queen Anne’s County Record Observer recently celebrated its 200th anniversary, Editor Hannah Combs nicely described the importance of newspapers in the communities they serve:
“The local paper documents history in a way no other source can. Firsthand accounts of day-today events that shape a community, and a country, were and continue to be captured on these pages. A living document of what people thought, believed, dreamed and worked for.
“We celebrate milestones and the birth of new ideas, new business and growth. Through the pages, we stare history in the eye and where we once wrote of the slave trade, we now write of diversity, inclusion and a monumental shift in perception.”
Really what newspapers do is build community.
Newspapers provide residents with a sense of belonging, sharing what binds us together and highlighting the diversity that makes our communities great. The newspaper builds connections within our community.
Over the years there have been many editors of the Star Democrat. I am just the latest. But over the centuries, these editors have shared one trait. They were more than editors. They were stewards of a legacy, a legacy of building our community, a legacy of service to the people of the Eastern Shore.
Over the past weeks, I have visited with many of our government agencies who recognized the newspaper’s milestone with citations and proclamations. The words that were said filled me with great pride for the legacy that has been built over the years.
Inside the pages of this commemorative publication, you can read much more detail about the newspaper and its history.
One question I get wherever I go is: Are newspapers dying?
The answer is easy. No, we are not dying. We are evolving. Our publications reach more people today than we ever have. We are no longer just a newspaper. Our website has thousands of readers each month. We reach people with social media. The Star Democrat has a mobile phone app that provides news as it happens. Our staff produces several magazines — Shore and Weddings. And we have begun community events, most notably our Women To Watch speaker series.
All of these are ways we continue building community. We have done so for 225 years, and I hope we continue to do so for another 225 years.
JIM JOHNSON
Executive Editor
01. APG Chesapeake Executive Editor Jim Johnson receives a citation from the Dorchester County Council marking the 225th anniversary of the Star Democrat. From left: Council Member Rob Kramer, Council Vice President Mike Detmer, Johnson, Council Member Ricky Tavers and Council President Lenny Pfeffer.
02. APG Chesapeake Executive Editor Jim Johnson receives a citation from the Talbot County Council marking the 225th anniversary of the Star Democrat. Top row, from left: Council Member Dave Stepp, Council Vice President Pete Lesher, Council President Chuck Callahan and Council Member Keasha Haythe. Front row, from left: Council Member Lynn Mielke and Johnson.
03. APG Chesapeake Executive Editor Jim Johnson receives a citation from the Commissioners of Caroline County marking the 225th anniversary of the Star Democrat. From left: Commission Vice President Larry Porter, Johnson and Commission President Travis Breeding.
For 225 years, Star Democrat has had a colorful history
Nestled in the Star Democrat’s huge building on Airpark Drive in Easton is a newsroom of reporters who write on laptops, a suite of designers who compile pages digitally, advertising executives who help clients get in both the newspaper and the StarDem. com website, and a printing press capable of putting out 20,000 to 25,000 newspapers per hour.
The Star Democrat’s current offices look different to the rooms the newspaper occupied on Washington Street when it was first opened in the heart of downtown Easton 225 years ago. But many of the Jeffersonian principles of its founder, Thomas Perrin Smith, still guide the paper today.
The Star Democrat traces its history to the Republican Star, founded in August 1799 by Smith as the Jeffersonian rival to The Maryland Herald, Easton’s Federalist newspaper. John
Adams was president at the time. The paper has been published during every president’s term since, making it one of the oldest newspapers in the country.
In 1799, The Star stood for the principles of individual liberty, local autonomy and limited central government. As it continues in its mission to inform the public about important local issues and happenings, these doctrines still apply.
“The main ideal that we uphold is the right of people to know what’s going on in their community,” said Jim Johnson, the current executive editor of APG’s Chesapeake region, which includes The Star Democrat.
When he was hired in June of last year, Johnson said, “Community newspapers provide news that readers cannot get from any other source.”
These sentiments were echoed by many of the Star Democrat’s
This photo shows an early 1900s view of Dover Street with the Daylight Building at the left corner. Thompson Park replaced the buildings at the right corner. FILE PHOTO FROM TALBOT HISTORICAL SOCIETY ARCHIVES
former editors, who the paper spoke to for this anniversary edition.
“We all signed up to work at local newspapers because we believed in the mission, in the role, the newspaper plays in the local community to inform the people about what’s going on,” said former editor Barbara Sauers.
The newspaper serves as a watchdog for local government and a forum for public opinion.
“We strived to provide balanced coverage of the local community and to offer space for differing political viewpoints,” former editor John Griep said. “As an Eastern Shore native, I was especially proud to help provide news and information to my neighbors, ranging from local government, elections, court cases and much more.”
Former Easton Mayor Bob Willey frequently graced the pages of the paper during his 30 years of service to the town.
“I think when a paper is working with the individual areas, and they work with the local people, that people really take an interest,” Willey said. “High school sports for instance, or the obituaries. … There are all different facets of life that people depend on the paper to read about.”
Willey recalled reading the paper to learn about local events and meetings throughout his years in Easton. He said recent reporting has kept him apprised of several local housing developments and their various stages of development.
But to ensure the continuation of this role, Johnson emphasized the paper must turn a profit.
