From the Darkroom: In 1948, Springfield grappled with 'the problem of comic books'

A committee was assembled by Springfield Mayor Otis Barbarick in September 1948 to "investigate the problem of comic books in Springfield."

The committee included (seated, left to right): Dr. Harry Siceluff, a professor at Southwest Missouri State College (now MSU); Police Chief George Walker; city attorney Howard Potter; and probation officer David Woodruff; (standing, left to right) Dr. James Findlay, president of Drury University; Senior High (now Central) faculty member David Sherman; and YMCA staff member Arthur Kay.

The committee's primary concern was the potential effect of comic books on children and existing legal precedent on the regulation of comic book sales. The committee found that contrary to the concerns of some members of the community, comic books could not be evidentially connected to any single recorded crime.

One community member pithily remarked, "The practice [of reading comic books] is serious only in that it reflects poor reading taste."

Nonetheless, one publisher of comic books, Curtis Publishing Company, promised to crack down on objectionable content by setting up an internal board of review.

This image is part of a much larger collection of historically rich photographs from the News-Leader’s photo archive. Each week, the Springfield-Greene County Library will tap into this vast collection and present an interesting image “from the darkroom" and share its history. This image is presented in partnership between the Springfield-Greene County Library District and the Springfield News-Leader. For more historical images of the Ozarks, visit: thelibrary.org/fromthedarkroom.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: From the Darkroom: Springfield confronts 'the problem of comic books'