Happy Times

Hartford. Conn.. 100 mi. northeast of New York City, is 298 years old. It has a population of 225.500. two-thirds of whom are native born white. First city as well as capital of its State, it is a port of entry on the Connecticut river, manufactures fine machinery, is the seat of a college (Trinity) and the home office of 73 insurance companies. Hartford is a high-class U. S. city. Its two newspapers are the famed Courant, oldest in the U. S. (established 1764. a powerful organ before the Revolution) and the Times (established 1817), bulwark of northern Democracy in the 18503. Three years ago the Times was acquired by Publisher Frank Ernest Gannett (Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Albany Knickerbocker Press, Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, 14 others) at a reputed price of $4,000,000. Happy was he to announce last week, and happy was Hartford to hear, that among all the country's six-day newspapers during the first seven months of 1931, the Hartford Times (circulation: 62,385) ranked third in total advertising lineage carried (9,342,326 lines). In 1929 the paper ranked seventh; in 1930, fourth.

There are two reasons for the Times's position. To gain a high place among lineage-carriers, a paper must be printed in a prosperous, stable community. It must carry most of the advertising in its town. Thus, the first ranking Newark News helps itself, almost unchallenged, to the cream of its community's lineage. Second ranking U. S. paper in lineage is the fat old Philadelphia Bulletin.

Second reason for the Times's position is that Hartford is a good town for national advertisers to try out test campaigns. It has potent buying power, is near enough to New York to make test campaigns convenient, yet far enough away to be commercially independent.

One more circumstance might make a paper run high in lineage: a boom. During the Florida excitement (1924-28) the Miami Herald carried sheaves of real estate advertising, rose to first place.

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