"Newsboy"

Newsboy David

Newsboy  Daniele

Some little cartoon kids.... In the late 1800's thru the 1940's Newsboys hawked newspapers on street corners and street cars across America.
As first editions came out at 2:30AM, these little kids were working long before the crack of dawn and back at it again for afternoon and evening editions if they could pick up the work. Competition was hard and dirty at times.
Mostly poor boys, they earned pennies to help their parents and , usually widowed or abandoned mothers. A large number of the boys were homeless or orphaned.
They were a tough but good hearted lot of kids.
Those who worked the long hours in the depression years, grew up to serve in WWII as the earlier kids grew up to serve in the First WW. No easy life for these kids who supported families in hard times..
The majority of these children were from desperately poor and were of German, Irish, Russian-Jewish and Italian families. Many of the outcomes to their lives were tragic and harsh but some few rose above it to become successful in later life.

There is an excellant book describing the life of newsboys in the St Louis area called The Dead End Kids of St. Louis .. and the people who tried to save them' by Bonnie Stepenoff.
Google Books has excerpts  of it  HERE
My interest in the children of the streets began with Lena Loschiavo who sold baskets and pretzels in Cincinnati, Ohio during the early part of the 1900's from early morning until as late as midnight to help support her family. Her story is HERE
These children were real American Heroes and deserve to be remembered.
This is my small caricature of a newsboy proudly wearing a cap his mother knitted for him.
 In the stories I made up for the kids, who love a story with every painting, Both kids are first generation American born. Daniele is from Italian heritage and has chocolate eyes.
David is Jewish from Holland and has King David's ruddy coloring. Or.. alternately he is Irish!or Scottish!
You decide who you see.