The bulk of the collection being (22) war-date issues of the Fayetteville Observer, (1861-1864), each 4 pp., folio (24-1/2 in.), many owner signed "A. Smith" or "Andrew Smith" above and to the right of the masthead; plus, nine war-date issues of The Greensboro Patriot (1862-1864) and two postwar issues of The Greensboro Patriot (1866); plus two single newspapers: The Weekly Express (Petersburg, Virginia, March 25, 1864); The Weekly Standard (Raleigh, NC, June 7, 1864 with William Holden as editor). The newspapers are stored in a sturdy cardboard portfolio (2 x 38-1/2 x 25 in.).


From a private West Virginia collection

These newspapers, from the front page headlines to the classified advertising, are dominated by the war and its effects on the home front. Casualty lists, battle accounts, blockade runner schedules, cotton prices, Federal advances, stolen horses and runaway slaves are all here in the present tense.

The newspapers range from fair to good condition with most of the Fayetteville issues being clean and forming the upper end of the collection.