"Were American Newcomen to do naught else, our

work is well done if we succeed in shai-ing with

America a strengthened inspiration to continue

the struggle towards a nobler Civilization­

through wider knowledge and 11nderstanding of the

hopes, ambitions, and deeds of leaders in the past

who have 11pheld Civilization's material progress.

As we look backward, let 11s look forwai·d."

-CHARLES PENROSE (1886-1958)

S,mior Vice-Preside11t for North America The Newwme11 Society

for tlu slJsdy of the history of E11gi11uri11g ,ind Ttch110/ogy

(1923-1957) Chaimia11Jor North America

(,958)

rhis state111e11t, crysta!fizi11g a broad p111-pose of the Society, was first. read 1t the Newco111e11 Meeti11g at New York World's Fairo11A11g11st 5, 1939, when A111erican Newcouu:n were guests of Tlze British Gover11111e11t.

"Actor11n1 Me,nores si11111l affecta,nus Agenda"

These addresses, dealing with the history of the U11ited States

Bill of Rights and The Lawre11ce Journal-World were delivered

at a "1991 Kansas lvleeting" of The Newco111e11 Society of tlze

United States held i11 Lawrence, when Dolph C. Simons, J,·.

and Prof David A. Anderson wei·e guests of ho11or

and speakers 011 Dece111ber 121/z, 1991.

,ys in it than most, his days more hours. They have been that way ir many, many years.

In recognition of his service, the University of Kansas and its Jumni Association awarded him the Fred Ellsworth Medallion in 976, and the Citation for Distinguished Service in 1980. If we had :her awards, Dolph Simons would have received them, too.

As committed as he is to KU, Dolph is equally committed to his ,mmunity and the surrounding region. The Menninger Foundation, hildren's Mercy Hospital, Lawrence Memorial Hospital, Haskell 1dian Junior College, Midwest Research Institute: those are a few 10re institutions in which he has invested his talents, energy and me.

As a former journalist who went astray long ago, I have enormous :spect for Dolph's professionalism. He is, at heart, a reporter-and · you search his pockets this evening you will find a pad of paper1d at least one stub of a pencil. He takes no chances on missing aory.

Dolph Simons was one of the very first people I met when I came , Lawrence in r 98 r. During the ensuing years I have come to know 1d admire his generosity and professionalism. He is a confidante and ivisor of remarkable insight and discretion, and a very good friend.

Ladies and Gentlemen, DOLPH C. SIMONS, JR.

'i 'i

[ 6 ]

Fellow 111e111bers of Newco111eu and guests:

ONE hundred years ago this Saturday, December r+, 1891, three young men arrived in Lawrence after a hard three-day journey by horse and buggy from St. Joseph, Missouri.

The three optimistic and enthused entrepreneurs were W. C. Si­mons, twenty, his -younger brother, L. A. Simons, seventeen, and his brother-in-law, J. L. Brady, twenty-five.

They came to Lawrence to enter the newspaper business even though there were seven papers already being published in Lawrence at that time, plus several at the university.

Arrangements had been made to lease the Lawrence Record, a daily and weekly paper owned by J. B. Watkins, one of Lawrence's most prominent and successful businessmen. Watkins, by the way, was to become a generous philanthropist for the city and the university.

Lawrence was not a pretty sight that evening as the three men arrived at the northeast corner of the city. As W. C. Simons wrote in later years, "That December r 4th day of r 89 r, it was raining as it has been today, but instead of a town with wide paved streets, brilliantly lighted and festooned with Christmas decorations, the streets were a sea of mud, lighted only by a faint and flickering single gas light at each street intersection and with burning gasoline, or kerosene, flares in front of a few enterprising stores. n

The ledger sheet for the first day of business states: "Lawrence, Kansas, December r+, 1891 ... We J. L. Brady, W. C. Simons and L. A. Simons commence business this day with L. A. Simons' capital of$ 50.00."

A writer at the competing Lawrence Joun,al noted there were new operators at The Record, he wished them well but added, "there was not much chance of success."

Maybe he knew something as three months later, the three eager newspapermen decided to give up their lease for The Record. W. C. Simons wrote they had discovered there was a "good sized town row" between the North and South interests of the city. Also, Watkins was a strong individual who wanted to maintain an intense interest in the policies of the paper and I am sure the new operators had hoped to have more independence in the editorial opinions of the paper.

[ 7 ]

Apparently the three men thought there was room for another paper nd a chance for business success, so on March 2, 1892, they pub­ished the first issue of the Lawrence World, a daily and weekly paper.

