In this post, I'll discuss the life of a former Confederate commander who had a career in journalism and started the foundation of the Ambler Gazette.
The Life of Joseph Barbiere
Joseph Barbiere (1831-1892) was born in New York on November 27 to Joseph and Floise Barbiere. When Joseph was six years old, his family moved from New Orleans to Mississippi, then finally to Memphis in 1843.
Fun Fact #1: Joseph's ancestors fought in the American Revolution under the leadership of Marquis de Lafayette at Yorktown. His parental grandfather was involved in the French Revolution.
While living in New Orleans, he was involved in the auction and commission business. In Memphis, he was one of the staff members of the Memphis newspaper "The Daily Memphis Avalanche."
In 1860, he was "one of the three commissioners selected by the south to advocate direct trade with Europe." When he was in Europe, he presented from the Board of Free Traders of Belgium an extravagant antique ewer, "a vase-shaped pitcher or jug." (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). He was thanked by the city of Memphis after his return from Europe, and was delegated to the Democratic National Convention at Baltimore where Stephen A. Douglas was nominated to run for President against Republican nominee Abraham Lincoln.
During the Civil War, Joseph served as major general of his Reserve Cavalry in Alabama, also known as "Barbiere's Battalion." from 1864-1865, consisted of six companies. Their headquarter was located in Wilsonville. Prior, he was commander of the 1st Alabama Regiment. His regiment fought in New Madrid, Missouri during the Battle of Island Number Ten.
Unfortunately, he was captured and sent to two prisons in Ohio: Camp Chase and later Johnson's Island. As a prisoner, Joseph wrote his experiences and observations in a book that was published later on in 1868 titled, "Scraps from the Prison Table, at Camp Chase and Johnson's Island."
Fun Fact #2: While working as a clerk at the United States Bureau of Pensions Office in Philadelphia, he was targeted by the Grand Army of the Republic for writing his account he experienced as a prisoner. He regretted saying anything negative in his book, and apologizing was all he could do.
After the war, he began establishing, organizing, and aiding newspapers around the United States. In 1876, he became president of the Tennessee Press Association.
Fun Fact #3: Joseph was selected to deliver the centennial address for Tennessee by Governor James D. Porter.
In Need of a Newspaper
Prior to the incorporation of Ambler, the town was originally a small village with a railroad station and the place where local trade took place. The newspapers the locals read were the North Wales Record and the Hatboro Spirit. As Ambler continued to grow with businesses and population, the newspapers were unable to meet the needs of the Ambler community.
In the summer of 1881, Joseph along with his father in-law, Joseph Levitt, established an office in Fort Washington running the "Fort Washington Times." Joseph was the editor while his father in-law was the business manager of the newspaper. Due to the thriving community in Ambler, the Josephs decided to move there to start their new newspaper as the "Ambler Times." Their office was located on the second floor of the feed warehouse in the coal and lumber yard that owned by Joseph Stackhouse who later sold it to J. Watson Craft.
NOTE: It was claimed that a man named Dr. Rose started the Ambler Times in 1879 before Joseph came to Ambler, but there was little evidence about him or how he started the newspaper. That would be the reason why most sources credited Joseph Barbiere as the earliest founder of the Ambler Gazette.
Unfortunately, after seeing little success Joseph decided to leave the business due to being discouraged with the newspaper prospects, Irwin S. Weber purchased the newspaper company, renaming it to the "Ambler Gazette."
Fun Fact #4: The first newspaper published was on December 1, 1881.
Horace G. Lukens joined in until he left in 1885. Both Irwin and Horace were later employed as printers in Philadelphia. The newspaper hasn't had any success from its beginning until December 1885 when Arthur K. Thomas came into the picture.
Arthur previously worked at the Lansdale Reporter and the Daily Reporter in Norristown until he came across the Ambler Gazette. He purchased the newspaper at a bargain. From there, he went to work.
"Enterprising, energetic and untiring in labor, the new publisher began building up the sickly plant. Correspondents were placed at all the vantage points in the surrounding country, while the news of Ambler, Lansdale and Jenkinton was gathered by himself. Plate matter was nearly discarded, the paper enlarged and assumed a new appearance."
- Ambler Gazette, December 15, 1898
It was later past down to Thomas Bitting in 1888 when he moved the newspaper to a different location. As a result, the circulation of the newspaper rapidly increased as well as the growing population. It was used as an opportunity to add in advertisements for jobs in the newspapers. Unfortunately, a fire broke out in the basement of the building, and Arthur Thomas returned to the Ambler Gazette to make arrangements to have a bigger and better building. Therefore, the location for the new newspaper building was selected along Butler Pike.
