The papers

When I was a kid growing up in the Marshall, Minn., area, we were blessed with two local papers. Published by competing family companies, The Lyon County Independent came out on Thursdays, and the Marshall Messenger started as a five-day-a-week daily – then came out only two days a week – and as I remember, it was delivered Tuesday and Saturday. 

Both were mailed out and delivered through the post office.   

Fr those folks that lived in Marshall, the Minneapolis/St.Paul paper was also available daily – hand-delivered by kids all over town on their routes. If you wanted delivery to the rural farm homes,it was dropped off a day later than when it was published by the postal service. Most folks only got the Minneapolis Sunday paper, picked up at the local drugstore after church.

This quick walk down memory lane is partly to trumpet my admiration for the Brandon Valley Journal and the good fortune, plus the importance of having a local paper – published just for the Brandon Valley – that covers the local happenings and doesn’t try to go outside its ability to cover local news. Jill and her staff try to do what they do best – communicate local. 

At home, we got both the Marshall Messenger and the Independent. From an early age I eagerly perused both. The front page, with its local headlines, the obituaries on page 2, opinions usually were on page 3, along with letters to the editor. Social news, sports, and of course, the want ads and official filings in accordance with the legal requirements of the city and county. 

We had no digital options ≠ only print – and it was wonderful. I am slowly converting to the digital age, but I have to confess – I still love the ink version, the feel of turning the page.

In a following column I will talk about the two local publishers of the papers of my youth. They had very different styles; they competed hard within the community for the advertising revenue and both were strong advocates for communication and growth of their town.