To mark Working Journalists Day, which has been celebrated since 1961 to honor the rights of journalists, Türkiye's Trabzon opened a unique museum highlighting the country's press history. In the "Press History Museum" press materials from printing plates to cameras, from newspapers to magazines will be exhibited.
Journalists from Ankara, Eskişehir, Istanbul and Aydın contributed to the "Press History Museum," inaugurated by Trabzon's Ortahisar Municipality in addition to members of the press and other institutions in the city.
The three-floor museum contains a library of 756 items, unfurling the history of the press. Various institutions and organizations such as Türkiye's Association of News Cameramen, the General Directorate of Anadolu Agency (AA), the Ankara Journalists Association and Turkish media outlet Hürriyet newspaper donated cameras, telex and fax devices to the museum.
Speaking to reporters, Ortahisar Mayor Ahmet Metin Genç told AA that they are thrilled to host visitors on this special day.
Expressing that he is overjoyed to fulfill the promise they made to the Trabzon press, Genç remarked, "The Trabzon press, which has a 150-year history in Anatolia, is a city that deserved a press museum. We wanted to open such a museum in our city."
"We have collected special items for the press museum, belonging to our esteemed journalists. In fact, we have an extra special object in our museum: one of the 100 machines produced by the Frankental Printing Factory on its 100th anniversary. Today, there are only four of these machines left, so it is quite important for us. Similarly to it, there are many old cameras, news communication devices, typewriters and historical documents belonging to the press, especially those dating before the Turkish War of Independence. They will be brought to life as part of this unique project. As we preserve the press of Trabzon for public memory, we will be also fulfilling the wishes of the press," he said.
Pointing out that the first printing house in Trabzon was established in 1865, Genç added: "Following the opening of the printing house, the first newspaper of the city was published in 1869. We also see that nearly 35 newspapers were published on different dates before the War of Independence and during the Second Constitutional Era. It forms a very important part of our history, as many publications that supported our independence were published in our city. In this context, we witnessed that the press played an integral role during the War of Independence."
Explaining that he sent some of his teammates to Aydın, Istanbul, Eskişehir and Ankara to collect items for the museum, Genç assured, "We have received very valuable contributions in this regard."