“One of our ideals is to be a profitable organization because if we can’t make profits, if we can’t make money, the newspaper would cease to exist, and there have been many newspapers in the country that has happened to,” he said.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought staff reductions, advertising losses and a set of circumstances that produced unique challenges for journalists.
“It was a very difficult time for print journalism,” said Connie Connolly, who served as The Star Democrat’s editor during the peak months of the COVID pandemic.
“We didn’t know what the outcome would be, but we got through it,” she said. “Everything was virtual. We had to get really creative.”
Creativity is an ideal Johnson said guides today’s Star Democrat.
“We’re fortunate that we have strong advertiser support here and a strong marketing and advertising team that helps us look for new ways to package our content and to reach new readers out there,” he said.
The newspaper has a history of employing creative solutions to meet the challenges of the time, one reason Johnson believes The Star Democrat has endured for so long.
COVID was just the newspaper’s latest challenge.
“Its offices and equipment were destroyed by two fires. It was wrecked by a mob of vandals. Its editor was arrested and exiled by Federal troops during the Civil War,” Ed Gill wrote in the Star Democrat’s 175th anniversary edition in 1974.
“ I think when a paper is working...with the local people, that people really take an interest.
–Bob Willey Former Easton Mayor
A late 1800s view of Washington Street in Easton. FILE PHOTO FROM TALBOT HISTORICAL SOCIETY ARCHIVES
Historic downtown Easton has a vibrant business sector in the 21st century. TOM MCCALL/STAR DEMOCRAT
Back in 1799, Smith’s Republican Star quickly gained popularity, quickly boasting some 400 subscriptions — more than the rival Maryland Herald ever had. After Thomas Jefferson won the presidency in 1800, he appointed Smith as Easton postmaster, a post Smith held until 1825. With the Federalists out of power, the Herald lost readers and advertisers, finally closing its doors in November 1804 with the publisher bankrupt. The Star continued as Easton’s only newspaper until the People’s Monitor opened in 1809.
In “Newspapers of Maryland’s Eastern Shore,” author Dickson J. Preston called Smith a responsible editor and solid member of the community.
“He was the first Eastern Shore editor to publish substantial amounts of local nonpolitical news, and the first to campaign for civic improvements,” Preston wrote.
Smith campaigned for several years for Easton to organize fire protection, but it wasn’t until a fire destroyed four buildings on North Washington Street in 1809 that funds were raised for a fire engine and a volunteer fire department was organized.
The Star building was saved by the efforts of a bucket brigade. It was the era of political newspapers, and Preston recounts the story of a Talbot man so angered by Smith’s statements about him in the Star that he lashed Smith with a whip in his office. Preston said Smith fought back using his fists, and witnesses had to separate the pair.
After Smith’s death in 1832,
The Eastern Shore Whig and People’s Advocate, another weekly paper operating in downtown Easton, acquired the assets and subscriptions of the Star. The Whig offices were destroyed by fire in 1841. When the newspaper reopened a month later, it did so under a new name, The Eastern Shore Star.
One of the most well-known editors, Thomas K. Robson, took over the paper in 1849 and renamed it The Easton Star. The paper’s offices were destroyed by fire in March 1854. The Easton Star began publishing again about a month later from new offices on Goldsborough Street.
In the years leading up to and during the Civil War, Robson used the Star to champion the South and slavery. His outspoken proSouth writings sparked a riot. Pro-Union supporters, possibly federal troops, barged into the Star office and dumped type on the floor, smashed furniture and damaged the press, according to Preston.
Robson’s troubles with federal troops continued. He was arrested twice. The second time was on May 8, 1963. He was taken by boat to Fort McHenry, then escorted south by Union troops who left him in the Shenandoah Valley, where he remained exiled until the end of the war. Publication of the Easton Star ceased until Robson returned in September 1865 with an order from President Andrew Johnson revoking its suspension, Preston wrote. He continued as editor until his death in September 1888.
In 1896, The Easton Star merged with The Easton Democrat
When The Star Democrat switched from hot type to cold type, employees like Bill Joiner, shown here in 1979, had to adapt to a new production method. FILE PHOTO
A worker pauses from his labors on the water main project on Easton’s Dover Street in 1911 or 1912. This scene is looking from Harrison Street west to Washington Street. Mayor Martin M. Higgins initiated the project that would bring paved streets, concrete gutters and sidewalks to town, along with municipally owned water, sewer, gas and electric systems. FILE PHOTO
to become the Easton StarDemocrat.
In 1910, a group of Talbot County businessmen founded the Easton Publishing Co. and bought the Easton Star-Democrat. The new corporation’s officers included: William Mason Shehan, president; William Reddie, vice president; John W.D. Jump, secretary; T. Hughlett Henry, treasurer; and S. Elliot Shannahan, general manager.
Shannahan also served as editor for the next 32 years. Born and raised in Easton, he was the epitome of a community newspaper man. Dickson wrote that when Shannahan took the reins, four columns of the StarDemocrat’s front page were filled with ads. Shannahan moved the ads inside and printed local
news on the front. He wanted everything in the paper to be locally oriented and produced. His efforts inspired the Maryland Press Association to name the Star-Democrat the best weekly newspaper in the state in 1937. In addition to his work with the paper, Shannahan was active in the community, serving as secretary of the Episcopal Diocese of Easton, treasurer of Trinity Cathedral, a member of the State Aid and Charities, organizer of the Easton Rotary Club, treasurer of the Talbot County Free Library, a member of the Washington College Board of Visitors and Governors, and on the board of the Children’s Aid Society. Shannahan worked right up until his death. A colleague found him slumped over at his desk on
MYSTERYLOVES COMPANY
Dec. 7, 1942.