They bought old, used, rusty equipment, equipment other pub­ishers had discarded as junk. They were not given much chance of uccess but this situation has been emphasized within our family time nd time again: no one can afford to be complacent as there always is omeone who can come into town and beat you at your own business f you do not remain alert and strong. No one gave W. C. Simons a hance but he worked hard, saved, had a dream, and survived.

By the way, the population of Lawrence in 189 1 was estimated at ,,500 with 630 students at KU and forty-four faculty members.

In the next few years the Weekly Gazette was consolidated with the )aily and Weekly World and in I 895 the Daily Gazette was purchased ,y The World Company for $2,000. This purchase was made by a ,artnership of Simons and Brady, as L. A. Simons had been bought ut.

Four years later, in l 899, another consolidation took place when lie Weekly Jefferso11ia11 and Weekly Gazette were merged into the Veekly Jefferso11ia11-Gazette.

Now there were only five papers being published in this riverfront, .niversity town.

The Journal was the prestigious paper in town. Its owner, Col. )scar Learnard was described as a man of "considerable influence and onsiderable wealth" who used to drive a handsome team of horses round the community. Apparently the Colonel came across some ifficult times and reports indicated his two sons had, "not shown to e particularly fitted to the newspaper business." Whatever this 1eant, Simons and Brady purchased the Daily Journal for $18,000. imons owned practically all of The World Company stock and he ;sued ninety-eight and one-half of his shares to Brady and retained n equal number for himself, with three shares in the names of others.

The Journal had done more business than The World but it had not een as carefully managed and upon taking over The Jou111al, it was ecessary for The World Company to assume approximately $7,000 1 debt being carried by The Jounzal. The $18,000 purchase price ms all borrowed money with one half of the notes signed by The ,Vorld Company and one half by the Jottrnal.

W. c. Sit,,IONS

The Jo11rnal was located in the Bowersock Theater building and The World was doing business at 722 Massachusetts Street.

On February l 7, I 9 I 1, a fire destroyed the theater building, the Journal's offices, and most of the equipment. As a result of this fire, and. since The World Company and The Jo11111al had common own­ership, it was decided to merge the papers and the first issue of the J orm,al-World was published on February 1 9, 19 1 1.

By 1914, Simons had come to the conclusion it was better to have a single owner-operator of the paper. Also, Brady was interested in politics and he wasn't adverse to using the newspaper to try to further his political dreams. Simons looked around for a paper which might be for sale and found one in Arkansas. He told Brady he would be willing to sell his stock in The World Company and move to Arkan­sas, or he would be willing to buy Brady's stock and Brady could move to Arkansas, if he wished, to buy the paper.

Apparently Brady thought there were more opportumt,es for ;rowth and prosperity in Arkansas so he agreed to sell his stock. ,imons purchased the one-half interest from Brady, or to be more :xact, he bought back the ninety-eight and one-half shares he had ssued to Brady in 191 1.

The shares were valued at $27,500, but due to a $10,000 note ,wed by the J 01m1al-World, the amount actually paid to Brady was 122,500. Simons borrowed the entire amount, with the sale finalized m December 19, 1914.

In July 1921, the Daily Gazette and the Weekly Jeffe,·sonian-Gazette

,vere purchased by The World Company, for $15,750 and this ended he newspaper purchases of Lawrence papers by Simons.

According to various sources, the Jo11nwl-World represents the nerger or purchase of forty newspapers and there have been at least ro4 newspapers published in Lawrence since the city was founded in r854.

The first paper in Lawrence, The Herald of Freedom, was dated )ctober 21, 1854. However, it was edited and printed at Conneaut­rille, Pennsylvania and 21 ,ooo copies were distributed from there. [he papers were packed and sent to Lawrence. It was delayed on the .vay and the second number of the paper did not appear until January r 855.

This traces some of the newspaper history in Lawrence since that ·ainy December day, roo years ago, but I believe the real story be-1ind this success story is in the hard work, sacrifice and determination:o succeed-first by W. C. Simons and then by my father, Dolph3imons.

W. C. Simons was born in Owatonna, Minnesota in 1871. His'ather, Adolphus Ezra Simons, had been a Fife Major in the 27th Ulinois Voluntary Infantry and after five years service during the =::ivil War, he moved his family to Minnesota. He died in 1877 and is a war widow, Jennie Bessie Simons was permitted to homestead in Kansas. A year after her husband's death, and with five young chil­iren-Etoile, Grace, Julia, Wilford Collins (W. C.) and Louis l\.dolphus (L. A.), she traveled to Kansas by train, making her final passage to the homestead in Hodgeman County, about forty miles west of Larned, by a horse-drawn wagon.

