Saline County, Missouri - Chapter 26: Newspapers of Saline County, 1910

Chapter 26: Newspapers of Saline County

There was no newspaper in Saline county until 1855, although a newspaper was published in Howard county across the river as early as 1816. the Missouri Intelligencer at Franklin. However, Saline county seems to have prospered fairly well without them. The advent of newspapers in 1855 was coincident with many other troubles, notably the local agitation of the question and dififerences ultimately producing and bringing on the Civil war.

The St. Louis Republican and Intelligencer, and one or two other St. Louis papers were the papers circulated and read here in Saline prior to that time. There was also a good Democratic paper at Jefferson City, the state capital.

Tn the vear 1856 there was a warmly contested fight between Letcher and McDaniels, the candidates for the Legislature, both of whom had been old-line Whigs, but Letcher then representing the American party and Judge R. E. McDaniels the Democratic party, both being men ot good reputations as politicians and citizens. The canvass was spirited, but honorable and manly. Such leading Americans as Letcher, Wilson, Crews, Bruce, Maupin, Lewis, Price and Hardeman readily subscribed and raised the money necessary to fit up a printing office and establish a newspaper, which they placed under the editorial and business control of Oscar D. Hawkins, who was from Glasgow and a protege of Colonel Crews, the latter in fact doing most of the editorial work. This paper was called the Saline County Herald and was the first paper ever published in Saline county. It was a small sheet and R. S. Sandidge and Capt. Jim Allen set the type and did most of the mechanical labor of the office. The Americans carried the county by a small majority and elected Mr. Letcher. Mr. Hawkins continued in charge of the paper for about a year, when he resigned and moved to ^^'arrensburg. The Herald started up with a paid-up subscription list of about a thousand names, the office being in a small room twenty by thirty feet in "Dog row," and was prosperous for some years.

^^1^en Hawkins resigned. Col. G. W. Allen became sole editor and proprietor. The .campaign of 1856 did not end the contest between the Americans and the Democrats for control of Saline countv. and. as might have been expected, it was not vei-y long after the Herald made its appearance before the leading Democrats realized that they needed on organ also, and such men as Claiborne F. Jackson, William B. Sappington, Darwin Sappington, John ^^'. Bryant, Judge McDaniels, T. R. E. Harvey and other leading Democrats purchased the material and established the Marshall Democrat, edited and printed by John S. Davis, a man of education and a practical printer.

\\''hen the campaign of 1858 was approaching, the Herald, under the control of Colonel Allen, became weak-kneed as a party organ and failed to give satisfaction to its supporters. It was, however, conducted with good ability by Colonel Allen (who afterwards was killed at the battle of Wilson's Creek, while acting as an aide to General Price), but he had already begun to lean towards the Democratic party, at least that was the impression among the Americans. This feeling of dissatisfaction resulted in the establishment of a tliird newspaper in Marshall known as the Saline County Standard, of which Col. Samuel Boyd was editor and the Sandidge brothers having charge of the mechanical department. As the result, personal journalism was running rampant in Marshall and personal encounters between the editors were not at all infrequent. For many years afterwards the bullet mark could be seen in Ming's Hotel showing where a bullet struck that was intended for Col. Sam Boyd, editor of the Standard, shot by John S. Davis, editor of the Democrat.

Soon after the commencement of the publication of the Standard, the Herald was moved to Arrow Rock, where Colonel Allen and his son. Jim Allen, continued to publish it until the spring of 186 1. In May of that year it was merged into the Marshall Democrat. Soon after that the Standard suspended publication. The Democrat continued a few weeks longer, closing about the last of June, 1861, when editors, typos, devils and all entered th'^ army, North or South, and afterwards had all the opportunities of fighting that they wanted. As already stated, Colonel Allen was killed at the battle of Wilson's Creek. Most of the others survived the war. John S. Davis lived afterwards in St. Louis, and James Allen resides in Jefferson City. Col. Samuel Boyd, as before stated, was for many years a leading member of the Marshall bar, while R. S. Sandidge, Esquire, is now and has been always editor and proprietor of the Saline County Progress, having also survived the arduous and dangerous services encountered throughout the Civil war in support of the federal government.

The Saline Progress was the fourth paper established in this county and. existing up to the present time, is the oldest of all of them, it being established in Marshall in July, 1865, by R. S. Sandidge and his brother D. M., and throughout the most of its career has been essentially a good county paper. The Progress was started and owned by a joint stock company, but is now owned and controlled by Robert S. Sandidge, under whose charge and management it has existed and prospered for forty-four years.

A Saline County Democrat was revived in Marshall and established in November, 1872, by Barnabas Frazee. In November, 1875, the paper was purchased by James H. Eakin, and under his control and the editorship of Dr. C. A. Clarkson it flourished until 1880, when it passed into the editorial control of J. M. Yantis. Some years subsequently, in June, 1889, it was combined with the Marshall Daily Nezvs, and subsequently published and is up to the present time published as the Democrat Nezvs, both daily and weekly, the paper being owned and controlled by a stock company organized under the general corporation law of Missouri.

