Well-known local historian and writer Dr. Patrick T. Conley has donated 184 scarce issues of the Providence newspaper Manufacturers and Farmers Journal to the Providence City Archives.
These issues, dating from the period 1828-1830, chronicle a very important period in the town's history just prior to its incorporation as a city. Stories filling the four-page paper include regional and local news, politics as well as notices of imported goods for sale by local merchants and probate and guardianship decisions.
The paper's editorial policy championed the protective tariff to support "domestic industry" and was Whig in its leaning. Debates in Congress received extensive coverage and ads promising cures for almost any ailment enticed readers to buy their product. Clark's Drops eliminated "whooping cough," another promised a "genuine remedy for habitual drunkenness," Dr. Plenck pushed his "worm powder" and another boasted success with his "croup cordial."
City Archivist Paul Campbell said that generally the individual issues are in good condition, and with some minor repairs, they can be made available soon for use by researchers. "These newspapers are an important primary source of information during the period when Providence was making the transformation from a town to a city," said Campbell. "I want to thank Dr. Conley for his generous gift and I can assure him that these newspapers will be preserved for future generations of researchers to enjoy."