General John Pershing 1919 Address: Suspension of Stars & Stripes Newspaper

Description

Original WWI General John Pershing May 6h 1919 Address to he staff of the Stars & Stripes Newspaper announcing the suspension of the paper. From Corporal James Martin, one of the original employees. 2 one sided sheets. 13"by 8"
The first official military publication called
Stars and Stripes
was published in Paris during World War I for the American Expeditionary Force (A.E.F.). According to A.E.F. Commander General John J. Pershing, it was intended to provide uncensored news from soldiers and for soldiers. The first weekly edition was published on February 18, 1918 by a staff of eight, and limited to 30,000 copies. Due to its popularity the circulation increased to over half a million and the staff grew to 300. The final edition was published on June 13, 1919.
On June 14, 1919, immediately following suspension of the U.S. military's
Stars and Stripes
, some of its staff members organized a new Washington-based publishing house known as the Stars and Stripes Corporation. It too, published a newspaper called
Stars and Stripes
that competed with the
National Tribune
for the veteran market. This new group, however, was unable to sustain steady subscriptions, and in 1926 it merged with the
National Tribune
.