Carthage, Panola County
Tom M. Bowers (1837-1916) printed the first issue of the Watchman on July 2, 1873. He had published the Carthage Banner here from 1859 until he left about 1861 to serve in the Confederate army. Type was handset, and news items came from other publications and letters to the editor. Following Bowers' ownership, the paper was headed by three state representatives-- T. E. Boren, Jasper Collins, and O. P. Carswell-- between 1884 and 1906. R. M. Park added a linotype machine in 1915. In 1971 the publishers converted to offset, sending printing to Marshall. In 1984 the first offset press was installed. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836 - 1986