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The Indianapolis Recorder: The Stewart Family Era is about the history of one of the oldest black weekly newspapers in the U.S. and the family that owned it for over 90 years. Readers will learn about the evolution of the newspaper and the different characters that worked for The Recorder and made it one of the longest operated black weeklies in the U.S. The book also tells about historical events that the newspaper covered from the late 1890s to the late 1980s. It also gives a personable view of the various personalities of those associated with the newspaper and the Stewart Family. The Indianapolis Recorder: The Stewart Family Era can be purchased on Amazon.com and Kobo.com. You can also purchase the book by directly contacting the author.
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Passages from The Indianapolis Recorder: The Stewart Family Era
George P. Stewart: The Early Years
"...William and Josephine Stewart family had increased. On April 17, 1872, Effie A. Stewart was born; followed by George P. Stewart on March 13, 1874; and William C. Stewart on July 5, 1879..."
Did Bethel Pastor Help Create The Recorder?
"In 1895, Rev. D.A. Graham suggested that Stewart take over the Church Recorder publication and devote it not only to churches interests, but also to fraternities and societies interests in Indianapolis. He encouraged Stewart that he would do a great job and asked him to give it some thought and then get back to him later with his decision."
Fact vs. Fiction: The Recorder's Founding Year
"There have been many inaccuracies in the actual year that Stewart and Porter started publishing The Recorder as well as The Directory. Various articles and publications have used years such as 1894, 1895, 1896, 1897, 1898 and even 1899 as the founding year of The Recorder. Stewart, himself may have inadvertently helped in adding to some of the confusion by not listing the newspaper's founding date on the paper."
A Man Worthy of Admiration (Marcus C. Stewart)
"Like many editors, Mr. Stewart had a good sense of what was newsworthy and what was not. He also understood people and many times could pick up on when someone was lying or not. Such intuition was not only an excellent ability to have as an editor and publisher, but it also came in handy when he served on the Indiana State Prison Parole Board from 1957 to 1961."
Return to Indiana Avenue
"In the summer of 1918, The Recorder moved to 518 Indiana Avenue. The building was entirely different from the more modern Castle Hall building, but it was where Stewart felt would be an excellent location for the newspaper. He also believed the return to Indiana Avenue would bring the paper closer to the community it served."
Recorder Contests and Events
"The Recorder was also becoming a master of sponsoring and promoting contests and events that appealed to the black community. In 1935 it had proposed a cooking school contest which the winner would be crowned
Miss Recorder along with receiving a prize. There was also the Annual Recorder Picnic. In 1935, the picnic was in its sixth year."
Marcus C. Stewart, Jr. (left) and his cousin George J. Thompson give a critical eye to an ad in their newspaper. Both Stewart and Thomspon, along with Fredonia Temple (not pictured), the last surviving child of the late Fannie and George P. Stewart were the last three controlling owners of The Indianapolis Recorder prior to the newspaper being sold to new ownership in the summer of 1988. When Eunice Trotter took over ownership of The Indianapolis Recorder she replaced Thompson as its new editor and publisher.
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Fannie and George P. Stewart with one of their children, Fredonia Stewart. Stewart died in 1924 at the age of 50, just 30 days before his 26th wedding anniversary to Fannie Stewart.
Fredonia, Fannie and George P. Stewart's last surviving child lived to age 97. She was among the last three relatives that held controlling ownership of The Indianapolis Recorder during the Stewart Era prior to selling the historical black newspaper in the summer of 1988. |
Frequent Asked Questions
Q: Why did you write the book?
A: There were three main reasons why I wrote The Indianapolis Recorder: The Stewart Family Era. First I wanted to correct some of the inaccurate and ambiguous information about both The Recorder and the Stewart Family. Secondly, I wanted to share new information about The Recorder and the Stewart Family that was not known or seldom told. Thirdly, it was my personal way of making up on a promise that I had made to the late longtime Publisher Marcus Stewart a year prior to his death.
Q: What is the book about?
A: The book is about the history of one of the oldest black weekly newspapers in the U.S. and the family that owned it for over 90 years. Readers will learn about the evolution of the newspaper and the different characters that worked for The Recorder and made it one of the longest operated black weeklies in the U.S. The book also tells about historical events that the newspaper covered from the late 1890s to the late 1980s. It also gives a personable view of the various personalities of those associated with the newspaper and the Stewart Family.
