Oyster Bay Guardian facts for kids

The Oyster Bay Guardian is a newspaper that comes out once a week. It has been published in Oyster Bay, New York since 1899. A man named Nelson Disbrow started the newspaper. He also built a special building on West Main Street for his newspaper business.

Even though the newspaper moved to a different building, the original building on West Main Street is still there. Today, it's used for commercial printing. This historic building is now a Town of Oyster Bay Landmark. You can also learn about it on the Oyster Bay History Walk audio tour.

The Story of the Oyster Bay Guardian Newspaper

Many old buildings change over time. They might look different, or be used for new businesses. But the building known as "The Printery" lets us see how the past and present can exist together. This cozy brown building, covered in shingles, was once home to the Oyster Bay Guardian. This weekly newspaper was started by Nelson Disbrow in 1899.

How the Newspaper Began

Nelson Disbrow worked at other newspapers in New York before coming to Oyster Bay. In 1892, he first worked at another local newspaper called The Oyster Bay Pilot. From 1899 to 1906, the Guardian newspaper moved around a few times. First, it was above a meat market on South Street. Then, it moved to the Vail Building at 80 South Street.

In 1905, a rival newspaper owner caused problems for the Disbrows. This led them to lose their rental space in the Vail Building. The rival also made it hard for them to find any other place to rent in town.

Building a New Home for the Newspaper

Finally, Nelson Disbrow bought his own property on West Main Street. In 1906, he built the building you see today. He continued to print the weekly newspaper there. He also ran his own private printing business from the same place.

After Nelson Disbrow passed away in 1928, his son, Leslie Disbrow, took over the Printery. Leslie made the Guardian newspaper bigger, expanding it from four pages to eight pages.

New Owners and Continuing the Legacy

After 68 years, the Disbrow family sold the newspaper in 1967. It was bought by a new group called the Oyster Bay Publishing Company. This group was made up of local women. They chose Edwina Snow to manage the newspaper.

The Disbrow family sold the Printery building separately to Elizabeth Schneider. She started her own private printing business there.

The Guardian newspaper was also located at 32 East Main Street for a time. This was the former home of the grandparents of Gloria O’Rourke. Many people remember Gloria O’Rourke for her fun column called “Harbor Lights.” In 1999, the Guardian celebrated 100 years of being published without stopping. It has always been an independently owned newspaper. To this day, they continue to report on the weekly events in Oyster Bay.

The Printery building also continues its work. It is now owned by William Miller and Mary Abbene. Their print shop has old hand presses and wooden floors. It is a charming and rustic highlight on the historic tour.

In October 2010, a company called Richner Communications bought the Oyster Bay Guardian. This company owns several other small newspapers on Long Island and in New York.

Images for kids

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  The current location of the Printery next door at 45 West Main Street.