[ IO ]

LINOTYPE OPERATORS SET GALLEYS OF TYPE FOR THE DAY'S PAPER IN THE OLD JOUR­

NAL-WORLD BUILDING AT 72'1 MASSACHUSETTS STREET.

The family lived in a soddy and it often caved in when it rained. Most of the schooling was provided by the mother, who may have been the first teacher in Hodgeman County. W. C. often stood guard outside the soddy when Indians traveled through the area. It was a rough, tough, challenging existence and on one vacant soddy, W. C . found the following note tacked to the front door: "200 miles to wood; 50 miles to water; 6 inches to Hell. God Bless our home, this claim is not abandoned. n

Jennie Bessie walked four miles to teach school and when her daughters were old enough, they too taught school.

Simons lived in the soddy from the age of six to sixteen when they moved to Salina. He attended Kansas Wesleyan University even though he had little formal schooling and he worked for a year on the Salina Republican.

He later moved to St. Joseph where he worked as a typesetter on the St. Joseph Herald. Then in 1891 he and his brother heard good things about Lawrence, the opportunity to get into the newspaper business, and they made the three-day trip to this community.

W. C. Simons was a hard worker, a tough but fair boss and ademanding father. He was active in numerous city and state associa­tions, he was president of the Kansas Historical Society, the Douglas

[ I I ]

County Historical Society, president of Lawrence Memorial Hospital for more than twenty years, twice president of the Kansas Baptist Convention and president of a Baptist Hospital and home for elderly people in Concordia. He was the first president of the Lawrence Rotary Club.

He judged men by several yardsticks-if they treated women with respect, if they attended church, he thought most anyone could afford a bar of soap to keep himself clean and he thought it was important for a person to take advantage of every possible opportunity to obtain an education.

He was proud of the fact he had spoken from most every church pulpit in Lawrence.

He married Gertrude Reineke in 1894 and there were five chil­dren: Blanche, Janet, Dolph, Dorothea and John Louis. John Louis died in 1928 at the age of 13.

W. C. was assisted a great deal by his wife, who was a talentedmusician and who played the piano for the silent movies and stage shows which would stop for engagements at the Bowersock Theater. She would go to the theater building in the morning, study the mu­sical score for the night's show and often provide the only music for the stage performances. For this she was paid twenty dollars a week and it came in mighty handy in helping make ends meet.

Col. Nelson who owned the Kansas City Star once offered W. C. Simons the position of managing editor of the Star at a salary of $4,000 a year. Simons declined the offer and when asked by his son, my father, why he had turned down such an attractive, well-paying job at a much larger paper, he said, "I am so far in debt that if I were to accept a job at a fixed salary, I doubt if I would be able to pay off these debts. I will not leave Lawrence owing anyone any money.n

W. C. had a beautiful gold watch, and he once told my father hewould have been shocked to know how many times he had taken his watch to Abe Wolfson's pawn shop to get some money to help publish the paper.

Reflecting on his early years in Lawrence, W. C. wrote, "Our competitors were backed by ample capital but perhaps they lacked the

[ 12 ]

wider vision we possessed. Believing that every citizen was entitled to fair treatment, with no friends to reward, nor enemies to punish,

we went ahead through unbelievable hardships and obstacles.

"The people, God bless them-they responded to our efforts and cooperated with us. Like Ruth, of the Bible, we determined: 'Thy people shall be my people.' "

My father, who was born in November r 904, first started in the newspaper business as a carrier boy when he was seven years old, and from that time until his death in February 1989, he was the hardest worker in the plant. I realize a son may be somewhat biased, but he was an excellent writer, a superior editor, a sound businessman and a great boss, business associate and father.

He liked to work, and he did not like to waste time. He was either in school, working, or engaged in various 4-H projects, selling the Saturday Evening Past, selling cigars and popcorn at KU football games on the old McCook playing field, or in other business ventures. He finished high school in three years and he completed his university requirements in three years. During the summer of one of his college years, he worked for the Associated Press in Chicago and covered the famous Loeb-Leopold kidnap-murder trial where Clarence Darrow gained fame.

He was not given any job at the Journal-World merely because he was the owner's son. He had to earn the confidence of his father and demonstrate he was able to handle new, bigger responsibilities.