Q: What gives you the authority to write such a book?
A: I worked as a fulltime staff writer for The Recorder back in the late 70s (1977 to 1979) covering and writing general news stories, features and doing investigative reporting. I reported directly to the longtime publisher Marcus C. Stewart and got to know him well and had periodic discussions with him about the newspaper and his family. I also casually got to know his two sons, Marcus Stewart Jr. and George P. Stewart II. In addition, I worked with many other writers that worked at The Recorder during the late 70s. Also, prior to writing the book, I did some extensive research on both The Recorder and members of the Stewart Family as well as others like The Recorder’s Co-founder, William H. Porter.
Q: How long did it take to write the book?
A: It took about a year and a half to write the book. The most time-consuming part of writing the book was the research, including the fact-checking.
Q: What did you learn from writing the book?
A: Through research and interviews I learned a number of things, including information that I thought I already knew. Among those things I learned include: The actual year The Directory and then The Recorder was established; characters like Rev. D.A. Graham who arguably had an indirect influence in the creation of The Directory and The Recorder; and some of the history and characteristics of Stewart family members.
Q: Take-a-ways from the book.
A: My hope is that readers will learn something new about The Recorder and the Stewart Family that they did not already know. I also hope the book helps clear up some of the ambiguous or unclear things that may have already been written or told about the newspaper and the family that ran it. For example, I hope readers become clearer on how The Recorder got started and when it was actually established. Also, the book will provide more information on The Recorder’s somewhat forgotten co-founder, William H. Porter. Readers will learn more about Porter and his personal life and career after selling his part ownership of The Recorder to George P. Stewart. The book also shows some rare photos of some of Stewart Family members and some other key people that worked for The Recorder.
A: There were three main reasons why I wrote The Indianapolis Recorder: The Stewart Family Era. First I wanted to correct some of the inaccurate and ambiguous information about both The Recorder and the Stewart Family. Secondly, I wanted to share new information about The Recorder and the Stewart Family that was not known or seldom told. Thirdly, it was my personal way of making up on a promise that I had made to the late longtime Publisher Marcus Stewart a year prior to his death.
Q: What is the book about?
A: The book is about the history of one of the oldest black weekly newspapers in the U.S. and the family that owned it for over 90 years. Readers will learn about the evolution of the newspaper and the different characters that worked for The Recorder and made it one of the longest operated black weeklies in the U.S. The book also tells about historical events that the newspaper covered from the late 1890s to the late 1980s. It also gives a personable view of the various personalities of those associated with the newspaper and the Stewart Family.
Q: What gives you the authority to write such a book?
A: I worked as a fulltime staff writer for The Recorder back in the late 70s (1977 to 1979) covering and writing general news stories, features and doing investigative reporting. I reported directly to the longtime publisher Marcus C. Stewart and got to know him well and had periodic discussions with him about the newspaper and his family. I also casually got to know his two sons, Marcus Stewart Jr. and George P. Stewart II. In addition, I worked with many other writers that worked at The Recorder during the late 70s. Also, prior to writing the book, I did some extensive research on both The Recorder and members of the Stewart Family as well as others like The Recorder’s Co-founder, William H. Porter.
Q: How long did it take to write the book?
A: It took about a year and a half to write the book. The most time-consuming part of writing the book was the research, including the fact-checking.
Q: What did you learn from writing the book?
A: Through research and interviews I learned a number of things, including information that I thought I already knew. Among those things I learned include: The actual year The Directory and then The Recorder was established; characters like Rev. D.A. Graham who arguably had an indirect influence in the creation of The Directory and The Recorder; and some of the history and characteristics of Stewart family members.
Q: Take-a-ways from the book.
A: My hope is that readers will learn something new about The Recorder and the Stewart Family that they did not already know. I also hope the book helps clear up some of the ambiguous or unclear things that may have already been written or told about the newspaper and the family that ran it. For example, I hope readers become clearer on how The Recorder got started and when it was actually established. Also, the book will provide more information on The Recorder’s somewhat forgotten co-founder, William H. Porter. Readers will learn more about Porter and his personal life and career after selling his part ownership of The Recorder to George P. Stewart. The book also shows some rare photos of some of Stewart Family members and some other key people that worked for The Recorder.
