Crying the News : A History of America's Newsboys

## Abstract From the brilliant Benjamin Franklin to the dauntless Ragged Dick and the high-kicking Jack Kelley, hero of the Disney musical Newsies, newsboys have long commanded attention as symbols of struggle and success. But what do we really know about them? Crying the News: A History of America’s Newsboys places this idealized occupational group at the center of the American experience, analyzing their dual role as economic actors and cultural symbols over a century of war and peace, prosperity and depression, exploitation and reform. The book chronicles the career of hawkers and carriers from the 1830s to the 1930s in all parts of the country and on the railroads that linked them. It examines the place of girls in the trade and the distinctive experience and representation of black, immigrant, and disabled news peddlers. Based on a wealth of primary sources, including rare and iconic visual material, Crying the News reveals the formative role of newsboys in corporate welfare schemes, scientific management practices, and employee liability laws. It documents scores of forgotten newsboy strikes and unions, and their affiliation with the Knights of Labor, American Federation of Labor, and Industrial Workers of the World. The result is an epic history of print capitalism and working-class childhood from the pavement up. From Benjamin Franklin to Ragged Dick to Jack Kelley, hero of the Disney musical Newsies , newsboys have long intrigued Americans as symbols of struggle and achievement. But what do we really know about the children who hawked and delivered newspapers in American cities and towns? Who were they? What was their life like? And how important was their work to the development of a free press, the survival of poor families, and the shaping of their own attitudes, values, and beliefs? Crying the News: A History of America's Newsboys offers an epic retelling of the American experience from the perspective of its most unshushable creation. It is the first book to place newsboys at the center of American history, analyzing their inseparable role as economic actors and cultural symbols in the creation of print capitalism, popular democracy, and national character. DiGirolamo's sweeping narrative traces the shifting fortunes of these "little merchants" over a century of war and peace, prosperity and depression, exploitation and reform, chronicling their exploits in every region of the country, as well as on the railroads that linked them. While the book focuses mainly on boys in the trade, it also examines the experience of girls and grown-ups, the elderly and disabled, blacks and whites, immigrants and natives. Based on a wealth of primary sources, Crying the News uncovers the existence of scores of newsboy strikes and protests. The book reveals the central role of newsboys in the development of corporate welfare schemes, scientific management practices, and employee liability laws. It argues that the newspaper industry exerted a formative yet overlooked influence on working-class youth that is essential to our understanding of American childhood, labor, journalism, and capitalism. Cover Crying the News Copyright Dedication Contents Acknowledgments Introduction: Echoes Down the Alleys of History PART ONE CHILDREN OF THE PENNY, 1833–​1865 1. Rising with the Sun 2. Voice of Young America 3. Johnny Morrow and the Dangerous Classes 4. Battle Cries PART TWO CHILDREN OF THE BREACH, 1866–​1899 5. Disorder in the Air 6. Riding the Wanderlust Express 7. Rumblings in the West 8. Press Philanthropy and the Politics of Want 9. Yelling the Yellows PART THREE CHILDREN OF THE STATE, 1900–​1940 10. Bitter Cry of Progress 11. Sidewalks of Struggle 12. Call to Service 13. Roar of the Tabloids 14. Son of the Forgotten Man Conclusion: The Thump on Lost Porches Notes Name Index Subject Index Introduction: Echoes Down The Alleys Of History -- Part One: Children Of The Penny, 1833-1865 -- Rising With The Sun -- Voice Of Young America -- Johnny Morrow And The Dangerous Classes -- Battle Cries -- Part Two: Children Of The Breach, 1866-1899 -- Disorder In The Air -- Riding The Wanderlust Express -- Rumblings In The West -- Press Philanthropy And The Politics Of Want -- Yelling The Yellows -- Part Three: Children Of The State, 1900-1940 -- Bitter Cry Of Progress -- Sidewalks Of Struggle -- Call To Service -- Roar Of The Tabloids -- Son Of The Forgotten Man -- Conclusion: The Thump On Lost Porches. Vincent Digirolamo. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 567-673) And Index. 2020 Frederick Jackson Turner Award from the Organization of American Historians.2020 Philip Taft Labor History Prize from the Cornell University School of Labor and Industrial Relations and the Labor & Working-Class History Association.2019 Frank Luther Mott-Kappa Tau Alpha Research Award.2020 Eugenia M. Palmegiano Prize in the History of Journalism from the American Historical Association.2021 Vincent P. DeSantis Prize from the Society for Historians of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. 'Crying the News' places newsboys at the centre of American history, analyzing their inseparable role as economic actors and cultural symbols in the creation of print capitalism, popular democracy, and national character. Vincent DiGirolamo's sweeping narrative traces the shifting fortunes of these 'little merchants' over a century of war and peace, prosperity and depression, exploitation and reform, chronicling their exploits in every region of the country, as well as on the railroads that linked them