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The End of the Madville Times

Last updated on 2015.03.10

*****This is the last post on the Madville Times, because...

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I am now blogging at Dakota Free Press. I invite you to update your bookmarks, RSS feeds, Twitter and Facebook follows, and subscriptions accordingly.

27 Comments

  1. mike from iowa 2015.03.04

    If you are renting from Joop Bollen,I ain't never talking to you no more! I has spoken! :)

  2. Curt 2015.03.04

    I typed 'Dakota Free Press' into my browser and found some interesting results - but not your blog, Cory. The first entry was a Wikipedia entry for the 'Dakota Freie Presse' described as a non-denominational, politically neutral German-English weekly published in Yankton from 1874-1954. Another entry was for a different weekly published down the road from Aberdeen in Frederick, SD. It apparently ceased publication in 1935.
    Anyway, I look forward to following DFP. I trust it will live up to its name.

  3. mike from iowa 2015.03.04

    I can feel the snark from the war toilet creeping up on everyone here.

  4. dave knudsen 2015.03.04

    ok, so it's a little early for april fools'. but i'll play along.

  5. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.04

    Thanks for finding those historical precursors, Curt! The South Dakota State Historical Society lists fourteen instances of "Free Press" among South Dakota newspapers, including publications from Pierre, Plankinton, and Bramhall. (Bramhall? Where's that?)

    But stay tuned: I should be creeping up to the top of those Google results soon enough.

  6. Curt 2015.03.04

    I found Bramhall. It is (or was) in Hyde County - Nick Nemec territory!

  7. Nick Nemec 2015.03.04

    Yup, Bramhall was a little railroad town along the Chicago Northwestern Railroad, midway between Ree Heights and Highmore in eastern Hyde County. I've never actually been there but am told some old cement foundations still exist.

  8. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.04

    Nick, you haven't gone up there to check for pheasants? :-) Maybe the Bramhall Free Press buried its old printing press up there.

  9. Bill Fleming 2015.03.04

    Do we now give the name 'Madvillians' back to the town of Madison, Cory? Funny, just when PP starts eressing concern about the GOP 'brand' Cory takes his and blows it to smithereens. Here's hoping your bid to reinvent your blog is a successful one, my friend. It's a bold move. Had I been your marketing guru, I would have tried to talk you out of it. it will be fun to see what you have in mind and how you actualize it.

  10. Bill Fleming 2015.03.04

    Above should read 'PP starts expressing...' Sheesh. Go back to sleep, Fleming. ;-)

  11. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.04

    Bill, that marketing side did make me nervous. People recognize the blog name. Readers have adopted the term and modified it to describe themselves. That's powerful stuff, and there I go pitching it out the window. Foolishness!

    But you know, way back in 2007, I had a lawyer refer to the blog as "curiously named" as a clear dig to boost his case. I didn't change then, because (a) I was in Madison and (b) having an opponent take a jab generally makes me want to stand and fight, not duck and run.

    Dave Baumeister notes on Dakota Free Press that he suggested changing the name a year ago, since to his ear, "Madville Times always sounded like something from a crazy person." I can hear that. When I call some office with a media inquiry and I say, "Hi, I write for the Madville Times," I can imagine the gal at the other end thinking, "Who is this, Alfred E. Neuman?"

    For the 1% of South Dakotans who've heard of the Madville Times, and particularly for the maybe 0.1% who've invested some hope and loyalty in this blog over the past decade, the name change may be jarring. (Heck, it's jarring for me: I've got to go buy new business cards!) But for the other 99% of South Dakotans, who will hear of and read this blog over the next decade, the name change will go unnoticed.

    At least that's the business plan. We'll see how reality treats my plan.

  12. Roger Cornelius 2015.03.04

    mike from iowa,
    In typical republican fashion, Powers over on the Dump Site is being snarky about Cory's new move. Of course you have to remember that republicans don't like change, even when it benefits them.

    And of course, there is the clown guy from Mitchell whining about being banned here and hopefully on the new Dakota Free Press.

    Cory, for the interim, can you post a link to Dakota Free Press here on this thread?

  13. Bob Klein 2015.03.04

    One of my ancestors was publisher? Of Dakota freie presse for a while. I believe it moved to Aberdeen later.

  14. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.04

    Bob, really? A blood connection? Cool!

    And yes, according to an NDSU bibliographer, Dakota Freie Presse did move to Aberdeen:

    The Dakota Freie Presse is the oldest and may be the most important newspaper in North America of the German-Russians. Organized in 1873 in Yankton, Dakota Territory, the paper was transferred to Aberdeen, South Dakota, in 1906. The paper included news about the immigration and settlement. The contributions of the readers about their coming to the Dakotas, their settlement, and their experiences have proved to be of great historical value. Included also were letters from Russia about life in the German-Russian colonies. The published obituaries are most important to genealogists. Dr. Horst Fode of West Germany is indexing these obituaries from Dakota Freie Presse, which are being published in Heritage Review. In 1954 the paper ceased as an independent publication and joined the America Herold [Michael M. Miller, "The Germans from Russia Heritage Collection at North Dakota State University and My Visions for the Future," presentation, American Historical Society of Germans from Russia National Conference, Sacramento, California, 1990.07.26].

    Dakota Freie Presse apparently had great cultural significance and now has great historical value. It lasted for 71 years. If I'm going to make it 71 years, I'm going to need to keep exercising!

  15. Kevin Weiland 2015.03.04

    CAH, you are one of the Rock Stars that come from my home town, I was proud as hell to refer friends to my favorite blog from "My Home Town". Who is going to keep the folks in Madville honest?

  16. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.05

    Kevin, I'll keep my eye on Madison. There's honest-keeping to be done there and all over the state.

  17. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.05

    No way! Talk to IT, have IT talk to me! (By the way, where's work?)

  18. Winston 2015.03.05

    I like the name, but I will always think of your blog site and SouthDacola's as "Radio Free South Dakota"…...

  19. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.05

    Radio Free South Dakota—you know, if I did podcasts, I'd consider that name.

  20. Winston 2015.03.06

    There you go…. and that "other" blog site should change its name to the Pravda.

  21. Happy Camper 2015.03.08

    No, no, no. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

  22. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.08

    Sorry, Hap! The die is cast! And actually, is was kinda broke: Godaddy sold me a more expensive hosting plan that did not provide better service. They kept "updating" WordPress to cause those "Line 433" errors to recur. So far, the new server is running better than this one.

  23. happy camper 2015.03.09

    Actually I was joking of course because I thought it was easily time to become more mainstream. I get Fatal Errors that I assumed were my own although a search did mention WordPress. Even now I had to access with a tablet.

  24. caheidelberger Post author | 2015.03.09

    It's not you, Hap. Those fatal errors are GoDaddy's.

  25. grudznick 2015.03.10

    I always thought Mr. H was having trouble with his programming on line 433. It was always so horrible slow that I would often

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