Published June 24, 2010

This edition of The Newtown (Conn.) Bee is dated Jan. 3, 1913.

One hundred years ago, The Newtown Bee, a community newspaper for the town about 20 miles north of Bridgeport, Conn., was way ahead of its time.

Will Smith, our Web developer, discovered a copy of the newspaper dated Jan. 3, 1913. It belonged to his great, great, great grandfather, Botsford H Peet.

In the second column, right on the front page, there they are: trivial status messages — updates no more than a couple hundred characters — about what people are doing.

Tweets. There are even little advertisements, disguised as regular tweets, throughout the list. Promoted Tweets, if you will. Consider this sample:

Miss Louis Bigelow, Warren Yard and George E. Wilson have sleighs bought of A. M. Briscoe & Son.

Mrs R. N. Betts has been prostrated with a hard cold.

Misses Minnie and Elizabeth Sinnott of Hartford are guests of their brother, Rev George T. Sinnott.

Pratt’s poultry food, Pratt’s conditioner for horses and colts, Pratt’s hoof ointment, Pratt’s ointment and Pratt’s cow tonic are remedies to be relied on. Corbett, Crow & Co. sell them.–[Adv.

Miss Anna May Betts, who has been ill with an attack of tonsilitis, is convalescent.

Mrs Daniel Honan has been ill with the grip, under the care of Dr Kiernan.

Another gem in Will’s newfound collection is a Boston almanac, published in 1848 and authored by the “eminent mathematician,” Dr. Wistar. In an article about tuberculosis, the good doctor poses the question, Can pulmonary consumption be cured? The answer is Yes! The cure is in a bottle of Dr. Wistarm’s Balsam of Wild Cherry, which is on sale now at your local druggist.