The Marshall Daily News

The Marshall Daily Nezvs was established in June, 1879, by John C. Patterson, who had been connected with the Progress office in Marshall. Mr Patterson was then a young man, who had not reached his majority. Almost without capital, establishing the paper seemed a rather hopeless enterprise, a daily paper in a town with a population of less than three thousand. Young as he was, however, he brought to the undertaking energy, industr}^ and perseverance, and succeeded in making the Daily Nezvs self-supporting, while the w^eekly paper w^as established on a firm basis, the weekly paper being first issued in October, 1879, published on the co-operative plan, but afterwards published entirely at home. The Nezvs was an independent paper in politics, but afterwards being consolidated with the Democrat as above stated, became Democratic under the new arrangement. It has since been edited by Col. R. C. Home, Charles Patterson and some others, and is now under the editorial management of John G. Miller, representative in the Legislature from Saline county.

The Saline Citizen

This paper was esta1)lishe(l in 1884 by George Davis and was owned and edited by him. Mr. Davis having- formerly been an associate editor of the Progress. This paper was conducted by Mr. Davis until the year 1900, when the establishment was sold to Joseph Hamill, Mr. Davis continuing the editorship, under the management of Mr. Hamill. Subsequently, the paper was sold to its present owners, Messrs. Charles D. and G. A\\ Newton, and is now in a flourishing condition.

The Marshall Republican

The Marshall Republican was established in i8gj by A. R. Grigsby. The newspaper and plant was sold in 1899 to Mr. Beatty, at that time the station agent at Marshall of the Chicago & Alton railroad. For a time it was leased and operated by Percy Vandyke, a native of Marshall, but now editor and owner of a paper in Newport, Arkansas, an independent journal. The paper was subsequently bought by its present owner, J. J. Witt, and is now in a flourishing and prosperous condition.

The Brozvnsville Herald was established in Brownsville (now Sweet Springs) in this county, in August, 1874, by a joint stock company called the Brownsville Publishing Company, and leased to the Rev. William M. Prottsman as editor and George W. Tuthill, of Jefferson City, as business manager. At the end of the first year Mr. Prottsman retired and the office was leased to Tuthill and J. W. Middleton, under the firm name of Tuthill & Middleton, until May, 1876, when Mr. Middleton's place was taken by the Rev. W. J. Lapsley. under the firm name of Geo. W. Tuthill & Company, with Robert S. Yantis as business manager. In September, 1876, Mr. Lapsley sold his interest to Mr. Tuthill, who then became sole owner, editor and business manager. The Herald is still being published, still doing good and earnest work for Sweet Springs and Saline county, the reward due persistent enterprise, effort and judgment, l)eing Democratic in politics. Neale & Barks are the present proprietors of this paper.

Miami Weekly News

The Miami Weekly Nezm was established in 1880 by T. J. Graves. The ownership and management has changed several times since its establishment.

and the paper is now in its twenty-ninth \'olume, being- (le\oted especially to the interest of Miami and Miami township. The present editor is Mr. Hitchborn.

Other Newspapers

There have been at other times in the history of Saline county twelve or fifteen papers that have since become deceased and discontinued. They are as follows :

The Saline Republican, Mr. Hampton, editor, which perished in the political revolution in Missouri in 1870, was a fairly good paper and conducted with ability.

The Miami Cable, a small paper started in Miami, in 1877, by Mr. Reynolds. A short time afterwards it was moved to Arrow Rock, and discontinued the next year.

The Miami Index, a Democratic paper, established in 1874. It was afterwards removed to Slater, and its name changed to the Saline County Index, and subsequently moved to Marshall and its name changed to the Marshall Index. After being removed to Marshall, it was edited by Gen. R. C. Home, who had been editor of the Democrat Nezt's some years previously.

The Slater Monitor, first established in Marshall in 1879, where it continued for about a year, but was then moved to Slater in 1880, owned and edited by J. R. Miller. The Monitor had first been established at Jacksonville, Illinois, as a Greenback paper, and through all its changes continued a Greenback paper, except one page, which was edited by Mrs. Miller, and devoted to the temperance cause. The Monitor has since gone out of existence.

The Independent Missoiirian was established in Marshall, in April, 1880, by Dr. W. S. Holland, S. E. DeRacken, editor, a Prohibition organ, which has since died out, while prohibition has not.

The Arrozu Rock Enterprise, established by Scott Mills, son of Henry S. Mills, an old-time merchant and citizen of Arrow Rock. The main object of the Enterprise was to advertise the business of H. S. Mills & Company, but the boy made the Enterprise a spicy and readable paper, as well as a good advertising medium.

The Missouri State Republican, established in Marshall by A. G. Harlan, of Andrew county, Missouri, and M. R. Stansberry, of Illinois. Being Republican in politics, it had a short life in Saline county.