The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-08-18
No. {, DEPARTMENT NOTES.

| Dered TWO" It should have been No g.
 The donations during the month O August- have. been numerous and i'm tportaft: A. fun list of the months ad Isdftfons win appear in the issue of Sep tefnber 1st. ,a
 The people of the State> are becom | ing throughly interested in the worl | and purposes of the Department ant | are rallying to all calls for co-opera. tion. It is hoped the more they are in. formed that they will all the more vol. | untarily and readily come 70 it's help. Since the publication of last Sunday
 of the lists of existing records of Ala.
 bama soldiers. the Director has receiy. ed a number of letters from survivors
 and others. supplying data to fill ur gaps. Others are invited.
 A Resort for Students. I. need hardly be stated that the De- partment. as one of the State offices, Is established and maintained for the use ard benefit of the people of the whole State. It will endeavor to promptly and fully respond to every proper caA for assistance from whatever quarter
 It is hoped that students will come here to pursue their investigations. and obtain access to classes of books manuscripts and other material not tc
 be found elsewhere.
 Already it has been of material aid to several persons investigating par.
 ticular fields of the State history Walter L. Fleming, a student from
 Alabama in the Columbia University ir
 New York. has just closed a months successful and profitable use of local
 material in it's collections, bearing on the history of reconstruction in Ala bama. the subject for his Doctors the sis. He was permitted the use of newspaper files and other rare mater ial not in existence in other places. and without which his work would have been incomplete.
 The director Is also assisting MT. J. T. Letcher. of Shorter. in the prepara- tion, History of Macon County, and Dr. J. W. Lee. of Oak Hill, in the pre- paration of History of Wilcox Coun- ty. These gentlemen conceived the very commendable idea of compiling histories of their counties. and they very properly appealed to the head quarters of historical work for sugges- ton and assistance. which was as far as possible promptly supplied.
 A recent visit has been paid the De- pertinent by Pr. Josephus Shackleford who is collecting material for a School History of the State. Every facility was afforded him in his Investigations.
 All serious students and others will be welcomed.
 N... -.ewspaper EAiss.
 Probably the most vailIoIe sources for the nLAtory o1 the State. as well as for aImosI every otn~r LopAE oI Invesl- gation, are the olo hies uL lne SLate newspapers, Wnlcn na|e escaped Ge- Struction. Many or these old uIes exlst in the Library ot Congress, al Wasn- lngTon, some are in other Northern H. braries. while a lew bound volumes are III the State University lDrA.y. some three hundred or more bound 'oluuIes Ire in the private library of the Di- rector. cciiected by him during the 'ast ten years. Already over one hundred volumes have been secured for the De- pertinent by donation or otherwise, and many more are promised.
 Earnest effort is constantly directed to locating others. No old file should for a moment be permitted to remain away from these collections. Here they will not only be useful, but they will be safe from destruction and loss. ln private hands they are constantly sub iect to defacement, or more often utter destruction.
 As 1t is practically impossible to ex- pect to secure all of the early issues of the State press. the next most desir- l ble object is to secure any single num- bers which may be in existence. In many a home are odd numbers of papers dating back to and during the var which. added to those already in 1and. would make a large collection, which in the aggregate would be of much value. All of these should be forwarded the Department.
 Current newspapers.
 In performing it's duty in the matter | ,f compiling and preserving current | 1t IS felt that no better way | s presented than to preserve all of the | :urrent issues of the State press. Ap- l ,reclating the importance of the sub | ect, as well as in response to a lo1ty | md patriotic sentiment almost every | State paper, whether daily, weekly or | regular. is sending it's files regularly | complimentary to the Department. The few who have failed to respond | o it's requests should do so at once.
 These files will prove of much inter | ,st and value as time passes. They | Ire all to be bound. and are at all | imes accessible.
 The preservation in bound form of | he files in the State Capitol should | ippeal to the pride of every editor and | publisher. SKETCH OF MAJOR JOHN B. HO-
 GAN.
 Some weeks since the Director re- | ,eived d request from MT. J. w. Zeller. l ,f Lewisburg, Pa. for sketch of the | fife and public services of Maj John B. hogan, an early resident of Alabama, | Or use In a history of Pennsylvania | Masonic lodge. of which he was mem- per prior to his removal to Alabama. | Such facts as MT. Zeller had were | Search was at once in- ,tituted. and after considerable inquiry. | 'ulI data was secured. MT. Hogan's | ,areer was filled with important events, | m outline of, which will doubtless be | 
 The discovery of these facts. and | heir incorporation in the sketch which | ollows. has been of considerable pleas Ire to the writer Several years ago | le purchased some old newspaper files
 he Mobile Register, 1S27-1SS4; the
 ..ited States Telegraph, 1828-1831. and
 volume of miscellaneous Alabama apers. 1S30- -1S34-which had been pre- erved by Maj Hogan. and since that ime he has been endeavoring to learn omething of the man who could take O much pains in saving these old apers, now so valuable.
 John B. Hogan, fourth child of Ed nund and Gertrude (Murry) Hogan, yas born in Baltimore. Md, January ? l7S7. His early education was ob- aimed in the city of his birth At the ge of 17 he was a member of volun-
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