Chapter Three
The Gleaner Newspaper The first issue of The Gleaner was printed on the presses of the Courier in the fall of 1894. It described the new order and answered questions about the insurance program. Early copies were not dated but seem to have been mailed every four or five weeks. The first complete copy in the files is Number 3, Volume 1, printed in December 1894. Another issue, either Number 1 or Number 2, is in the files but cannot be identified because the masthead is missing. If there were 12 papers printed the first year, as seems likely, the copies for January and March 1895 also are missing. Nearly all others have been saved, creating a valuable historical record. Slocum printed and mailed the first issues of The Gleaner free of charge. The paper was essential to the success of the Society and played a central role in bringing in new members. There were few ways to communicate with people in those days, and Slocum had at his disposal the most effective one available. Every member received a copy of the paper and it was distributed widely to those interested in the Gleaner organization. The Gleaner was published under several different names during the 25 years Slocum was the publisher. The name was changed to The Monthly Gleaner from January 1895 to October 1903. On that date, the name was changed back to The Gleaner because of a twicemonthly format. The masthead carried the motto, “Devoted Exclusively to the Interest of the Farmer and the Upholding of His Calling.” After a major expansion in 1910 the title was changed to “The Gleaner - A Farm Magazine.” It is difficult to separate Slocum the editor and publisher from Slocum the Secretary and chief administrative officer of the Ancient Order of Gleaners. He was generous with both time and money where the Society was concerned.
Volume 1, number 1, Page 1 of The Gleaner, 1894. This was Grant Slocum’s first monthly publication for the new Ancient Order of Gleaners (A.O.O.G.).
At the same meeting another resolution was passed to pay Slocum $150 per year to edit the paper. The Society also paid for the printing of minutes and other official business. At some point the Society began to apply a portion of the members’ dues as a subscription to the paper. It is doubtful if The Gleaner made a profit in the early years, and may instead have cost Slocum money.
At the second annual meeting of the Society in 1895 a resolution was passed: “A monthly official paper shall be published to be known as The Monthly Gleaner which shall contain the official notices of assessment, the minutes of every meeting of the State arbor, all official notices to the members, and general information and news of interest to the members.”
The question of who owned The Gleaner caused trouble at a later date. Slocum and his company owned the presses and the means of distribution. After the first few years the Society paid most or all of the cost through subscriptions (25 cents per year in 1905) and official printing. Slocum edited the paper as an employee of the Society. As long as 29
