Preparing the New York Times, 1942

[Dave Hughes]

A great set of photographs, from the US Library of Congress, on this page: Preparing and printing the New York Times, 1942

Long before the age of computerized printing presses and journalists being able to file stories via computer, the process of creating the day's newspaper was a much more arduous, hand-made process.

In September 1942, Office of War Information photographer Marjory Collins paid a visit to the offices of the New York Times, located at the iconic One Times Square and an annex on 43rd Street.

There, she documented each step of the messy, physical process as news coming in over the wires was sorted, edited, rewritten, laid out, and printed, all under an ever-approaching deadline.

The Thursday, Sept. 10, 1942 issue was dominated by news of fighting in Europe and the Pacific, as well as rationing and cutbacks on the home front (along with recaps of a Yankees victory over the Browns and horse races at the Aqueduct Racetrack).

As you would expect from the Library of Congress, the photographs are of excellent quality. I've posted a couple here, but there are many more on the linked page.