In the 19th and the first half of the 20th century, offices of rags and broadsheets lined the cobblestone storefronts of Washington and Milk streets. Part of today’s Downtown Crossing was the square known as Newspaper Row, and press creatures from preteen hawkers to editors hollered out headlines and gathered tips from passersby, practicing what’s now known as engagement journalism. They called it, simply, reporting.

THROWBACK: MAJOR CHANGES AT THE ‘BOSTON DAILY EVENING TRANSCRIPT’

“We have been forced into this change of form by the pressure of advertisements on the news”

From the beginning of our BINJ adventure, we noted that history is central to our plans for the future. As was recently acknowledged by the Society of Professional Journalists, which placed the first and only plaque of its kind on Boston City Hall last year, the Hub is the birthplace of American journalism. Among countless noteworthy feats: five of the first seven newspapers in North America were published here (starting with Publick Occurrences, 1690); a woman first edited a major daily newspaper in this city (Christian Science Monitor, 1908); the country’s most important abolitionist newspaper was headquartered on the current site of City Hall Plaza (The Liberator, 1831).

With Throwback BINJ, we’ll be unearthing untold more lessons and nuggets — to educate and entertain our readers and hopefully to benefit the diminishing few who remain working and participating in the Greater Boston media. The most revealing fruits of our spelunking missions will show up here on Medium — some looking at how issues in the current headlines have been covered before, an occasional “on this day in history,” and even interviews with seasoned media makers who are willing to…