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The Bellingham Publishing Company Collection spans the years
1911-1963, with the bulk of the material dated 1930-1938. The bulk of the
collection consists of radio transcripts generated by the Bellingham radio
station, KVOS, Inc. These and other materials in the first series of the
collection pertaining to KVOS stem from the battle for control of Bellingham's
media which occurred in the 1930's between the Bellingham Herald, owned by the Bellingham
Publishing Company, and KVOS radio, owned by Rogan Jones. There
were personal, political, and financial reasons behind the feud. Radio was a new
media forum in the 1920's and by the mid-1930's was competing for advertising
with newspapers. This competition in Bellingham led to several law suits and a
proposal to the FCC for a radio station run by the Bellingham Publishing
Company. The Bellingham Publishing Company came out on the
losing side of these attempts to keep radio from becoming an accepted form of
news media.
Other materials in the collection include materials on the
Sefrit family. Sefrit, who operated the Herald from 1911-1950, was also very
interested in the areas around Mt. Baker. Sefrit was one of the pioneers and
most active participants in the movement to develop the recreational advantages
and attractions of the Mt. Baker area. In the 1950s, Sefrit's name was placed
before the Names Board, and one of the peaks (also known as Sans Serif) in the
Mt. Baker area was named after him. Also included in this series is a box of
printed sheet music. The origin of this portion of the collection is unknown,
but most is labeled with the name Christie E. Simpson.
For more information regarding the competition between the Bellingham
Herald and KVOS radio see the Rogan Jones Collection.
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