In 1942, The Arizona Republic and The Phoenix Gazette were the only general-circulation newspapers in what we then called the Salt River Valley. The Republic (Arizona's "official" newspaper of record) covered the entire state, and The Gazette covered greater Phoenix.

Subscribers who lived in Scottsdale received their newspapers courtesy of four carriers. Mind you, these were bicycle routes. And, at one time or another, I rode each one. My brother Philip cleaned our barn twice daily after morning and evening milking so I could deliver my newspapers.

Back then, we carried both the morning Republic and the evening Gazette, with the exception of Sunday. There was no evening newspaper on Sunday. As such, each route had to be ridden 13 times each week.

The routes were long. The "south" route (No. 489) was 21 miles. The "northwest" route (No. 477) lasted 11 miles. The "east" route (No. 478) was about 10 miles. The shortest route was 5 miles.

The routes ranged from 18 to 40 newspapers each. Oliver King was the head of circulation then. Millan Leavett and, later on, Norman Wolf dropped off our newspapers each day for delivery.

In those days, because of the length of our routes and in the interest of time, we modified our bicycle gears so that a single turn of the pedals turned the rear tire four times. We could go really fast — on flat roads.

Given the length of the routes, the newspapers paid each carrier for the miles they rode (over and above the money we were paid to actually deliver the newspaper).

We got $1 per mile per month. Therefore, an 11-mile route ridden twice a day paid $11 a month, plus 30 cents per newspaper subscription per month. The total pay for route No. 477 was, for example, $28 per month. A new bicycle, if you could get a wartime priority to buy one, generally cost $35 to $40. You do the math!

When I think back on my many paper routes over several years, I remember my mother sewing a pocket into my carrier bag. It was a holder for an atomizer filled with diluted ammonia to ward off dogs. A quick squirt kept me from being bitten. After they'd been sprayed a time or two, we could point our fingers at them, and they would keep their distance.

I also remember how satisfying it was to watch the sunrise over Scottsdale's pristine desert and its gentle farm fields, or see coyotes coming home after a night's hunt. Nonetheless, it was lonely riding our bicycles down empty dirt roads in the early morning and late evening. Still, it gave one time to think.

Way back then, most every family in Scottsdale took one or both newspapers. And, over time, we got to know everyone in town.


Historic Scottsdale photos

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