[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 65 (Tuesday, May 11, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E801-E802]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING THE FLINT JOURNAL

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                          HON. DALE E. KILDEE

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 11, 2004

  Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise before you today to congratulate 
Genesee County's oldest business, the Flint Journal, on the grand 
opening of the newspaper's new Press and Distribution Center. To 
commemorate this event, the Flint Journal will host a special business 
reception on May 11, 2004 and a community open house on May 23, 2004.
  The Flint Journal was founded in 1876 by Mr. Charles Fellows. The 
Flint Journal began as a weekly newspaper until it began daily 
publishing in 1883. The Journal provided national and world news to its 
readers via the Associated Press beginning in 1908.
  In 1911, Mr. Fellows sold the newspaper to Booth Publishing. In 1922, 
the first Sunday edition was produced. The daily circulation of the 
Flint Journal passed 100,000 in 1961.

[[Page E802]]

  For the past 80 years, The Flint Journal has been located in their 
main building, which was designed by the noted architect, Albert Kahn. 
In 1954, an addition was completed where the printing of the paper has 
taken place for half a century. In October of 2002, the Flint Journal, 
as part of its commitment to continuing to provide superior newspaper 
coverage of world and local events, broke ground on a new multi-million 
dollar state-of-the-art Press and Distribution center. The center was 
completed in the early part of 2004 and is located in downtown Flint, 
Michigan. The Press and Distribution Center is a 75,000 square-foot, 
six-story facility designed by Dario Design of Framington, 
Massachusetts.
  Symbols of past and present are represented in the new building's 
design. On the glass of the press hall, the main part of the Press and 
Distribution center, are 12 etched design elements from the old 
building. The designs are of printers' marks from the early days of 
mechanical printing; an eagle, symbolizing vigilance; a lantern, for 
knowledge; and a beehive, for industry. The design also includes 
figures that represent typesetting--a medieval craftsman with tweezers, 
setting type for a book, and for engraving, an old man etching symbols 
with a stylus. Charles Wollitz, an artist for the Journal, designed 26 
artistic tiles for the building exterior to symbolize some of the 
communities served by the Journal.
  The Flint Journal along with its experienced and dedicated staff is 
committed to bringing quality news stories to the people of Genesee 
County. I am confident that with the modernization of their printing 
and distribution center, they will be even more effective in delivering 
stories and editorials that will not only inform, but will also inspire 
the communities which they serve.
  Mr. Speaker, as the Member of Congress representing Flint, MI, I ask 
my colleagues in the 108th Congress to please join me in congratulating 
the Flint Journal on the opening of their new Press and Distribution 
center and in wishing them the best in future success.

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