Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
HOTEL RUNNERS
HOTEL RUNNERS. Young men were hired by hotels in the 1800s to meet passengers arriving in the city. These "hotel runners" advertised the virtues of their respective hotels and attempted to gain customers. On June 3, 1864 an editorial in the Dubuque Democratic Herald asked that these runners avoid fist fights as had occurred recently.
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Source:
"Disgraceful," Dubuque Democratic Herald, June 3, 1864, p. 4. https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=A36e8EsbUSoC&dat=18640603&printsec=frontpage&hl=en