Seligman Sunbeam

The Seligman Sunbeam was a weekly newspaper based out of the Ozark Mountains town of Seligman, Missouri, located in southern Barry County.

History

It was first published as the Seligman Sunbeam on October 1, 1890 and continued under that name until being rebranded as the Ozark Sunbeam starting on January 5, 1973. It was renamed again as the American Sunbeam on October 4, 1976.^[1] In October 1981, the publication moved from Seligman to Springdale, Arkansas, where it was published until 1986, when it ceased operations.^[2]

When it was first established and for the majority of its 95 year history it focused on local news and community events. Among its first editors was John G. Munger.^[3] By 1972 the population of Seligman had greatly contracted, largely due to the termination of passenger rail service to the town, leaving the newspaper on the verge of extinction. Around this time Earl Aloysius Roberts, known as Bab, purchased the paper. Roberts claimed he was the voice for a deity or entity he called Delamer Duverus. The focus of the newspaper greatly changed at this point. It no longer focused on local news, but instead published extreme anti-Semitic and conspiracy theories.^[4] In this newspaper and his additional writings and publications, including his book The Golden Reed, which he authored under the name Delamer Duverus, he focused entirely on attacking people of the Jewish faith and talking extensively about evil spirits and corrupt government.^[5] Publication of the then-named American Sunbeam ended in 1986 with the death of Roberts.^[6]

References

1. ^ Barry County Newspaper Items; http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~haddockfamily/miscellaneous.htm
2. ^ MARC Bibliographic Record: The American Sunbeam; The Library of Congress; http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn81006052/
3. ^ Barry County News Items; The Springfield Leader; July 1890
4. ^ The Next Voice You Hear; American Sunbeam; September 5, 1977
5. ^ The Mind Slaves; by Delamar Duverus; 1979
6. ^ A Curcial Loss; by Professor Revilo P. Oliver; September 1986; http://www.faem.com/oliver/rpo029.htm