"Polk County Enterprise"
Livingston, Polk County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Founded in 1882 as "East Texas Pinery" by J. M. and J. C. Stockton. Changed name to "Polk County Enterprise" about 1903. when the office installed first linotype machine (1920), school was dismissed so pupils could watch it operate. Ben Ogletree family and Billy C. Dove, present publishers. (1970)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Founded in 1882 as the "East Texas Pinery" by the Stockton brothers, this Livingston newspaper took the name "Polk County Enterprise" around 1903. When it installed its first linotype machine in 1920, the event was such a marvel that the local school let out so pupils could watch the machine set type. The paper carried on under later publishers as a fixture of county life.
Why it matters
Small-town newspapers like the Enterprise were the connective tissue of rural America, and the schoolchildren's linotype holiday captures the wonder that industrial printing technology brought to a country community.
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Related people
- · J. M. Stockton
- · J. C. Stockton
- · Ben Ogletree
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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