A Shopping Guide Delivery Route
The first “paper route” was something I worked on with my brother David. I was probably around 9 or 10 years old at the time. It involved folding (or rolling up) a huge pile of newsprint sales flyers. Each newspaper was probably only 18 or 24 pages; printed on cheap newsprint paper. This was probably around 1968.
Shopping Guide Newspaper? Not Real News
There was no “real news” in these newspapers; only announcements about sales from local stores and maybe some classified ads, along with coupons. Everything was printed in back ink. I don’t recall any color printing back then, so everything was black and white.
We probably had 100 or 150 papers to fold and deliver each week I recall sitting at a card table, in the basement of our home on Linden Street, folding or rolling papers, and putting rubber bands around them. (Or maybe we use the tuck in method.) Then we would stack them all in a box, and put them in a little red wagon. Our hands would typically be quite blackened from the cheap ink used for the newsprint.
Our delivery route was about 3 blocks long on Linden, Walnut, and Southfield Road in Dearborn. We would take turns pulling the wagon while the other would run up and toss the paper on the porch. It took several hours to deliver all the papers. I don’t recall how much money we made doing this. Probably only earned a few dollars per week. However, this was good preparation for getting a “real paper route” later on.
A Detroit News Paper Route
When I was around 13, I decided to sign up for a Detroit News paper route. Obviously, there was no internet back then, so all the local, national and international news was delivered via the daily newspaper (or radio and TV). In Detroit we had an early morning newspaper, called the Detroit Free Press. The afternoon or evening news was the Detroit News.
Having a newspaper route was one of the few ways that a teenager could earn money before turning 16. No paper routes near my house we’re available at first so I started with a route on Hollywood and Venice Streets in Dearborn.
Having a daily paper route was a big responsibility, because you had to do it 7 days a week, and had to deliver the papers on time every day. Also, you had to collect money from each of your customers each month, and pay for all the newspapers. The news station was located at Pelham near Outer Drive. Every day I would ride my sturdy red Schwinn (one speed) bike from our home on Linden Street, up to the news station. The manager of the news station would count out the exact number of papers that I needed for my route. (Typically around 48, 50 or 52 papers.) Then I would load the papers into canvas saddlebags and place them on the back of my bike. You needed a sturdy bike with a strong kickstand and a solid rack on the back to hold the canvas saddlebags. A load of papers might weigh 25 or 35 lbs or more.
Sunday papers were the heaviest, because they had colorful sales flyers, comics or “funnies”, and a “lifestyle magazine”, or other special features. A Sunday paper was like a large, thick book. Each one could weigh several pounds. On Sundays, both saddlebags would be full, and I also had a front bag that was full. If you did not have a strong kickstand the bike would fall over from the weight.
I needed to deliver the papers every afternoon, Monday through Friday, around 3:30 or 4:00 p.m. On Saturdays, the paper was a lot smaller, and sometimes I would deliver the Sunday “funnies” and sales flyers on Saturday to make the load easier on Sunday morning.
On Sunday mornings, I would typically pick up my papers by 7:30 a.m., and try to have them all delivered before 9:00, so I could get ready for church.
I kept a stack of cards with every customers name and address attached to a large ring. I had to knock on each customer door, at least once a month, to collect payments for the newspaper subscriptions. Some people got the daily paper, but not the Sunday edition. Others got only the Sunday paper. Every time I collected payment I had to check them off on the customer cards. Also, I had to pay the news station manager in cash for all the papers on my delivery route.
Dangerous Dogs and Wild Winter Weather
On most days I would ride my bike, but occasionally, if it was bad weather, with heavy rain or snow, my mom would drive the car along my route, while I ran back and forth delivering the papers.
One day when I was collecting on Hollywood Street, a dog came flying out the door — barking, and bit my toes through my shoe, causing a lot of pain. My immediate reaction was to kick the dog off my foot. It was a small dog and it flew through the air a little ways.
After I had my route on Hollywood Street for a year or so, a new route became available on Linden Street near our home.
So, I signed up for the route on Linden Street and Oakwood Boulevard. This was a great route, since it was very near my home. It was easier to manage collections, and I kept delivering newspapers on this route for several years. Also, if I forgot to deliver a Sunday paper (for a Sunday only customer) it was easier to run a paper to that house quickly.
Life Lessons
Two memories that are most clearly etched in my mind from my paper route days have proven to be helpful life lessons.
Firstly, I remember several days in the spring or fall, delivering papers on a really cold day in the pouring rain. I had to keep the papers as dry as possible while delivering. By time I was done with the route on those days, my hands would ache and I felt colder than Frosty the snowman. Lesson learned: Mom would not always be around to save me from the harsh realities of life.
Secondly, I have happy memories of receiving large tips around Christmas time of $5, $10 or $20. I have vivid memories of coming home after collection days in December and dumping all the cash out on my bed to count it up.
Lesson learned: If I wanted to enjoy the rewards, I needed to be consistent every day and keep working even when it was very uncomfortable.
Also, I have some pleasant memories of delivering papers on warm spring and summer days. One of my favorite things to do after getting my papers at the news station was to go across the street to the “party store” and buy an ice cold “Mountain Dew”, before heading out to deliver my papers. Sometimes I would also buy a “Hostess Apple Pie”. Those days were really fun. I had cash in my pocket and very few responsibilities or worries.
NOTE: More stories about my life can be found on my autobiography page.
Published on 15-Oct-2025; updated on 18-Oct-2025.