My father worked for newspapers in Illinois and Colorado from the early 1950s until 1966, and I remember visiting his offices to watch how advertising was sold and formatted, news was collected and presented and the complicated process of producing a newspaper. In my career in law enforcement, I learned to really appreciate investigative reporters who, without subpoenas, court orders or the authority of the federal government, could stitch together stories that exposed corruption and other civil wrongs. Newspapers for centuries were important in bringing useful information to the people in their coverage areas, and this was true in our community from the late 18th century onward.
The history of newspapers in Middletown Point and Matawan stretches back more than two centuries and reflects the growth of the community itself. Monmouth County’s earliest newspaper was Philip Freneau’s Jersey Chronicle, printed in Mount Pleasant from 1795 to 1796. Although its publication was brief, it established the area as an early center of journalism in New Jersey. Reading Freneau’s weekly publication simply amazes me. He must have had staff, but collecting, collating and publishing the wide variety of articles with the typesetting technology of the late 18th century is quite impressive.
During the 1840s, Middletown Point became home to additional newspapers, including The Union and George C. Waite’s The Olive Branch and later The Democratic Banner. These small village weeklies reported local events, politics, commerce, and community life, and today survive only in scattered and often fragile copies.
Local journalism entered a new era in July 1869 when David A. Bell founded The Journal and Matawan Advertiser, the direct ancestor of the Matawan Journal. The publication evolved from a modest local paper into one of Monmouth County’s longest-running community newspapers.
A major turning point came in 1890 when Benjamin F. S. Brown purchased the newspaper. Under Brown’s leadership, the Matawan Journal expanded its influence and became an indispensable record of borough life. Brown also served the community in numerous civic roles, including Postmaster and a member of Matawan’s first Board of Education. After his death in 1920, his daughter, J. Mabel Brown, continued its publication, ensuring that generations of local events, businesses, organizations, and families were carefully documented.
Owners of papers have personal political views, and their papers often reflect this – what stories to publish, which to spike, etc. It can be obvious in the banner – my hometown paper was The Belvidere Daily Republican – my wife’s, the Tallahassee Democrat. Freneau was a staunch Jeffersonian Republican – I challenge you to find one article in the run of his Mount Pleasant paper with a pro-Federalist slant. Benjamin Brown was a Democrat, although he did run for Congress in 1912 on a Progressive and Republican ticket. The Olive Branch characterized itself as “A FAMILY PAPER – NEUTRAL IN POLITICS,” but owner Waite was active in the Democratic Party. Small town papers often held a monopoly on what information was made available to the public. An interesting “alternate history” story could be how the borough would have developed if alternate owners would have had different political affiliations.
Today, surviving issues of these newspapers provide an invaluable record of the people, businesses, and daily life of Middletown Point and Matawan. Together they form one of the richest primary sources available for preserving and interpreting the history of our community.
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