Norman Harrington of Oxford was among Shannahan’s successors. A writer, photographer and Talbot County leader, Harrington served as editor from 1950 to 1964. He drew both praise and criticism from the community for his editorial stance supporting desegregation as a matter of law.
Harrington’s editorial, titled “A Call to Reason,” was published on Sept. 4, 1956. Later that morning, someone threw a brick through the front window of the Star-Democrat, which landed on Harrington’s desk. He was out of the room at the time.
Cecil County businessman E. Ralph Hostetter bought the majority shares of Easton Publishing Co. in 1964. Editors during that time included Stephen Van Cleve and Hank Montgomery.
The Star-Democrat celebrated its 175th anniversary in August 1974 with a huge parade, fireworks display, pet show, bike race and anniversary edition. The newspaper expanded publication from weekly to Monday through Friday, added staff and increased its coverage area from Talbot County to the entire Mid-Shore.
Greg Romain was the last editor of the weekly Star-Democrat, and William Gregory was the first editor of the daily.
In October 1976, The Star-Democrat and other newspapers Hostetter and Rodney Smith published on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and in Delaware as part of Easton Publishing Co. were purchased, and Chesapeake Publishing Corp. was formed.
Between 1974 and 1982, there was a rapid succession of editors. Bruce Kotchkiss left The Star-Democrat for The Delmarva Farmer. Blake Wilson, who was only 23, was editor for several months in 1978. He brought with him fresh design ideas. Environmental champion Ray Dilley succeeded Wilson. He editorially advocated for
The Avalon Theatre is seen in this photograph by H. Robins Hollyday from the collection of the Talbot Historical Society. PHOTO BY H. ROBINS HOLLYDAY
Bay protections. Dan Holman was named editor in 1980. He established a newsroom library and started having the newspaper stored on microfilm.
Denise Perry Riley, who spent some 40 years in the newspaper business – nearly 30 of those as editor of The Star-Democrat, was hired full-time at The StarDemocrat as news editor in 1973 and named the first woman editor of The Star Democrat in January 1982.
She helped launch The Sunday Star in 1988, moving The StarDemocrat’s publication to six days a week. The Star Democrat expanded into the digital world in April 1996 with its first online edition. The paper grew from about 7,000 daily readers in the 1950s to around 20,000 in the early 2000s.
Riley led The Star Democrat through the newspaper industry’s golden age of the late 20th century and into the digital age in the early 21st century, training countless journalists along the way.
“I learned a lifetime’s worth of how to be a good journalist working with Denise Riley, the editor who hired me, and all the other talented reporters and editors,” said Janice Colvin, former Star-Democrat community editor who is now an associate professor and chair of two communication programs at Wilmington University in New Castle, Delaware, where she teaches news writing, ethics and theory. “I learned more on that job about my craft than any classroom I ever attended, skills that I now bring to my university
communication students each day,”
Barbara Sauers, who followed Riley as editor, said one of the things she was most proud of was “A Proud Legacy,” a newsgenerated special section about African American history on the Shore, which was published as part of the celebration of the anniversary of Frederick Douglass escaping to freedom. Sauers said she later learned a professor used the section in teaching his classes at Morgan State University.
In 2007, Macquarie Media Group purchased Chesapeake Publishing, making it part of its Texas-based subsidiary, American Consolidated Media.
Adams Publishing Group purchased Chesapeake Publishing from ACM in 2014 and continues as owner today. The Star Democrat was one of the first properties acquired by Adams, which now owns both print and digital publications in 19 states.
“Stephen (Adams) had the vision to purchase newspapers to provide, and this is sort of our mission anyway, but to provide a voice for small communities in America,” said Jim Normandin, the general manager for APG East. “It’s my understanding that that’s how Adams Publishing came about.
Normandin was named president of APG Media of Chesapeake in January 2019 before assuming the role of APG’s East Division general manager. Orestes Baez was announced as APG Chesapeake’s new president in October 2024.
Normandin said he saw his share of obstacles during his
“ People have gone to great degrees of commitment to assist us to continue to thrive.
–Jim Normandin General Manager APG East
Former Star Democrat editors Denise Perry Riley, left, and Barbara Sauers attend the Girl Scouts of the Chesapeake Bay’s luncheon honoring Riley as a “Woman of Distinction” in 2016. COURTESY OF ANGELA PRICE
time in Easton, including a June 2020 fire that damaged much of the Easton Office’s printing equipment. He said the community rallied behind the paper during many of these difficulties.
“People have gone to great degrees of commitment to assist us to continue to thrive,” Normandin said. “And for that we are committed to the community. This community is who we are. Without them, we don’t have a purpose.”
Wendy Weitzel was named managing editor in October 2023. The editorial team of Johnson and Weitzel lead today’s Star Democrat. The executive team is rounded out by General Manager of Sales Betsy Griffin and General Manager of Operations Chad Campbell.
Johnson said the paper has undergone many changes, and he said The Star Democrat is committed to meeting the
challenges that come with changing times.
“Look at all of the things we’ve done in the last 20 years here — our website, our app for mobile devices and also the events that we put on,” he said. “… There are just so many ways that we’re reaching out to people today that we weren’t many years ago.”
