Evening star., 1952-01-01
The Stars Centennial

Nineteen fifty two is the year of The Stars
centennial. Next December 16 we shall reach our
Tooth birthday anniversary. So this first day of
1852 has been chosen for publication of the
abbreviated autobiography of The Star which
appears elsewhere in today's editions, reporting
the principal facts relating to our birth and
sketching in outline the purpose of the founders
and the policies pursued toward its accomplish
ment.
In itself the attainment of age is no particu-
lar distinction, for newspaper or for an indi-
vidual, beyond establishing the mere fact of
survival There are many fine newspapers in this
country much older than The Star including
our neighbor across the river the Alexandria
Gazette, which was established as a weekly
1853 years ago.
But there are at least two distinguishing
characteristics of The Star which seem to us to
be noteworthy.
One is continuity of purpose. After almost
century of experience it would be difficult to
improve or even to amplify the editorial salu-
tation chosen by the founder Captain Joseph
Borrows Tate to announce the object of his
enterprise.
There is also possibly unique continuity of
directing ownership, which has accounted in part
for Steadfast allegiance to these first principles.
Captain Tate sold The Star after six months
OF editing proprietorship. For the next fifteen
years William Douglass Wallach was principal
owner and editor. One of Mr. Wallach's first
employees was Crosby Stuart Noyes, who joined
the paper in 1855, three years after it was
founded. In 1867 a group of WaShingtonianS,
consisting of Mr. Noyes, Samuel H. Kaufman,
George w. Adams, Alexander R. Shepherd and
Clarence B. Baker, purchased the property Mr..
Shepherd and Mr.. Baker later sold their in
terests to the three others. Samuel H. Kauff-
mann was the first president of The Evening
Star Newspaper Company, formed result of
the 1867 purchase His grandson and namesake
holds that office today. From late 1867 until
mid-1946, almost eighty years. there were only
two editors of The STAR Crosby Stuart Noyes
and his son Theodore Williams Noyes. Some of
the important positions of management reSpon-
slblllty in the editorial and business conduct of
The Star filled today by other grandsons
and great-grandsonS of two of the founders of
The Star Company. These circumstances ac-
count in part for continuity of purpose
There are others. There is for example, the
validity of the purpose itself-the daily produc-
ton of an independent newspaper devoted
to reporting accurately it the news
of the day, to commenting on and interpret
ing that news as it sees it, and to serving
what it believes to be the best interests of the
community of which it considers itself to be
responsible part
In the course of dischargng this daily
task certain traditions and ideals have been
accumulated which we of The Star value highly.
For they remain with us as reflections of the
devoted labor of the hundreds of men and women
whose lives have gone into the making of The
Star in the first century of its life and who have
given it character and personality of its own.
AS we enter this year of our centennial those
who carry on the work of The Star look to the
future with sense of obligation, and a conf
dence in its fulfllment, born of pride in an
honorable past.