Prof. Rositsa Angelova PhD – head of the “New and Latest History” department at the Regional History Museum, opened the documentary photo exhibition “Razgrad periodical printing in images and untold stories” today in the “Ananie Yavashov” house museum.

The guests of the opening were the chairman of the Municipal Council Galina Georgieva and the deputy mayor Zornitsa Evgenieva, accompanied by the director of the Regional History Museum Tanya Todorova.

“Razgrad deserves this exhibition because of the very colorful fan of periodicals – newspapers and magazines, both in Bulgarian and in Turkish.

From 1889 – when the first magazine “Savremennik” appeared in the capital of Ludogorie, until 1944 – when it stopped in “Razgradsko slovo”, in a small town like Razgrad with about 15,000 inhabitants on average, there are nearly 70 periodicals. This is an extremely great achievement, not only in terms of number, but also different in type of publications: political and advertising newspapers, social-informational and spiritual newspapers, newspapers with the beginnings of a party orientation, newspapers with a professional orientation, as well as jubilee lists”, said Prof. Angelova.

And she supported her thesis about the significance of Razgrad in the development of periodicals in Bulgaria with Philip Graham’s popular phrase that “The newspaper is the first draft of history.” “Then Razgrad takes its step to enter history not only with the variety of periodicals, but also with the personalities who stand behind them: publishers, editors, printers, distributors”, Prof. Angelova is categorical.

The list of names is long: editors Nedyu Ivanov, Lefter Humbadjiev, Petar Daskalov, Slavcho Babadzhanov, Georgi Kasamakov; publishers Simeon Ikonomov, Stoyan Kilifaski, Ivan Popov; editors and publishers at the same time – Petar Dragulev, Ivan Svirachev, Dimitar Bachvarov, Petar Antonov…

“Some of them also have other professions – publicists, bankers, lawyers, but this does not prevent them from devoting time and energy to writing periodicals. And the jubilee lists for educational, teaching and sports associations, which show the socio-political, cultural and sports life of Razgrad. Among them is the jubilee sheet “Tutrakan”, which tells about residents of Shumen who gave their lives for the freedom of Bulgaria.

And all that – supplemented with the tolerance and empathy of the Razgrad society. Something that in Razgrad completely overlaps with Arthur Miller’s words that “A good newspaper is a nation that speaks for itself”, Prof. Rositsa Angelova concluded her presentation.

In the showcases of the exhibition there are also movable cultural values ​​on the subject, part of the wealth in the funds of the Regional History Museum.

The author of the exhibition is Prof. Angelova and her colleagues from the “New and Latest History” department, the curator is the designer Mihail Marinov.

The exhibition will be available for viewing throughout the month of November.

You can see more photos on the Facebook page of the Regional History Museum: https://www.facebook.com/regionalhistorymuseumrazgrad/