Then finally in 1898, Arthur sold the newspaper building to J. M. Haywood who officially took over the newspaper ever since.
Joseph M. Haywood (1872-1936) was the son of Joseph Haywood, who owned the property which is known today as the Artman Home. He was educated at Miss. Knight's Sunnyside Academy and later attended the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating in 1894, he worked at the Ambler Gazette before purchasing the newspaper from Arthur Thomas.
The Thorne Typesetting Machine
Ever since Joseph became the publisher and proprietor of the Ambler Gazette, he made improvements to the newspaper, and one of the biggest changes made was putting in a Thorne typesetting machine, the first of its kind in Ambler and in Montgomery County.
The machine consists two vertical cylinders: the upper cylinder is the distributing cylinder where it is loaded with letters for distribution. The lower cylinder, meanwhile, is stationary where each channel is fitted with the combination of words.
Another feature on the machine is the keyboard. It is similar to the typewriter, but larger in size and has more keys. The keys are connected to the bottom of the lower cylinder through levers to plungers.
Next to the keyboard is the apparatus, working separately from the keyboard. It is used for spacing sections of the newspaper and correcting errors.
The former site of the Ambler Gazette Building is now partially owned by Sushi Hatsu, a Japanese restaurant I enjoy going to with friends and family!
Bibliography
"Ambler Gazette Sold." Ambler Gazette. February 17, 1898. Page 1. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/1050/rec/1.
American Newspaper Directory, Volume 32, Issue 1. (New York: Geo. P. Rowell & Co., 1900): 878.
Battle, J. H. History of Bucks County, Pennsylvania; including an account of its original exploration; its relation to the settlements of New Jersey and Delaware; its erection into a separate county, also its subsequent growth and development, with sketches of its historic and interesting localities, and biographies of many of its representative citizens. (Spartanburg: The Reprint Company, 1985): 836-839.
Bean, Theodore Weber. History of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Volume 1. (Philadelphia: Everts & Peck, 1884): 467.
Evans, Clement Anselm. Confederate Military History: A Library of Confederate States History, Volume 7. (Atlanta: Confederate Publishing Company: 1899): 303.
"Google Maps Area Calculator Tool." DaftLogic. Accessed December 19, 2021. https://www.daftlogic.com/projects-google-maps-area-calculator-tool.htm.
Historic American Buildings Survey, Creator. Ambler Gazette Building, 31 East Butler Pike, Ambler, Montgomery County, PA. Pennsylvania Montgomery County Ambler, 1994. Documentation Compiled After. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/pa2983/.
Hough, Mary P. H. "Early history of Ambler 1682-1888." A Celebration of Women Writers. Accessed December 1, 2021. https://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/hough/ambler/ambler.html.
"Lot 655: Civil War book: Scraps from the Prison Table." Case Antiques. Accessed December 1, 2021. https://caseantiques.com/item/lot-655-civil-war-book-scraps-from-the-prison-table/.
Mathes, J. Harvey. The Old Guard in Gray, Researches in the Annals of the Confederate Historical Association. (Memphis: Press of S.C. Toof & Co., 1897): 37.
Mueller, A. H. Atlas of the North Penn Section of Montgomery County, Pa., Plate 26, 1916.
"Publisher Dies". Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, The Evening News. March 29, 1951. Page 2. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/22289743/publisher-dies/.
Roberts, Ellwood. Biographical Annals of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Containing Genealogical Records of Representative Families, Including Many of the Early Settlers and Biographical Sketches of Prominent Citizens, Volume 2. (New York, Chicago: T.S. Benham & Co. and The Lewis Publishing Co., 1904): 14-15.
Ryan, Daniel Joseph. The Civil War Literature of Ohio: A Bibliography with Explanatory and Historical Notes. (Cleveland: The Burrows Brothers Company, 1911): 21.
Scott, J.D. North Pennsylvania Railroad 1886 Philadelphia - Bucks - Montgomery Counties, Ambler, 1886.
"The Ambler Gazette. A Retrospective Glance--Autobiography--The Struggles of a Paper During Its Sixteen Years' Existence--Where, When and By Whom Founded." Ambler Gazette. December 15, 1898. Page 1. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/412/rec/1.
"The Ambler Gazette Older Than Borough." Ambler Gazette. November 7, 1929. Page 9. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/12910/rec/1.
"The Gazette Housewarming." Ambler Gazette. March 25, 1897. Page 1. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/1149/rec/152.
"Typesetting Machine." Ambler Gazette. March 17, 1898. Page 2. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/807/rec/1.
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