Leon Washington and Joseph Blackburn Bass, Los Angeles, circa 1930

Title: Leon Washington and Joseph Blackburn Bass, Los Angeles, circa 1930
Alternative title: Joseph Blackburn Bass, husband of Charlotta, and newspaper editor
Date Created: [circa 1930]
Date: 1930
Collection: Miriam Matthews Photograph Collection
OpenUCLA Collections

Description: Leon Washington came to Los Angeles in 1930 and was the advertising manager of the California Eagle for three years. He then founded the Sentinel, which became a rival newspaper to the California Eagle.
Joseph Blackburn Bass founded the Topeka Call, a black community newspaper. He continued to work on that newspaper when it was purchased by another owner and its name changed to the Topeka Plaindealer. Bass was active in local politics, and in 1896 was one of the Kansas delegates to the Republican National Convention that nominated William McKinley for President. After a short stint publishing a black community newspaper in Helena, Montana, Bass moved to Los Angeles, where in 1913, he accepted Charlotta Spears' offer to edit the California Eagle. Spears and Bass married in 1914.
Leon Washington and Joseph Blackburn Bass, newspaper publishers, standing in a yard.

Genre: photographs
Names: Bass, J. B. (Joseph Blackburn), 1867-1934
Washington, Leon H. (Leon Harold), Jr., 1907-1974
Subject Geographic: Los Angeles (Calif.)
Resource type: still image
Subjects: African American publishers
African American Newspapers