Because of this, working for a demanding father who was not eager to relinquish authority and responsibilities, he perhaps was more sen­sitive to the relationship with me when I entered the business. He was quick to move aside and allow me to move into positions of greater responsibility.

Now I have sons in the business and I have even greater appreci­ation for the relationship I enjoyed with my father. In my opinion, it is far easier to be a son in a family business than it is to be the father, the boss, and to know how to properly encourage, stimulate and work easily with sons or daughters. I know my father must have bitten his lip many times, wanting to offer constructive criticism, or maybe even a bit stronger advice, but it was a great relationship. I believe most anyone in a third or fourth generation family business

[ lJ ]

DOLPH C. SIMONS

rould agree with me on the many joys associated with a father-son elationship but also acknowledge it takes understanding and patience, articularly by the father.

Dolph Simons was a staunch defender of the newspaper business od the responsibilities and obligations of a newspaper. He stressed onesty, accuracy, decency and fairness and frequently told those in 1e newsroom he did not want any readers to be able to tell whether 1e writer was a man or woman, a Republican or Democrat, youngr old or which church they might attend.

He did not like censorship, rather he called for a responsible press. Ie thought it was far better to put up with a few bums in the busi­ess, a few abuses of a "free press," rather than to allow censorship.

Dad had many job opportunities away from Lawrence but declined 1ose offers to remain in Lawrence and work for a better newspaper, better community and a better university. I believe he was highly

,ccessful in all these challenges.

I, too, started as a newspaper carrier and through the years worked 1 the circulation department, as an advertising salesman and as a ,porter. I had the good fortune to work as a reporter in London for �,e Times and in Johannesburg, South Africa, for The Star.

,.

DOLPH C. SIMONS, JR.

I became publisher of the J01mial-World in 1962, president of the company in 1969 and editor of the paper in 1978.

In the 1960s, we became increasingly aware of rapid developments in the telecommunications field, and we studied the cable television business. At one time the company held the Federal Communications Commission license for an AM and FM radio station in Lawrence but father thought it better to focus our attention on the newspaper business rather than divide our efforts and interests.

In 1968, the company applied for the cable television franchise for Lawrence and we activated our first customers in December I 97 I. It has proven to be a sound investment for the company and I am pleased by the quality of the system we have provided for Lawrence residents. In 197 8 the company applied for the cable television franchise in Fort Collins, Colorado, and this, too, has proven to be a sound investment.

We believe it is important to look upon our business as an "infor­mation business,,, not merely a newspaper or cable television opera­tion. We want to stay abreast of new developments and be able to deliver news and advertising, as well as other information, however a reader or advertiser might desire.

In 1979, I was attending a meeting of American Newspaper Pub­lishers Association directors in Zurich, Switzerland, and visited with

rr T r" 11

en Neuharth, who at that time was president of Gannett and the nder of the new paper, USA TODAY. I told him we would like opportunity to print USA TODAY when they moved into this

t of the country, and on April 2, 1984 we printed our first copy he paper. Today we provide USA TODAY for a good portion of 1sas as well as parts of Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas and lahoma.

�his project, along with our own growth in recent years, necessi­d a sizeable expansion of our press capacity and several maJor itions to our plant.

:his year we have entered the audiotex business, which we call CESS, as well as a geographic information service which we call arid Geo Solutions."

'lithin a short time we plan to announce and to develop another ision within the company.

:here may not be six or seven other papers being published in rrence today, but competition for readers and advertising is intense :..awrence with Kansas City, Topeka, Leavenworth and Ottawa ers anxious to do whatever they can, at whatever price 1 to attract rrence readers. Added to this is a free university paper which pays axes; free shopper publications, direct mail pieces and radio and ,ision. There are more than sixty radio and television off-air sig-for Lawrence area residents who find it easier to receive their

vs in this manner.

>ne of the biggest challenges facing all newspapers in the Unitedes these days is the shocking illiteracy situation with more than 30ion adults unable to read above the eighth grade level. Add tofigure the millions of adults who just cannot read. This, along

L less and less time for leisurely reading, is creating major chal­;es for American newspapers. Add the many other activities such dult education evening classes, an almost unlimited number of t recreational sports leagues, physical fitness activities and many r programs which leave less time for reading and it all combines resent problems for newspapers.

have been extremely fortunate. I had a running start in the busi­due to the hard work, sacrifice and wisdom of my grandfather father, the help of a wonderful mother and a great and under­iing wife.

