Museum corner December 2020

News, just the news?

By Becky Buher

The right to report news or opinion without censorship from the government is a cornerstone of our American liberties.

American colonies fought the American War of Independence from Britain (1775 to 1783) and established the Constitution of the United States in 1789.

The First Amendment to the United States constitution established that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” This became known as the Bill of Rights and was ratified in 1791.

Locally, the town of Bedford was a mere ten years old when, in 1835, Richard Wigginton Thompson, with the backing of Moses Fell and Col. William McLane, started the first newspaper in Bedford, “The Western Spy.” The newspaper’s political leaning was to the Whig party.

Thompson may have been influenced into the newspaper profession by his future father-in-law, Col. James B. Gardiner, who in 1812 printed ”The Freeman’s Chronicle,” the first weekly paper published in Franklinton (Columbus), Ohio. Thompson married Col. Gardiner’s daughter, Harriet, in 1836. They purchased Bedford lot 48 for $145 for their home (current site of Methodist church, K St.).

Political parties frequently guided the early newspapers for specific purposes. Few lasted long. The following is a small sampling:

Isaac Smith founded “The Bedford Review,” a Whig paper lasting three years. Judge James Hughes edited a Democratic paper in 1848, “The Bedford Sun.” “The Bedford Herald” lasted two years. “The People’s Advocate” appeared in the 1850s. “The Lawrence Democrat” began in 1856 lasting only a short time. “The White River Standard,” was a successful Whig paper. H. H. Mathis and C. G. Berry bought it in 1852 and changed the name to “The Bedford Independent.”

Beginning in 1860, “The Bedford Enterprise” lasted 18 months. “The Bedford Independent” owned by C. G. Berry was an anti-Democratic party paper that lost subscribers when the Civil War began. Eli Dale bought it and changed the name to “The Press.” A year later William Gabe bought it and changed the name back to “The Independent,” billing it as “An unconditional Union paper.” “The Bedford Banner” was established about 1868.

The geneses of our local “Times-Mail” newspaper began in 1879 with the “Bedford Magnet,” a Republican publication founded by Henry Osborn. It merged with “The Journal” in 1884, later “The Lawrence Mail” became “The Bedford Mail.” In 1889, Fred Otis and Thomas Brooks purchased it. John Fuller published  “The Bedford Daily Mail” in 1939. In 1942, Stewart Riley purchased “The Daily Times” and the two papers merged.

Heltonville: W. H. Brim set up “The NEWS” in 1900. This neutral paper was published only a year.

Leesville: Micajah Allen started “The Sun” in 1877. McHenry Owen started “The Graphic,” a democratic paper in 1882.

Mitchell: “The Commercial” was founded in 1866. Dr. Elihu S. McIntire converted it into a Republican journal, “The Enterprise” in 1874. In 1876, Mitchell news was printed on the backside of the “The Bedford Banner” and had the masthead of “The Times.” In 1877, it became a separate democratic backed paper under Dr. John T. Biggs. “The Tribune,” a Republican party supporting paper first appeared in 1899. “The Democrat” was launched in 1892. In 1907, “The Tribune” was aligned with the new Progressive party.

Preston Cox purchased “The Tribune” in 1929 and retired in 1945 when Lowell Davis purchased it. Davis sold to Norman and Becky Grissom in 1978. The Grissom’s published “The Mitchell Tribune” until around 2000 when daughter, Ginger Janda and her husband, Jeff, took over the publication. When it closed, “The Times-Mail” published “The Mitchell Times” for about three years.

Oolitic: “The Progress” was published in the 1890s. An independent, “The News Hustler” appeared briefly in 1903. “The National Progressive and News” was published from 1912-1915.

Tunnelton: Elmer Pinchon published “The Booster” in 1932.

So many opinions, political views, and printed pages have come and gone since the first newspaper appeared in Bedford 185 years ago.

Searchable digital newspaper research worksite: Made possible through a Lawrence County Community Foundation grant, the museum’s popular research worksite will soon be updated to include a second computer and decades of additional local newspapers.

Source: “The Bedford Daily Times-Mail,” 1961; John W. Miller’s “Indiana Newspaper Bibliography,” 1982; Lawrence County Museum library records.