But he pointed to one thing that has been consistent through all The Star Democrat’s history.
“One of the big roles of a newspaper is building community,” Johnson said, “and I think that’s why we’ve been around for 225 years is because we’ve been doing that.”
Angela Price contributed to this article. This piece also includes excerpts from previous histories of The Star Democrat published in special anniversary editions.
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Reporters venture out into the community to find sources that tell the story of today’s Eastern Shore. Shown here is reporter Maggie Trovato, right, taking a photo of former St. Michaels Community Center Executive Director Patrick Rofe at the construction site of the new Community Center, which opened in 2024. FILE PHOTO
Star Democrat reporter Konner Metz, right, is shown here interviewing Gov. Wes Moore at the Society of St. Vincent de Paul food pantry in July, 2024. TOM MCCALL/STAR DEMOCRAT
A near-forgotten piece of Star Democrat history
Story and photos by Maggie Trovato
EASTON — Tucked away in a dark nook of the lobby of an office building on Hanson Street sits a remnant of the Star Democrat’s past: a Linotype machine.
The old, dark metal, intricatelooking machine — whose creation dates back to the late 1800s — was used to print Star Democrat newspapers at one time.
The building in which the Linotype sits, at 21 N Hanson St, is where the Star Democrat office was located before it moved to its current location on Airpark Drive. Rhonda Cluff, who works at the newspaper, remembers the move being in 1979.
Because the Linotype was patented in 1884 by Ottmar Mergenthaler, it could not have been the Star Democrat’s first printing press. But as current Star Democrat pressman Joey Smith scanned the old machine on a Monday afternoon, its clear the Star Democrat hasn’t used the Linotype for a long time.
“It’s really, really different,” he said about the old machine. “We have come a long way since then.”
This year, the Star Democrat is celebrating its 225th anniversary. The newspaper, which was founded as The Republican in 1799 by Thomas Perrin Smith, has survived name changes, office fires and a mob of vandals.
Smith, who has has worked as a pressman for the Star Democrat and Adams Publishing Group’s other publications for 18 years, looked over the press’ buttons, pulls and all its tiny pieces of metal. Compared to the printing press that prints the Star Democrat papers now, the Linotype is almost like a foreign object.
“It is cool to see,” Smith said. “It looks like an old letter press.”
Standing in the quiet lobby of the
office building, Smith deduced that the part of the machine that looks like a typewriter was used to type up what is printed on the paper.
According to a video from the National Museum of Industrial History in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Smith’s guess was correct. As a person types on the lettered keys — lower case letters on the left, uppercase letters on the right and spaces and punctuations in the middle — a mold is injected with hot lead to make a line of type. This was much faster than setting each letter by hand, which is how newspapers were printed before the Linotype.
According to the museum, the Linotype allowed pressmen to print a whole page at one time.
Past Star Democrat editor Denise Riley, whose father Bill Perry also worked at the newspaper as an editor, remembers the Linotype from her youth.
“My father took us all over to the Star Democrat and set our names in type in the Linotype,” Riley said. “And we were thrilled,
A Linotype machine, once used to print Star Democrat newspapers, sits in the lobby of 21 N Hanson St in Easton. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the machine was patented in 1884 by Ottmar Mergenthaler.
A Linotype machine once used by the Star Democrat sits in a nook of an office building in Easton.
just thrilled.”
Gary Robinson, who has spent his 60-year career working printing presses and is currently employed with Adams Publishing Group, said that as you type on the Linotype, lines of type are produced.
Robinson remembers using a Linotype machine in Baltimore in the 1960s to print magazines. He said he doesn’t remember how much the Linotype could print in an hour, but said it’s speed was good in those days.
Robinson, who came to the Eastern Shore in 1998, said there are places around the country that are still using Linotypes. He said Linotypes are used for printing smaller quantities because it costs less than using a modern printing press.
Adams Publishing Group Pressroom Manager Demetrius “Meet” Carr said the Star Democrat is now printed on a Goss Community Press, which essentially takes paper down the line to receive each ink color until the page is complete. Carr said the page is already set up on a computer, and so the pressmen
don’t have to string lines of type together like with a Linotype.
“The hardest part back here is putting on the rolls (of paper),” he said, later adding, “It’s a lot of manual work.”
Carr, who has been working in the pressroom since 2005, said the newspaper’s current printing press has been there longer than he has. He said the company is using an older press, and many presses these days have new automatic functions.
For Smith, the fact that the Star Democrat has stayed standing for more than 200 years is “the coolest thing ever.”
“Because the only thing that’s older than that is whiskey,” he said, laughing.
Smith called newspapers a necessary part of life. He acknowledged that, with a world of information right at your fingertips, times have changed. But he said that when you want to look back in time, you can’t necessarily just turn to Google.
“You have to go back and look at (newspapers),” he said. “What was actually printed.”
“ Because the only thing that’s older than that is whiskey
Adams Publishing Group pressman Joey Smith prints newspaper inserts at the Star Democrat on Airpark Drive in Easton on Sept. 17.
The Adams Publishing Group printing press at the Star Democrat office in Easton.
Our mission is to promote breast cancer awareness, encourage early detection, suppor t treatment, and celebrate healing
The Board of Directors of Bosom Buddies Charities congratulates The Star De mocrat on serv ing the community with jour nalistic excellence for 225 ye ars!
