43

The Printed Word

Phil Ryan, one of the first to be born in the town and later to make a name for himself in the broadcast news field, started the town's first newspaper, The Grand Falls Times, in 1933. The initial issue carried stories of an early-morning fire which razed a local dwelling, the apprehension and escape of a "clothes robber" and belatedly corroborated the "rumour" that local resident Banks Scott had been to the North Pole as part of Admiral Peary's expedition in 1905-06.
The paper was short-lived and ceased publication within a few months.

Mike and Walter Blackmore, two of five brothers who worked at the paper mill, became interested in printing as a hobby in the early 1920s. The seeds of ambition were sown when they found out that their pastime could make them a few dollars. At first, Mike entered a partnership with Frank Hiscock and their printing "office" was a woodshed in downtown Grand Falls. When Hiscock relinquished his end of the business, Mike was joined by Walter and the fledgling Blackmore Printing Company maintained a slow but gradual growth.

Their first plant was a refurbished henhouse behind No. 11 Mill Road and the serendipitous appearance of a few men with not only experience in printing but knew where type and other printing equipment could be had at bargain prices. The acquisition of a flatbed printing press necessitated an expansion to their building and spurred them in the direction of publishing a newspaper.

On April 8, 1936 the first issue of the bi-weekly Grand Falls Advertiser hit the streets, with Mike's wife, the former Laura Cantwell, as its first editor.

44

The Printed Word
Early 1900s
Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland, Canada


Credits:
Grand Falls Windsor, A Place and its People, Published by: Grand Falls-Windsor Heritage Society Inc. 2005