Introducing the W.M. "Mack" Wyatt Digital Archives

Wyatt as Alabama College's acting executive secretary (1943-1944)

Carmichael Library is pleased to announce the formation and dedication of the W.M. "Mack" Wyatt Digital Archives. This new collection serves as a repository for archived newspapers printed in Montevallo and Shelby County, particularly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. As this digital archive expands, newsprints appearing in various formats will be added.

Browse pages from the 1941 editions of the Montevallo Times

Wyatt got his start as a printer and typesetter at the age of 15 in 1907 in Clanton, Alabama. After graduation from high school in 1913, he bought a half-interest the next year in the Union Banner newspaper in Clanton. His younger brother, Gene Wyatt, bought the other half of the paper in 1917 and the two brothers published the paper for the next 18 years. In the early 1920’s, Mack left the Union Banner for a brief stint editing the DeKalb Herald in Ft. Payne, Alabama, but he soon returned to Clanton and the Union Banner.

Wyatt bought the Montevallo Times in 1935 and edited it until 1954. He started the Calera Herald in 1951 and edited it until 1954. Finally, he consolidated the Montevallo Times and the Calera Herald into the Shelby County Times-Herald in 1954 and published that paper until 1959 when he sold out to the Shelby County Reporter.

This advertisement for a cold medication ran in the January 10, 1901 edition of The Sentinel (Montevallo, Ala.)

The library invites members of the UM community as well as the general public to explore this trove of primary source documents. Among the advanced search and sharing options available in our collection is the ability to embed a mini book reader, as seen above. The collection includes runs from five local publications including W.M. Wyatt's Montevallo Times and an older weekly publication that ran under the name Montevallo News (1891-1895.)

A view of the imprint for the Montevallo Times taken from the February 20, 1941 edition.

This collection is made possible by a gift from Clayton M. Nordan (M.A. ’76).