Thank you to the community for supporting Bosom Buddies Charities for the past 18 ye ars!
Some of the organizations we have supported:
• Annapolis Dragon Boat Club
• Compass Hospice
• EBeauty Community
• Luminis Health AAMC Breast Center
• Leslie’s Week
• Pink Perspectives
• Survivors Offering Support ( SOS )
• UM Shore Regional Health Breast Center
• The Wellness House
We recently awarded a grant to EBeauty Community to help continue their goal to provide all women, regardless of economic status or geographic location, access to wigs.
Upcoming Events
Crabs for a Cure | October 8, 2024 | Harris Crab House
Bosom Buddies Ball | March 29, 2025 | Westin Annapolis Hotel
For more information about Bosom Buddies Charities, Crabs for a Cure, or the Bosom Buddies Ball: BosomBuddiesCharities.com
Bosom Buddies Charities is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization run 100% by volunteers!
2024–25 Bosom Buddies Charities’ Board Members
Connie Blandford (Secretary), Jodie Gray, Claudia Boldyga (Chair), Jennifer DiDonato, Christina Cugle (VP), Karen White (Treasurer), and Holly Rhodes.
A timeline of the Star Democrat
Story by Angela Price
Republican Star, 1799-1832
The Star Democrat traces its roots to 1799, when 23-year-old Thomas Smith started a weekly newspaper, the Republican Star, Eastern Shore Political Luminary, in the heart of downtown Easton. A Bible verse, “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light,” Genesis 1:3, appeared just below the name on the flag. The Star was “Printed and Published Every Tuesday Morning … near the courthouse,” according to the flag. It was later called the Republican Star and General Advertiser.
The Star’s first office was on Washington Street near the courthouse just down from Federal Street. Smith later built a newspaper office, post office and residence two doors further north on Washington Street. A couple years later he moved the wooden structure to the rear of the property and built a large brick house on North Washington Street. (The property is now owned by the Chesapeake Bay Yacht Club. Look for the name on the gate.)
Smith died May 2, 1832, and the final issue of the Republican Star was published just over a month later, on June 12.
Eastern Shore Star, 1841-1843
A fire destroyed the Eastern Shore Whig and People’s Advocate office on March 22, 1841. Theneditor George Sherwood reopened the paper about a month later with a new name, Eastern Shore Star, and a new look. According to Dickson J. Preston’s book, “Newspapers of Maryland’s Eastern Shore,” Thomas Perrin Smith’s sister Ann helped Sherwood finance the new equipment and invited him to revive the name Republican Star. Sherwood declined.
Eastern Shore Whig and People’s Advocate, 1828-1841
The Eastern Shore Whig was established in September 1828 to support the radical wing of the Democrat Party.
The paper’s first editor, John Green, resigned in 1830, and was succeeded by Edward Mullikin. He was Whig editor when Smith died in 1832, and The Whig acquired assets and subscriptions of the Star. The Library of Congress lists the Republican Star as a preceding title.
Star-Democrat Publisher Greg Romain hands a chair to pressman David Carpenter as The Star-Democrat moved from its Hanson Street quarters to a larger building in the Airport Industrial Park in the fall of 1978. Screenshot from the 200th Anniversary special section, Celebrating 200 years
The hot metal room of The Star-Democrat building on Dover Street in the late 1920s. Screenshot from the 200th Anniversary special section, Celebrating 200 years NOTE: CREDIT FROM THE COLLECTION OF BOB ROBERTS
Easton Democrat, 1885-1896
A weekly newspaper, it was established May 20, 1885, as The Easton Independent. The name was changed to the Easton Democrat on Nov. 27, 1886. The Democrat merged with the Star on Feb. 12, 1896, to become the Easton Star-Democrat.
Easton Star, 1843-1896
The weekly paper continued with another name change, Easton Star, on May 23, 1843. It merged Feb. 12, 1896, with the Easton Democrat to become the Easton Star-Democrat.
Easton Star-Democrat, 1896-present
The Easton Star-Democrat expanded from its weekly publication to become the daily Star-Democrat on Aug. 28, 1974, printing Monday through Friday. On Oct. 2, 1988, The Sunday Star made its debut. The online edition launched in 1996. Today, Monday and Tuesday are e-editions only. The paper is printed Wednesday through Saturday.
Like its predecessors, the Easton Star-Democrat had its headquarters in downtown with offices on Dover Street in the 1920s and at the old Bartlett Flour Mill on Hanson Street from 1948-1978. The newspaper moved out of downtown to its current location in the Airport Industrial Park in 1978.
The Star Democrat has made its headquarters at 29088 Airpark Drive, Easton, since 1978. PHOTO BY ANGELA PRICE
Site of the Thomas Perrin Smith House on North Washington Street, now owned by the Chesapeake Bay Yacht Club. PHOTO BY ANGELA PRICE
The Star-Democrat made its home here, the site of the old Bartlett Flour Mills, from 1948-1978. While serving as the newspaper office, the building was expanded three times. PHOTO BY ANGELA PRICE
How to search the Star Democrat’s archives
Through changes in ownership and office space and the push toward digitizing files, The Star Democrat has lost much of its physical library over the past 225 years. But many of the paper’s archives can still be found online at Newspapers.com.
