History of Print Media in Breckenridge
By David Briggs,
President of the BWAHS
In the early days of Breckenridge, the first successful newspaper was published by Grant Steele and was named the Breckenridge Clarion. That publication went out of business in 1908, but was soon replaced by the Breckenridge American whose editor was a man named Ellsworth A.C. Allen. He sold the American to Wayne Brown in 1912. Allen made many improvements to the business and then sold his interest to Fred Moffat who had many years of experience as a newspaperman in Stanton. That sale took place in 1913. The Breckenridge American was published until at least 1928. Then in the 1930’s Breckenridge news was recorded in a paper called the Breckenridge News.
During World War II, a local grocer named Schroeder took it upon himself to keep the citizens up-to-date with their boys who were serving in the armed forces. He published a mimeographed flyer/newspaper which he called the Peaville Gossip. The copies that we have at the museum are fascinating to read and he did a thorough job of keeping track of the local boys in uniform.
Then in 1947 after being discharged from the army, Don Belles with his wife Lois decided to open a new print media business. After securing a $500 loan from Farmer’s State Bank, and with the partnership of Orla and Edna Simmons, and Rex and Sybil Muscott they started the Saginaw Valley Shopper. The first edition was published on November 3, 1948. Their goal was to provide a cost-effective advertising medium that would reach every family on the M-46 corridor from St. Louis to Hemlock. However, when it became apparent that the income would not be sufficient for three families, Don and Lois bought the two partners out and continued to publish the paper by themselves. The paper was produced right in their home. The mimeograph machine was stationed in a spare bedroom and stacks of paper and advertising copy cluttered up their home along with two small boys named Ed and John who would later come into that business themselves.
In 1951, the Belles’ moved the publication of the paper to a new office on the second floor of the laundromat. That got the mimeograph out of the bedroom, but moving the heavy stacks of paper and the completed copies of newspapers up and down the stairs was a difficult task. In the mid-fifties, an office area was purchased on Saginaw Street and the mimeograph machine was replaced by an off-set printing press. The off-set printing press allowed for the printing of photos instead of drawing pictures with a stylus and was a major improvement for the public.
The Saginaw Valley Shopper became a fixture in the business community of Breckenridge. It contained the usual ads for businesses and garage sales and “for sale” items. But in addition to that, it carried local news items in an area known as Inkspot and for many years, a column by Cliff McKellar called “Cliff McKellar Comments”. The front page was the schedule of coming events in the area and for many years was sponsored by Farmer’s State Bank. If you wanted to plan your week, you just pulled out the Shopper’s front page and looked at your choices. If you wanted to get the word out about an election or major event, you could arrange to have an insert placed in the Shopper to alert the public.
When Don and Lois retired, Ed and John Belles took over and continued to serve the community by keeping the community informed of important meetings and events through their free advertising newspaper medium. The many copies that we have at the Plank Road Museum have been a valuable resource in filling in some gaps when historical questions have come up. John moved into other business interests in 1984, but continued to be on call when he was needed. When Ed retired, Ed’s daughter, Lisa and her husband Scott Guthrie kept the Shopper coming off the presses.
Unfortunately, due to the rise of social media and declining number of available advertising accounts, the Shopper could not continue and had to close its doors in 2019 after being in business for over 70 years. However, many people have had the same comment when they miss an event or are trying to advertise an event. That comment is “I miss the Shopper!” That free little advertising paper sure was handy and informative, and in my humble opinion a whole lot more efficient than looking for information in a Facebook posting or other social media platforms.
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On August 19 from 1 -4 in the afternoon, the Breckenridge/Wheeler Area Historical Society will be hosting an open house. The Drake House will be open and the Plank Road Arbor of the Gleaners will be making homemade ice cream for the event. The Plank Road Museum will also be open and will be featuring an exhibit highlighting the Saginaw Valley Shopper. Hope to see you there.