The Wasp — 1891 — page 19: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This article by General John F. Sheehan profiles prominent San Francisco newspaper figures. The central portrait shows **General John F. Sheehan himself**, identified in the caption below the image. The text discusses the city's newspaper industry during its rapid growth from a village of 100,000 (1860 census) to a major metropolis. It mentions specific editors and publishers—including references to the *Union*, *Record*, *Bulletin*, and other papers—and their competition for dominance in California's publishing landscape. The article emphasizes how newspaper monopolies affected the city's development, noting that consolidation among rival papers eliminated competition and affected subscription prices and advertising profits. Sheehan reflects nostalgically on San Francisco's journalistic past, when multiple competing papers shaped public discourse.