WHAT IS newspapers.com
Newspapers.com is the largest online newspaper archive, consisting of more than a billion pages of historical newspapers from almost 27,000 newspapers. It has compi;ed these pages into a searchable database that users can comb through using a variety of search criteria.
Newspapers.com worked with
content providers and newspapers throughout the country to build up their library, digitizing historic microfilm collections.
For historians, teachers, genealogists or just those looking for clippings from the past, the resource provides a wide array of pages and clippings. The service is subscription-based, and a free sevenday trial is offered to first time users.
HOW TO SEARCH
newspapers.com
While Newspapers.com does not have a complete collection of the Star Democrat’s archives, it has many clippings from the past 225 years that can be searched based on date of publication, location and keywords from the text and other
Some strategies for combing through the Star Democrat’s archives and the archives of other papers include:
• Searching by name . Newspapers may not have written about someone using their full legal name. When searching for clips about a specific person, searchers should try searching using different combinations of first and last name, middle initials and any nicknames the person may have used. In historic newspapers, women were sometimes written about using their husband’s names.
• Searching by keyword. When searching for clips
about a specific topic using a keyword, it’s important to keep in mind that the spelling of that word may have changed over time. It may also be helpful to search using synonyms in case the keyword was not commonly used historically.
• Searching by date and location.
Newspapers.com offers the ability to search for archives from a specific date or from within a range of dates. It also allows the user to narrow their search based on location. These can be helpful tools when searching for coverage of a specific event
from the past. These filters can all be used by filling out designated search bars located at the top of the page.
• Searching obituaries and announcements. Searchers can narrow their results to only obituaries, marriage announcements or other categories by applying filters to their search. To apply these filters, select them from the drop-down “Categories” menu located under the search bar.
• Searching using quotation marks. When searching the database using names and keywords, Newspapers.com will produce
all results that contain those words in the parameters set by the searcher. Putting these phrases or names in quotation marks will ensure that the search term appears exactly as written by the searcher in the search results. For example, if searching for someone with the name John Doe without quotation marks, Newspapers.com will pull all clips that include both the name John and the name Doe, though they may not belong to the same person. If “John Doe” is in quotation marks, Newspapers.com will show all results with the names John and Doe directly next to each other.
Typesetters Dick Bowling, Ed Kimmelshue and Gilbert Prettyman standing next to a Ludlow Machine (press) setting headlines for The Star Democrat. The building was located on Dover Street between Washington and Harrison. The Berrier clothing store is there now. Photo by H. Robbins Hollyday PHOTOGRAPH FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE TALBOT HISTORICAL SOCIETY
The Star Democrat’s building was surrounded by fields. PHOTOGRAPH FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE TALBOT HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Take a tour through Talbot County history
Story by Connie Connolly
Talbot County is the heart of the Eastern Shore. Founded around 1661, Talbot County is named for Lady Grace Talbot, sister of Lord Baltimore and the first proprietary governor of Maryland.
The following is a taste of places and activities you can enjoy as you get to know a county rich in history.
EASTON, HUB OF THE COMMUNITY
Nestled in an agricultural setting, Easton is the vibrant county seat and boasts about 17,000 residents who enjoy a sophisticated arts community, a diverse ethnic culture, waterfront dining experiences and so much more.
Easton is home to the busiest airport on the Delmarva Peninsula, golfing and water sports, art galleries, concerts at the historic Avalon Theatre, shops for every taste, hospital and medical centers, a variety of schools, houses of worship and hundreds of nonprofit organizations.
To learn more, visit eastonmd.org or discovereaston.com.
FREDERICK DOUGLASS DRIVING TOUR
The American patriot was born in 1818 on Tuckahoe Creek in Talbot County. Born to an enslaved mother who named him Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, he was part of the sixth generation of Baileys in Talbot County — a lineage that continues today.
For a wealth of information about Talbot’s native son and maps of a driving tour of significant places, visit frederickdouglassbirthplace.org
OXFORD, A VILLAGE OF QUIET ELEGANCE
A scenic drive or a short voyage on what is believed to be the country’s oldest privately owned ferry will guide you to the quiet village of Oxford.
Oxford is one of the oldest towns in Maryland and is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. Collect beach glass along The Strand, have a picnic in the public park on the Tred Avon River or just step back in time strolling the streets and lanes.
Learn more at portofoxford.com.
ST. MICHAELS, THRIVING THEN AND NOW
Once a thriving Colonial town that “fooled the British” during the War of 1812, St. Michaels now boasts the world-class Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum and working shipyard, as well as numerous waterfront eateries and shops. Explore the beautiful waterways and scenic views, and relax at a quaint inn or bed and breakfast. In the old mill district, you’ll find a brewery and distillery that serve award-winning libations.
Download a brochure at tourtalbot.org or visit stmichaelsmd.org.
THE HILL COMMUNITY WALKING TOUR
Easton’s Hill Community has been home to free African Americans since the 1780s, more than 80 years before the Civil War ended in 1865.
In 2020, The Hill Community Project designed a tour that helps neighbors and newcomers alike to explore the lives of the still-vibrant community that celebrates a rich heritage of courage, community, faith and enterprise.
Download the map at thehillcommunityproject.org
A statue of Frederick Douglass stands outside the Talbot County Courthouse in downtown Easton. FILE PHOTO
Harbor in St Michaels FILE PHOTO
Oxford Regatta TOM MCCALL/STAR DEMOCRAT
Black watermen share about challenges, changes on the Chesapeake
Story by Annie Hasselgren
The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum’s Van Lennep Auditorium was packed on Feb. 17 for “Troubled Waters: Black Watermen,” co-hosted by the St. Michaels Community Conversations on Race, the St. Michaels Community Center and the American Association of University Women.