� Th TI

DAN C. SIMONS (L) AND DOLPH C. SIMONS III

Also, through all these years, the company has been so fortunate to have so many top-flight, hard working, loyal associates. These men and women have been in all departments--production, mechanical, advertising, news, business, management, circulation-in all areas.

These people have played a significant role in the success of the business and if W. C. and father were here this evening they would join me in extending a genuine and enthusiastic "thank you" to these thousands of men, women and young boys and girls who have been a part of the Journal-World family.

It is a wonderful business and an important business. I am con­vinced a properly motivated newspaper can play a significant and positive role for a community, state and nation and, I think those in the business must take their jobs and responsibilities more seriously­while at the same time, not taking themselves too seriously.

I don't think anyone in the newspaper business expects people to shower them with praise and appreciation, but we should try to con­duct ourselves and manage our papers in.a manner which merits the respect of our readers.

It has been an interesting, challenging JOO years, although I will be the first to acknowledge I have not had to face the many obstacles

rr __ 11

nd difficult situations that my grandfather and father had to over­Jme.

I don't know of any other business I would enjoy any more than 1e newspaper business.

There have been threats-sometimes serious personal, physical 1reats, sometimes business threats-and sometimes it is necessary toTile something or carry a story which you know will not please a . ose friend. Nevertheless it is a great business-a very rewarding business in

1e sense of what a newspaper can help accomplish. I know I speak >r all members of the Simons family in thanking you and the peoplef Lawrence, past and present, for a stimulating, exciting and chal­nging JOO years.I'm glad W. C. came to Lawrence from St. Joseph, and I'm glad

, stayed in Lawrence rather than going to Arkansas.

THE FOLLOWING REMARKS ON THE OCCASION OF

THE 200TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE UNITED STATES

BILL OF RIGHTS GIVEN BY DR. DAVID A. ANDERSON,

THOMPSON & KNIGHT CENTENNIAL PROFESSOR,

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN SCHOOL OF LAW

fe111bers of Newco111e11 and guests:

THANK you, Mr. Simons for bringing us all together. I think it was Sam�el Johnson who said "The test of a great banquet1s not what s on the table but what's on the chairs." By that

st this dinner is a great success; this is an impressive group you've ,sembled tonight. It's an honor to be asked to speak on the 200th anniversary of the

ill of Rights. The only greater honor is to be asked to speak on the JOth anniversary of a newspaper, especially one that's still thriving 1d still independent. As many of you know, we lost another inde­endent newspaper this week in Dallas, and there are too few left. I mgratulate Dolph Simons and his staff, and I hope JOO years from

[ 18 ]

tonight there will be another dinner celebrating this newspaper, and that it will still be independent.

I want to talk a little tonight about the history of the Bill of Rights, and what that history might teach us about public life in America today. Some say the Bill of Rights is the noblest document known to the mind of man. I don't know if that's so, but it surely is our central cultural symbol, and it is the foundation for the rights revolution that has transformed the country, for better and worse, in our lifetimes . I want to talk about how the Bill of Rights was drafted, because it was drafted; it wasn't carved in stone, or delivered on a mountaintop.It was hammered out by elected representatives, in the First Congress of the United States. Indeed, it was the product of a political deal. We have a Bill of Rights because the Federalists were forced to accept it in order to get the Constitution ratified. After the Constitutional Convention in 1787, five states ratified the new constitution within the first two months. But then the process stalled. By February of 1788 none of the large states had ratified-Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina-and in all those states the Antifeder­alists were opposing the Constitution, in part because it did not con­tain a Bill of Rights. Without the large states there could be no United States, and the momentum was clearly shifting away from the Con­stitution.

James Madison, who was to become the chief draftsman and floor leader for the first ten amendments, up to that time had been opposed to adding a Bill of Rights to the Constitution. He took the view that it was unnecessary, since the federal government was a governmentof limited powers anyway, and he feared that enumerating some rights might imply that others weren't protected. Madison expressed his opposition as late as February 1788, in a letter to George Washington, in which he explained in detail his objections. He said bills of rights are mere "parchment barriers,1' and noted that in Virginia the state Bill of Rights had been violated every time there was a popular sen­timent to do so.

But Madison was a politician as well as a political theorist, and he was being educated by the electorate, as politicians are supposed to be. Madison stood for election to the First Congress in his district in Virginia and the Antifederalists put up James Monroe against him. It turned out to be a tougher campaign than Madison expected. In

[ 19]