As Shaw Media celebrates its 175th anniversary, we looked back at four front pages from April 16. These archives serve as a time capsule, capturing everything from the sinking of the Titanic to the personal stories of local soldiers serving overseas.
1912: Morris Daily Herald
Just one day after the tragedy, the April 16, 1912, edition of the Morris Daily Herald was dominated by the “Greatest Steamship Afloat” meeting its end. With a massive headline reading “868 Known Saved as Titanic Sinks,” the paper attempted to parse early, conflicting reports of the death toll. The front page also featured somber sketches of prominent passengers like John Jacob Astor and Isidor Straus, illustrating the profound shock felt by the local community as the “Old World is Given Shock.”
1970: Dixon Evening Telegraph
By 1970, the news was a mix of cosmic triumph and earthly tension. The Dixon Evening Telegraph tracked the harrowing journey of Apollo 13 with the headline “Apollo Passes Halfway Mark; ‘We’re in Beautiful Shape,’” quoting the astronauts shortly before the mission turned into a rescue operation. Closer to home, the paper reported on a deepening labor crisis and a tragic “Worst Ever Avalanche” in France that hit a children’s tuberculosis ward, showcasing the paper’s role in connecting Dixon to global events.
1993: Northwest Herald
The April 16, 1993, edition of the Northwest Herald focused on a battle against the elements. A large photo of a lockmaster checking precipitation levels accompanied the headline “Forecast: Rain and more of it,” as local river and lake levels threatened homes in McHenry County. The front page also captured a heated local dispute over a proposed gravel pit in Algonquin, proving that land-use debates have long been a staple of community discourse.
2003: Daily Chronicle (DeKalb County)
In 2003, the focus turned to the human cost of the Iraq War. Under the “Dispatches from the Front” banner, the Daily Chronicle shared the poignant stories of local servicemen Johnathan Harper and Neil Smith. The front page balanced these heavy narratives with local growing pains, reporting on a “Sycamore proposal [to] limit permits for developers” as planners sought ways to curb rapid residential growth in the county.
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