Panelists included Captain Lamont Wright, Reverend Dr. William Wallace, Edzel Turner and James “Captain Buck” Lynch, all of whom have been longtime watermen in varying capacities.
The men came together to engage in a dialogue about the successes and challenges of being African American watermen in honor of Black History Month.
They shared their diverse experiences on the waterways of the Chesapeake Bay with a crowd eager to learn more about the history of Black watermen on the Eastern Shore. Though the men shared similar perspectives, their roles on the water ran the gamut, but all agreed that conditions in the waters have changed
drastically during their careers spanning many decades.
“My family owned a seafood factory in Bellevue,” said Edzel Turner. “Back then, we’d catch so many crabs that my arms would hurt.”
All of the panelists agreed that government regulations have drastically shifted the profession in many ways.
“Regulations and sanctuaries will eventually drive away most watermen,” Lynch said, “and disease and the Conowingo Dam are decimating populations. We keep having to go further south (to catch anything).”
Panelists concurred that Black watermen in particular are an aging population that can’t be replaced quickly enough.
“The youngest Black waterman is 60,” Lynch said, “and there won’t be any left in 10 years.”
Many of the men are actively advocating for programs for young people to learn about life on the water so they can take the mantle for future generations.
Present in the audience was
James “Captain Buck” Lynch, left, speaks at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum on Saturday, Feb. 17, for “Troubled Waters: Black Watermen.” Edzel Turner sits to his right. ANNIE HASSELGREN
“ If you’re a waterman, you get up with the sun
Vince Leggett, named “Admiral of the Chesapeake Bay” in 2003 by then Governor Parris N. Glendening. This is the highest honor a Maryland Governor can bestow on a private individual in the environmental arena ,and Leggett has been working for more than 30 years on preserving Black Americans’ contributions to the maritime and seafood processing industries, and the Chesapeake Bay’s rich culture and heritage. In 1994, the Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation began documenting this through a range of historical, cultural and educational activities. This included the “Chesapeake Bay Through Ebony Eyes,” a book that offers a history of African American contributions in the Chesapeake’s maritime industries and includes a collection of seafood recipes, poetry, photographs and sketches; and a book entitled “Blacks of the Chesapeake: An Integral Part of Maritime History,” which provides a photographic history of African
At Tilghman Packing Company the watermen would bring their catch directly to the packing houses where they would be offloaded and put directly into large stainless steel steamers to be cooked by steaming. This cage held 15 bushels of crabs. The meat would then be cooled prior to picking so the meat would stay intact.
Photograph from the collection of the Talbot Historical Society
Americans at work as ship captains, sail makers, watermen and seafood processing plant employees.
Leggett joined the panel to echo the sentiments of his fellow watermen about the challenges facing the industry and to continue to support their common desire to honor the legacy of Black Americans who have contributed so much to it.
“African Americans have spent their lives feeding the state of Maryland,” said Wright.
Conversation also included experiences shared by many of the men having been targeted by racially-motivated repercussions.
“It wasn’t uncommon for the marine police to check the oysters of Black watermen and fine them, but didn’t check those of the white watermen,” Wright said.
Turner had a similar experience: “I’ve seen police come to an area with 10 to 12 boats and ticket only the Black watermen.”
Lynch has been on the water for 53 years and articulated the challenges for Black watermen to success in
the industry. “Blacks were unable to borrow money,” he said. This meant that “white watermen had better boats and better rigs.”
Although receiving loans for their businesses and inequitable fines have been a challenge, Wallace stated that watermen on the whole are a supportive group.
“There is a camaraderie among Black and white watermen. That isn’t what perpetuated the division,” he said. Instead, he says, unfairly targeting Blacks occurred mainly by the marine police and those charged with seafood counts.
“When I was a kid, my dad was a waterman, and I noticed that he was always the lowest on the leaderboard. He always had the lowest numbers,” Wallace said. “There was a white man who I figured out was throwing a lot of his catch into an uncounted float.”
Black representation in the watermen industry remains stunted. Of the 30 members of the Queen Anne’s County Watermen’s Association, for example, there are
three Black members and 27 white, Lynch said.
But there is an active group of Black watermen and their supporters who continue to advocate for acknowledgement of the tireless efforts of their community. Also present in the audience were Drs. Dennis and Mary DeShields, founders of the Bellevue Passage Museum.
Dennis DeShields, a fourthgeneration descendant of Bellevue, resolved to preserve the town’s rich heritage and is leading the charge alongside wife to present this history to a wider audience and “serve as a center of cultural conservation for the community.”
For some of the panelists, being out on the water daily is a collection of fond memories, but Captain Buck still ventures out most days — and wouldn’t have it any other way.
“If you’re a waterman, you get up with the sun,” he said. “And I’m my own boss.”
FROM THE KENTISL AND VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT
ChesapeakePublishinghas been apartofthe Kent Island VolunteerFireDepartmentfamilysince we officiallybegan in 1947.
SpecialthankstoAngie Priceand Doug Bishopfor their supportover theyears!
We areproud of ourpar tnership andthankfulfor the suppor t!
