We don’t know as much as we think we do. Even our knowledge of something as momentous as the Declaration of Independence in Easton — among the first three cities to hear the founding of the new nation 250 years ago — is vexed by a strange uncertainty: Who read it?

After 169 years, The Easton Express-Times finally ended its print edition. For the last run, I was back as a freelancer to eulogize my old paper. This was personal. This was where I spent countless nights getting the final headlines to print; where I covered presidents and pandemics, elections and festivals, storms and stories; where I met my wife. The result — over a century and a half of local news in 4,000 words — became the centerpiece of the special section sending off this record of local history as it became history itself.

The story of superstar Billy Joel’s first headlining gig could have happened anywhere, but it happened here — in a small theater in a small town, thanks to a small radio station with an unusual format. The various threads that came together 50 years ago are explored in this long-form story assembled through several lengthy interviews. I handled this project from the top down: writing, photography and digital layout.