I recently became the managing editor of this newspaper. I don’t know much about the Beacon, so I wanted to acquaint myself by writing a series on its history.
The problem is, I didn’t know where to begin–in 1935 or 1936?
I’ll back up. A few weeks ago, I logged on to the Cheng Library website and began skimming through back issues of the Beacon catalogued on a database named WP Sphere. I wanted to understand how the university had evolved. Going through the past few decades, I kept seeing a similar slogan on the front page: “Serving the College Community Since 1936.” (William Paterson was still a college then; it did not become a university until 1997.)
But a strange thing happened when I came upon the issue from December 4, 1973. Suddenly, the motto changed: “Serving the College Community Since 1935.”
I didn’t know what to make of the discrepancy. Is the Beacon actually one year older than it had been telling readers for decades? And was I the first person in 51 years to notice?
I’d always been interested in the university’s history. Founded in 1855, William Paterson is the third-oldest university in New Jersey, behind only Princeton and Rutgers and tied with Kean and TCNJ. We also have one of the oldest college newspapers in the state.
But exactly how old is the Beacon? Looking through the back issues online, that was unclear.
My research started on Tuesday, Dec. 3. As part of an effort to revive the Beacon, a group of journalists came to campus to encourage us to contribute to the Beacon and outline the writing and critical thinking skills we could develop.
The discussion reminded me of a crucial concept: Journalism is essential to democracy.
It was already late by the time the event wrapped up. Still, I stuck around to talk with my journalism professor, Dr. Nick Hirshon. He told me about the Beacon back issues on WP Sphere, and we started to look through them. I was hooked.
I raced home and started reading issues going as far back as the Beacon’s birth. I was amazed by the thought that students might be reading my own articles in the Beacon years later. I lost track of time. Before I knew it, the clock had turned to 4 a.m.
That’s when I noticed the discrepancy that I mentioned earlier, between the issues on December 4, 1973, and December 11, 1973.
A bit more research settled the question. WP Sphere contains the very first issue of the Beacon: Volume 1, Issue 1, published on November 2, 1936–not 1935. So, our logo isn’t lying. But that still leaves open a question. Why, for so many years before 1973, did the Beacon claim to have been founded in 1935? Who finally caught that error? How?
These questions are a reminder that history is full of surprises waiting to be uncovered. I plan to delve into this mystery–and many more–in this series, which I’m calling, “Lighting the Way.” I’ll cover all things Beacon–the stories the newspaper covered, and also the highs and lows within the newsroom, from scandals to awards, from its near-extinction to its recent revival.
It’s going to be quite the journey. Stay tuned.
