September 10, 2007

Advertisements have been a major part of newspapers since their origin. By the early 1800s, large portions of the front page of America’s newspapers consisted of advertisements, only being moved to the later pages by the middle of the century. In the days before the abolition of slavery, many of these ads in Southern papers offered rewards for runaway slaves or offered slaves for sale. Shown in this 1851 issue of the Arkansas State Gazette and Democrat is an ad offering a reward for two runaway slaves.