Guide to the Ashmun Norris Brown Scrapbooks 1914-1941
Cage 54

Summary Information

Repository
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries
Creator
Ashmun Norris Brown Scrapbooks, 1914-1941
Title
Ashmun Norris Brown Scrapbooks
ID
Cage 54
Date [inclusive]
1914-1941
Extent
34.0 scrapbooks.
General Physical Description note
9 linear feet of shelf space. 34,000 items.
Language
English
Abstract
Clippings of Brown's output of newspaper articles, stories, features and regular columns as Washington correspondent for Seattle and Providence (Rhode Island) newspapers. Provides close examination of Washington State and Rhode Island congressional delegations as well as coverage of naval affairs, the Department of Interior, the Territory of Alaska, and personalities in politics and government.

Preferred Citation note

[Item Description]. Cage 54, Ashmun Norris Brown Scrapbooks . Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.

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Biographical/Historical note

The son of a pioneer Seattle newspaperman, Ashmun Brown began his career in journalism in 1890 as a reporter in Seattle. For the next fifteen years he held reporting and editorial positions with newspapers in Seattle, Tacoma, San Francisco, Victoria, Spokane, Butte and Anaconda. From 1905 to 1907 he was Private Secretary to Governor Albert Mead of Washington, after which he relocated at Washington, D.C., beginning his career as a capitol reporter. He left reporting in 1910 and 1911 to serve as Private Secretary to Secretary of Interior Richard Ballinger and, after a short interlude as a periodical editor, returned to reporting the news of the national capitol for his former employer, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

From 1914 until his retirement in the early 1940's, Brown was the Washington Bureau correspondent successively for the Post-Intelligencer, the Seattle Times and the Providence (R.I.) Journal and Evening Bulletin. During this time he wrote about 25,000 stories, features and columns. His reporting tended to reflect his Republican connections in Washington, but was characterized by a proper journalistic non-partisanship. His coverage of national administrations of both political parties and of the Washington and Rhode Island delegations to Congress, both having members of each party, was quite complete. This thoroughness of reporting earned him a citation from the Pulitzer Prize Committee in 1936.

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Arrangement note

The 34 scrapbooks of news stories are arranged in three chronological series. Series 1, 1914-1923, contains Brown's stories as the Washington correspondent of the two Seattle newspapers. Series 2, 1920-1941, consists of the stories and columns he wrote for the Providence papers. Series 3 contains two scrapbooks of stories written 1916-1917, some of which were carried by the Washington, D.C., Star.

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries © 1972

http://www.wsulibs.wsu.edu/masc
Terrell Library
P.O. Box 645610
Pullman, WA, 99164-5610
509-335-6691
mascref@wsu.edu

Conditions Governing Access note

This collection is open for research use.

Immediate Source of Acquisition note

The news stories of Ashmun Brown (1872-1948), Washington D. C. journalist, were acquired by Washington State University Library In 1958 as a gift from Mr. Brown's nephew, Nat Brown of Yakima, Washington.

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Controlled Access Headings

Geographic Name(s)

  • Alaska--Politics and government--1867-1959

Personal Name(s)

  • Brown, Ashmun Norris, 1872-1948. --Archives

Subject(s)

  • American newspapers--Rhode Island--Providence
  • American newspapers--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Journalism
  • Reporters and reporting--Washington (D.C.)
  • Scrapbooks
  • Seattle
  • Washington (State)

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Collection Inventory

Series 1: Seattle Period, Times and Post-Intelligencer, 1914-1923 
scrapbook

 May 5, 1914 to May 19, 1915 

 1

 May 20, 1915 to September 16, 1916 

 2

 September 17, 1916 to June 19, 1917 

 3

 June 20, 1917 to May 25, 1918 

 4

 May 27, 1918 to April 22, 1919 

 5

 April 23, 1919 to December 8, 1920 

 6

 December 8, 1920 to October 31, 1921 

 7

 November 1, 1921 to August 25, 1922 

 8

 August 26, 1922 to February3, 1923 

 9

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Series 2: Providence Period, Journal and Evening Bulletin, 1920-1941 
scrapbook

 October 11, 1920 to May 2, 1921 

 10

 May 3, 1921 to December 11, 1921 

 11

 December 12, 1921 to March 11, 1923 

 12

 March 13, 1923 to April 6, 1924 

 13

 April 6, 1924 to May 1, 1925 

 14

 May 1, 1925 to June 20, 1926 

 15

 June 23, 1926 to July 4, 1927 

 16

 July 5, 1927 to May 5, 1928 

 17

 May 5, 1928 to November 18, 1928 

 18

 November 19, 1928 to May 9, 1929 

 19

 May 10, 1929 to December 14, 1929 

 20

 December 15, 1929 to June 25, 1930 

 21

 June 25, 1930 to February 25, 1931 

 22

 February 26, 1931 to December 3, 1931 

 23

 December 3, 1931 to June 16, 1932 

 24

 June 16, 1932 to March 23, 1933 

 25

 March 23, 1933 to December 18, 1933 

 26

 December 19, 1933 to August 17, 1934 

 27

 August 17, 1934 to June 20, 1935 

 28

 June 23, 1935 to September 17, 1936 

 29

 September 18, 1936 to January 20, 1938 

 30

 January 22, 1938 to December 7, 1939 

 31

 December 9, 1939 to October 30, 1941 

 32

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Series 3: Special Stories, (many from Washington DC Star), 1916 to 1917 
scrapbook

Subject: President Wilson, Woodrow November 16, 1916 to February 10, 1917 

 33

Subject: Alaska November 16, 1916 to February 10, 1917 

 34

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