The New Era - All about Sweet Home since 1929

A long look back at a local institution's 135-year run

Suzan Namitz wanted to get to know the town when she and her husband first moved to Lebanon 55 years ago. Subscribing to The Lebanon Express seemed the quickest way.

She'd look first at the ads, especially the garage sales. She'd page through the calendar events, the obituaries, the wedding and birth announcements, the sports section.

"What's going on? Who did what?" she said. "Everyone read the paper."

In recent years, however, Namitz stopped subscribing. The Express was much thinner, she noted, and canne...