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Chronicling America
National Endowment for the Humanities

Newspaper The Dayton Forum (Dayton, Ohio) 1913-1949

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About The Dayton Forum (Dayton, Ohio) 1913-1949

The Dayton Forum, a weekly newspaper established in 1913 by John H. Rives, was for and about African Americans in southwest Ohio. In 1918 it advertised that it “reached 3,000 homes” and was “carefully read by 12,000 people every week throughout Ohio and Middle West.” The paper described itself as “progressive, critical yet reliable, but not radical,” seeking to convey a thoughtful perspective on the issues it covered.

The Forum covered national and international events as well as local ones. In the late 1910s, it published letters from local soldiers abroad in World War I and articles on the race riots, precipitated by racist violence, of Red Summer. The bulk of its early content featured church, NAACP, and YMCA/YWCA community activities in the Dayton area and Ohio more broadly. Some issues also had a “Feature” section containing comics, fiction, and human interest stories, published two days after the usual Friday release. Articles went from merely observing developments to promoting opinions sometime in the 1920s. By the 1930s the paper had also adopted a more active visual style, with a variety of fonts and a larger emphasis on headlines, and by 1936 it was issued by the Forum Publishing Company. In the 1940s, the publication moved to a semi-monthly schedule for unknown reasons, possibly due to paper shortages during World War II. With an increase from six to seven columns, and eight by the 1940s, the Forum used its extra space not only to provide a greater number of news reports but also to promote education as a means of improving conditions for African Americans nationally.

The paper announced when African Americans, especially Daytonians or Ohioans, were elected to office or hired as faculty. It also announced celebrations and community events, more often than births or deaths. Legal notices were frequently inserted where there was room, but eventually entire pages would become dedicated areas, such as Women’s, Society, Local, or Sports sections. The Dayton Forum advertised for local goods and services only. The advertisements became more specific and numerous in the 1930s and 1940s, but “beauty” services and products were common throughout the entire run.

Although it was the largest newspaper for African Americans in Ohio during its run, the Forum ceased publication in 1949 for unknown reasons, with no known successors. It was distinguished for being a weekly or semi-monthly paper while most others of its type published in Dayton were dailies. The Forum‘s national focus appealed to readers outside Dayton, which probably contributed to its wide distribution.

Provided By: Ohio History Connection, Columbus, OH

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Dayton Forum (Dayton, Ohio) 1913-1949

Dates of Publication

  • 1913-1949

Created / Published

  • Dayton, Ohio : J.H. Rives

Headings

  • -  African Americans--Ohio--Newspapers
  • -  Dayton (Ohio)--Newspapers
  • -  African Americans
  • -  Ohio--Dayton
  • -  Ohio
  • -  United States--Ohio--Montgomery--Dayton

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Biweekly, Apr. 2, 1943-<1949>
  • -  Began with May 16, 1913 issue; ceased in 1949? Cf. Gutgesell, S. Guide to Ohio newspapers.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format from the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  Description based on: Vol. 6, no. 3 (June 7, 1918).

Medium

  • volumes : illustrations

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn84024234

OCLC Number

  • 11323316

ISSN Number

  • 2766-7642

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress believes that the newspapers in Chronicling America are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions. Newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety. Any newspapers in Chronicling America that were published less than 95 years ago are also believed to be in the public domain, but may contain some copyrighted third party materials. Researchers using newspapers published less than 95 years ago should be alert for modern content (for example, registered and renewed for copyright and published with notice) that may be copyrighted. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

The Dayton Forum Dayton, Ohio -1949. (Dayton, OH), Jan. 1 1913. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn84024234/.

APA citation style:

(1913, January 1) The Dayton Forum Dayton, Ohio -1949. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/sn84024234/.

MLA citation style:

The Dayton Forum Dayton, Ohio -1949. (Dayton, OH) 1 Jan. 1913. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/sn84024234/.