By James Peterson, Northwest Room
Black-owned newspapers have long played an important role in this country, giving representation, empowerment and a voice to a segment of the population that might otherwise go unheard due to racism. Throughout history, these newspapers have allowed Black individuals to tell their story in their own words, like in the first Black-owned newspaper, “Freedom’s Journal,” started by John Brown Russwurm and Samuel Cornish in 1827 and “The North Star,” founded by abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass in 1847.
Preserving these newspapers keeps these voices alive and allows them to transcend across generations to be read and studied so we can understand the history of the United States from the viewpoints of Black voices.
The city of Tacoma also boasts a rich legacy of Black-owned newspapers that began in 1903 with "The Forum," founded by John Ryan. This legacy also includes titles like "Progress Messenger," "The Reporter"/"The Journal Reporter" from the mid-to-late 1960s, "Tacoma True Citizen," which emerged in the 1970s, and Virginia Taylor’s "The Northwest Dispatch," which thrived from 1982 to 1998. One local newspaper that has had an inspiring journey is the "The Tacoma Facts," which was founded by Fitzgerald Beaver in 1970 and continued to captivate readers through different publishers until 2008.
The roots of “The Tacoma Facts” extend to Seattle’s "The Facts," also established by Fitzgerald Beaver in 1961, and which continues to flourish as of 2025 under the guidance of Fitzgerald’s children, Marla and LaVonne Beaver. In the late 1960s, Fitzgerald Beaver expanded into the South Sound, launching "The Tacoma Facts" in November 1970, with 5,000 copies distributed primarily in the historically Black Hilltop neighborhood. With local writer Clay Armstrong, Jr., as managing editor, Beaver emphasized a commitment to area neighborhoods, stating that the newspaper would “deal strictly with community news, will have no editorial page, and politically, we are with the winner” (The News Tribune, Nov. 23, 1970, p. 16). The publishing offices were located at 1325 South K Street.
(Click on any image to see the issue in ORCA)
Under Beaver's visionary leadership, "The Tacoma Facts" expanded its reach to encompass the entire city of Tacoma and serve military personnel at Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base (now Joint Base Lewis-McChord). The newspaper also embraced national inserts like “Dawn Magazine” and the “National Black Monitor,” enriching its content. Each edition packed in vital community information and year-end editions would feature cover collages that celebrated the newsmakers of that year.
Beaver remained the owner of “The Tacoma Facts” until he sold it to a married couple named Ted Sims and Anna Perez in October 1979 (News Tribune, Oct. 17, 1979). Sims took the helm as publisher, Perez as executive editor, and with a staff of six others, published under the name of F.A.M.E. (Forty Acres and a Mule Enterprises, Inc.) out of the new offices at 1036 South Sprague Street. The first issue under these new owners is dated January 2, 1980.
At some point between April 22 and June 4, 1981, “The Tacoma Facts” would be briefly back under Fitzgerald’s leadership as publisher, Virginia Taylor as managing editor, and printed by the Alzene Publishing Company.
Beaver’s ownership would last until Dec. 31, 1981. The first two issues of 1982 show that managing editor, Virginia Taylor, and advertising manager, Jean Watley, would take over publication as the Je’Ta’ Publishing Co.
Beginning Jan. 21, 1982, publishing duties were then taken over by Holy Trinity Temple Church of God in Christ (H.T.T.C.O.G.I.C) and President Bishop David L. Brooks. Taylor and Watley would leave to form their own newspaper, The Northwest Dispatch, in 1982. Brooks led The Tacoma Facts up until at least 1986, when the issues in the Northwest Room’s archives stop.
Fitzgerald’s son, Dennis Beaver, would resume publishing “The Tacoma Facts” from c. 2005 until c. 2008.
“The Facts” is still publishing and printing newspapers out of Seattle. According to publisher Marla Beaver, “The Facts” currently has a combined readership of 150,000, which includes both online and print, and offers a small subscription service. However, the majority of its newspapers are obtained through drop-off newsstands at stores, restaurants, and funeral homes in the Seattle-Tacoma area. Website: https://www.thefactsnewspaper.com/
The digitization of "The Tacoma Facts," which were made possible by a generous grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, reflects the Northwest Room’s commitment to preserving the vibrant history of Black-owned newspapers of the South Sound.
