John Zook
Every old photograph tells a story, but some faces practically demand that you go digging through the archives.
Recently, a late 19th century portrait caught my eye. Written on the back in faded cursive were just a few clues: John Zook, Manheim Twp, Lan Co. The photograph itself was captured at H. Frank Saylor’s Art Studio at No. 43 West King Street in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Looking at the well dressed man in the portrait, I had to wonder: What happened to him?
As it turns out, John G. Zook didn’t just witness history, he literally printed it.
Born on May 30, 1853, in Manheim Township, John G. Zook started his professional life like many bright minds of the era: in the classroom. After graduating from Millersville Normal School in 1875, he spent six terms teaching local children.
But Zook had a passion for the written word. In 1877, he took a leap of faith, left teaching, and launched a monthly literary publication called The Sunbeam in the nearby town of Lititz.
Zook quickly realized that the community of Lititz needed more than a monthly literary magazine. It needed a newspaper. In 1881, he transformed his publication into The Express (later known as The Lititz Express), giving the town its very first weekly newspaper.
By 1896, Zook took sole ownership, establishing The Express Printing Company behind his property at 22 East Main Street. For decades, if something happened in Lititz, it was John Zook who set the type and inked the presses to tell the world about it.
If running a weekly newspaper wasn't enough, Zook was an absolute powerhouse of civic and entrepreneurial energy. Over his long life, he operated:
- The John G. Zook Bookstore & Stationery Shop – A beloved local hub on Main Street.
- A Bicycle Shop – Keeping up with the massive cycling craze of the late Victorian era.
- The Lititz Board of Trade – Co-founded by Zook in 1901 to bring industrial manufacturing and jobs to the region.
Perhaps his greatest lasting legacy, however, is as a historian. He meticulously researched and published foundational texts like Historical and Pictorial Lititz (1905) and Seeing Lancaster County from a Trolley Window (1910). Today’s historians still rely on Zook's records to understand what life was like at the turn of the century.
Zook’s dedication to his craft eventually earned him global fame. To celebrate his 50th anniversary as a newspaper editor, he was featured in Robert Ripley’s famous worldwide syndicated "Ripley's Believe It or Not!" cartoon column.
When John G. Zook passed away in 1942, he left behind a town completely transformed by his vision. Today, if you walk down Main Street in Lititz, you can still spot a small historical plaque that reads: “1877 John Zook Bookstore.”
It’s a reminder that the young man looking out from a century old photograph grew up to give his community a voice.
