Page:History of the newspapers of Beaver County, Pennsylvania.djvu/153

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On August 31, 1887, W. S. Fulkman went to Darlington, Pa., where he took notes of the services attending the dedication of the soldiers' monument at that place. Returning to his home in New Brighton he wrote a very full account of the dedication, which, together with a picture of the monument, formed the chief feature in the first number of a new paper he had decided to publish. This paper was called "Spray of the Falls," and was issued monthly, the first number coming out in September, 1887. It took with the people from the start. The "Spray of the Falls" went to the townships and villages for its support, and made itself popular in those sections by publishing the local news of each neighborhood where it circulated. It also secured some circulation in Beaver Falls and New Brighton, and by the end of its first year had 1,035 actual paid subscribers, every one of which had been secured personally by Mr. Fulkman. In addition to securing the circulation, he had also edited the "Spray" and looked after all of its business affairs.

In September 1888, beginning with the second year, he changed the "Spray of the Falls" from a monthly to a weekly, and started out with a circulation of 1,200. The load becoming too heavy for Mr. Fulkman to carry alone, as his capital was small, he endeavored to organize a limited stock company to publish the "Spray" and do a general printing business. He interested Dr. H. H. George, president of Geneva College, in the project, also J. L. McCartney of the same institution, and through these gentlemen he was placed in communication with