Listen Fred, I was making a point. The papers didn’t always print the same names, regardless of where the “lists” came from. I do know that I was asked if I wanted my sons announcement in the paper, while I was in the hospital signing the hospital paperwork. I said “yes”, and it went in. I didn’t call the paper.
My belief, based on personal experience and the input of many women,is that the “lists” were put out by the Vital Stats Dept. AND a person could call in to have an announcement placed. As long as the announcement was just the little one, name/address/gender/DOB, there was no charge. They knew whomever called to place it was likely to be buying up several papers, so it was like a courtesy thing. Especially back when.
GGMac, Lori Starfelt was indeed the origin of obama’s birth announcement “discovery”. She is apparently dead. I always thought her story was weird. Something about it just didn’t land butter side up.
Dr. Kate is still blogging. She’s very active and well respected.
...AND a person could call in to have an announcement placed. As long as the announcement was just the little one, name/address/gender/DOB, there was no charge. They knew whomever called to place it was likely to be buying up several papers, so it was like a courtesy thing. Especially back when.
Sorry, but that is just confusing the issue more, IT HAS TO BE ONE OR THE OTHER. Either the announcements were ALL PLACED FROM A LIST - 16,500 OF THEM FOR 1961 - OR PARENTS/RELATIVES PLACED THEM.
I am not doubting there WAS a LIST. It just wasn't USED to place birth announcements in the Hawaii newspapers.
And now I am outa here...
We know there was a list that was posted at the HDOH office, and the newspapers could have sent somebody to take down that information. I don’t know if there were photocopiers back then. The papers must have gotten the lists for marriage license applications somehow, and presumably the information came from the HDOH.
But the discrepancies between the 2 papers make it clear to me that the HDOH did not put out a list of all the births that automatically went into the papers. Either there was a way to opt out of having the birth announced in one or the other of the papers, or else the births were put in voluntarily, or else the papers were flaky about which announcements they printed and when. But the story that it was all cut and dried and having an announcement in the paper automatically meant that the HDOH says you were born in Hawaii just doesn’t wash.
Somebody on my blog said he’s colleagues with somebody who says he has proof that some of the births announced in the Hawaii papers actually happened outside the US. He said he would try to get me information about that. If there is proof of that, it would be a slam dunk against O’Reilly’s claim that the announcements prove a Hawaii birth.