[Newspaper] Oakland Owl Volume 6 Number 11, June 16, 1905 Printed on Red Silk

Oakland, Oregon: Vernon, D.E., 1905. Good Condition/None. [Newspaper] Oakland Owl Volume 6 Number 11, June 16, 1905, Printed on Red Silk, D.E. Vernon, Oakland, Oregon, 1905, 23.5 x 19 inches. 1 leaf.

Printed on verso only. Red silk has faded moderately. Small spots of thinning or abraded silk. Typical silk fraying at top and bottom edges. Previously folded into quarter. Good Condition.

Striking issue of the Oakland Owl Newspaper, Oakland, Oregon printed on red silk, dated June 16, 1906. Curious presentation of a small-town weekly newspaper printed on expensive silk. Front page only, which provides no clues as to why the paper would have been printed on silk. Perhaps this was printed as a retirement gift or ceremonial issue--further research required. Only Oregon State and University of Oregon hold paper copies of the Oakland Owl; no silk copies found in commerce or OCLC. Rare.

Page contains local and regional news including a note that A.O. Mattoon, of Drain, Oregon grew a 'tame' Strawberry that measured eight inches in circumference. A more prominent headline "Mitchell Arraigned" reported on the trial of Oregon Senator John H. Mitchell who was arraigned on land fraud charges. Also includes some wonderful ads for Oakland, Oregon businesses.

The paper apparently was published from 1900-1910 under the leadership of D.E. Vernon. Oakland, Oregon was founded in 1878, located just north of Roseburg, near what is now Interstate 5. Today the community has a population of just shy of 1,000 people.