Easton’s ties to Revolutionary War seen in alley
Story by Richard P. Covell
Photos by Tom McCall
One cannot tell the story of Magazine Alley in Easton without starting at the Battle of Lexington and Concord at the start of the Revolutionary War, an event defined by a date and a date defined by its place in American history.
The story begins on April 19, 1775. The battle was the first major military campaign of the American Revolution and was fought in the towns of Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy and Cambridge, Massachusetts. Our militia in its first major military campaign was the victor, as it drove the British back to Boston.
Four hundred and thirty five days later on Friday, June 28, 1776, the Maryland Convention reluctantly, but unanimously voted in favor of independence. The provincial leaders were about to take steps to shore up Maryland’s defenses.
On the same day June 28, 1776, and since for some time it was becoming more obvious that it was a necessity to be prepared for a larger conflict, the colonists took additional action. So just four days before the vote and six days before the date on the Declaration of Independence, the Maryland Council of Safety gave instructions that a gunpowder magazine be built in a field across the road from the courthouse in Easton to ensure quick access and establish a right of way from the courthouse to the building. This ensured buildings could not be constructed blocking access to the magazine.
The gunpowder magazine was to be built 22 feet by 18 feet of stone and brick with a rod on top, arched doorway and plank on the end. In addition, they placed the responsibility for the reception and security of gunpowder under
the care of Brig. Gen. James Lloyd Chamberlain.
In 1781, English Gen. Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown. In 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed and in 1785 as part of the process to become an official town and the county seat a survey was required and the streets named.
To create the survey John Needles was hired. The naming of all of the streets was done by a five-member committee chaired by Col. Jeremiah Banning with the other members being, Hugh Sherwood, John Stevens, Greenbury Goldsborough and Alexander McCallum.
There were 118 lots and some of the streets were named for what are now historic figures, some of whom were friends of committee members, and points on a compass. With the gunpowder magazine located in an alley, it was named Magazine Alley. By an act of the Legislature in 1785 the name of the town became Talbot, our requested name. Then by another act of the Legislature it was changed to Easton in 1788. Easton, over it’s long history had many names, Pitt’s Bridge, Talbot Court House, Talbot Town, Talbottown, East Town were some. The latter, and the fact that there were many towns in England named Easton are thought the most likely reasons for the name change just three years later.
Some years after that, the gunpowder magazine was disassembled and moved to behind the courthouse.
In 1811-1812, it was demolished and replaced with a two-story brick armory. I assume that some of the materials were probably used for the construction of one or two
A woman walks in the alleyway next to the Washington Street Pub.
foundations for nearby buildings, since that seems the most logical, but at this point it’s final destination has been lost to history.
To find Magazine Alley look just to the right of the Washington Street Pub. Located between the two buildings, it varies in width from 2 feet, 9 inches to 2 feet, 11.5 inches to 3 feet, 6 inches and then from the sidewalk one building it extends 82 feet and the other 182 feet, where at that point it opens to a private parking lot allowing for the foot traffic to follow it straight to North Harrison Street where it ends. Across North Harrison Street is a municipal parking lot next to the Tidewater Inn.
The whereabouts of the original
survey from 1785 indicating Magazine Alley’s location are unknown, but a survey based upon it was done in 1911 by John Anderson, a civil engineer. A copy of it hangs on the wall in the Maryland Room at the Talbot County Free Library, a few feet from Becky Riti’s desk. It was Becky, the Maryland Room’s librarian, that helped me with research for this article. She said, if I wanted to find Magazine Alley, to turn around and look to the wall. That’s how I discovered where Magazine Alley was and is.
A strong case can be made that, absent the events in Massachusetts on April 19 1775, we might not have Magazine Alley today.
With the gunpowder
magazine
located in an alley, it was named
Magazine Alley
Magazine Alley is located next to the Washington Street Pub in downtown Easton.
Mid-ShoreCommunity Foundation, Inc.
Establishedin1992, Mid-Shore CommunityFoundationisa 501(c)(3) dedicatedtoenhancing thequality of life throughoutthe Mid-ShoreRegion of Caroline,Dorchester, Kent,Queen Anne’s,and TalbotCounties.
TheFoundation workswithdonorstoestablish fundsfor theregion-funds that aredistributed as grants andscholarships,provides training programs andendowmentmanagementservicestoareanonprofits,and supportsstart‐up charities andlocal charitableprojectsthrough fiscalsponsorship.
TheFoundationisgovernedbya BoardofDirectors,consistingofvolunteers from throughoutthe Mid-ShoreRegion, andBuckDuncanservesasPresident.
TheFoundation is headquartered in thehistoricBullitt HouseinEaston, Maryland.
The Avalon has been running advertising in the Star Democrat for nearly half of its 225 years.
October 14, 7pmDavid Sedaris -Writer/Humorist
October 20,7pmRakish -Irish/Celtic/Scottish
November 7, 7pm Hot Toddies with Hannah Gill -Hot Jazz
November 8, 7pmAntje Duvekot with opener Seth Glier -Americana
November 17,7pmDarlingside -Alt Rock &Roll
November 22, 7pmSammy Miller and The Congregation 100 Years of Jazz
November 29,7pm Josh Christina and The Revivals Piano Rock through The Ages
November 21, 7pm Julian Velard -Piano Troubadour
November 30,7pm The Seldom Scene -Bluegrass
