Promoting "The New Northwest" Along The Northern Pacific Railway, 1871

Northern Pacific Railroad Company

Publication: Northern Pacific Railroad Company, 1871, Philadelphia

Philadelphia, December 1871. Newspaper, 15 1/2" x 11,". 4 pp., 4 columns per page, illustrated with a map of the "New Northwest." The inaugural issue of a series of promotional "newspapers" published by the Northern Pacific Railroad updating the public on its progress. This is issue No. 1. After starting construction in 1870, the NPR pushed westward from Minnesota into present-day North Dakota over the course of 1871. The opening article, "The New Northwest. As Seen by Prominent Journalists," describes an excursion undertaken by leading members of the press who traveled through Minnesota, Dakota, and Manitoba - areas the construction of the railroad was throwing open. Quoting extensively from these journalists and their personal narratives of the tour, the paper notes that their testimony on the "New Northwest" will verify statements that have been published about it by the Northern Pacific Co. The party's trip is traced from its visits to Duluth and Minneapolis, MN, to the fertile regions of the Red River Valley, and then to Manitoba and Winnipeg; covered are the industries and crops in these areas. Page two advertises lands and 7-30 bonds being sold by the Northern Pacific, which are touted as a more profitable investment than others. Former Governor of Connecticut Gen. J. R. Hawley offers his estimate of the financial future of the railroad, and an excerpt from the Philadelphia Press reports on an assortment of crops, remarkable for their "size and perfectness," that were exhibited at the banking house of Jay Cooke & Co., the crops having been grown along the projected line of the railroad in Washington Territory. The company's land department spells out its plan for the 75,000 square-miles that the U.S. Government had entrusted it along the rail line, covering matters such as tree planting, settling unappraised lands, cutting timber, free transportation of settlers, and terms of sale. Page three Reproduces a letter by a minister on the grandeur of the New West; details Minnesota's climate and products, wool growing, manufacturing, and fruit-raising; and provides important information to holders of U.S. 5-20s and investors in the 7-30 bonds. Page four features a "Map of the Northern Pacific Railroad and its Connections" (Philadelphia: National Railway Publication Co.) showing most of the U.S., a portion of Canada at top, part of Mexico below, and the projected Northern Pacific extending from the Midwest and to Washington Territory. The section, "The New Northwest," covers the 1800 mile-long Fertile Belt of land being developed along the line. Among the topics covered are the land's climate (like "central New York without its dampness and chill"); grades and distances (including a table of destinations along the railroad), and connections (with nearby rivers and oceans). The company's land grant of fifty million acres priced $2.50 per acre offered a "most inviting field" for settlers seeking "cheap farms and prosperous homes in a pleasant and healthful climate, and on the line of a great thoroughfare." The final section, "Progress of Construction," notes the track is now virtually completed across the state of Minnesota and provides further updates on progress. Founded in 1865, the Northern Pacific Railroad Co. only began breaking ground after receiving extensive financial backing from Jay Cooke & Co. Later issues advertised bonds as "safe, profitable and permanent," though it turned out, of course, that they were none of these things: Jay Cooke & Co. fell into bankruptcy just two years after this broadsheet was published - "one of the major factors precipitating the Panic of 1873." The railroad followed in 1875, and was not completed until 1883. No copies recorded in OCLC. The only other issue from this series recorded is a single copy of the April 1872 issue at the Boston Public Library. Light wear, a few nicks at the margin extremities, light toning along old center vertical fold on page one, a tiny puncture at center of page one at a fold crease, with no losses to the text. Overall a solid very good copy.

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