Natrona County WY Archives History - Books .....Newspapers Of Natrona County 1923 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/wy/wyfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com May 5, 2005, 6:51 pm Book Title: History Of Natrona County, Wyoming NEWSPAPERS OF NATRONA COUNTY The Casper Weekly Mail was established November 23, 1888, by Lombard and Casebeer and was the first newspaper published in Natrona county. Mr. Lombard retired on April i, 1889, and James A. Casebeer, who was Casper's third postmaster, became sole owner of the newspaper. Mr. Casebeer was also the only delegate from Casper to the Constitutional Convention which was held in Cheyenne in September, 1889. Alex T. Butler bought the Mail from Mr. Casebeer and assumed the editorial and business management on May 16, 1890. Mr. Casebeer left at once for the Yellowstone National park and never returned to Casper. An effort was made to find him and have him attend the reunion of the delegates of the Constitutional Convention, held in Cheyenne in 1920, but he could not be located. The Mail suspended publication after its issue of January 16, 1891, after having been published a little more than two years. It was under Mr. Butler's ownership when it suspended. This was the third Natrona county publication to go to the newspaper graveyard, the Mail having been preceded by the Sweetwater (Bothwell} Chief and the Bessemer Journal. The Bessemer Journal was the second newspaper to be established in Natrona county and the second to suspend publication. It was first published late in the year of 1888. J. Enos Waite was editor and business manager from its beginning to the end. After struggling until the latter part of December, 1890, the publication was suspended and the plant was seized by its creditors. The Sweetwater Chief, published at the town of Bothwell by H. B. Fetz, was the third publication to make its appearance in Natrona county and the first to start the newspaper graveyard. It was established in the spring of 1890, blooming forth with the flowers in the Sweetwater valley and it also withered and died with those same flowers in the fall of the year. During its existence it advocated the building of a railroad through the Sweetwater country, the removal of the state capital to Bothwell, the development of the gold, silver, and copper mines in that vicinity, the drilling of oil wells in the basin and the development of the soda lakes close at hand. Instead of the town's increasing in population, two of its citizens, who were considered a menace to the community but nevertheless were responsible for a great number of visitors making frequent pilgrimages to the place, were hanged to a tree on a summer's day, and as no one seemed to care to come there to continue the business they had started, but had so suddenly left, and many visitors ceased their coming, on account of the lack of some of the things they considered necessary for their entertainment, the Chief lacked the financial support necessary in all well regulated printing offices, and it was not long until that disseminator of news and advocator of all that was good ceased publication, and the plant was packed up and taken to Rawlins. Volume 1, number 1, of the Wyoming Derrick, published in Casper, was issued May 21, 1890, by the Natrona County Publishing company, with W. S. Kimball as editor and business manager. The stockholders were Joel J. Hurt, C. C. Wright, P. C. Nicolaysen, George Mitchell and A. J. Cunningham. The Derrick was a typographical gem and one of the best edited newspapers in the then Territory of Wyoming. On June 25, 1891, Mr. Kimball retired as editor and bought a half interest in the Pioneer drug store with C. F. G. Bostleman. Joel J. Hurt at this time bought up all the stock and became the sole owner of the plant, and he leased it to P. T, McNamara and C. W. Wixcey. Wixcey retired in two months and Mr. McNamara continued as editor until March 3, 1892, when Major E. H. French took charge temporarily. Alex T. Butler bought the plant from Mr. Hurt and was editor for nearly four months, when he sold it in July to J. K. Calkins, who was editor and publisher until April 15, 1895, when he sold it to W. H. Korns. P. C. Hays bought an interest in the plant with Mr. Korns in the fall of 1896, and on April 7, 1898, Mr. Korns sold his interest to Colonel Emerson H. Kimball. Mr. Hays bought Mr. Kimball's interest on July i, 1898, and published the paper until August 10, 1905, when he leased the plant to M. A. Cameron. Mr. Cameron continued the publication until March 2, 1906. The leading editorial in that issue was: "This space is reserved. Watch it next week." Next week never came for the Derrick. It went the way of its three predecessors. The Tribune was then the only newspaper published in Natrona county. The Natrona Tribune was first published on June I, 1891. J. Enos Waite was the publisher. The plant was owned by about twenty men, organized under the name of the Republican Publishing company. Waite retired on February 10, 1892, and was succeeded by M. P. Wheeler. Mr. Wheeler published the paper until June 24, 1893, when Alex T. Butler leased the plant and remained until August 7, 1893. W. E. Ellsworth was then hired to conduct the business and wrote the local news and editorials. He was in charge until July 1, 1894. Ben L. Green followed Mr. Ellsworth, and on November 22, 1894, O. A. Hamilton succeeded Green. April 11, 1895, Hamilton relinquished to Fred E. Seeley. Seeley published the paper three weeks and on May 2, 1895, F. H. Barrow became editor and publisher. George P. Devenport leased the plant on December 31, 1896, and was publisher until June I, 1897, when A. J. Mokler bought the plant from the Republican Publishing company and changed the name to the Natrona County Tribune. Mr. Mokler published the Tribune for seventeen years and four and a half months, and on October 15, 1914, sold the plant to J. E. Hanway and a number of associates. A stock company was organized, with Mr. Hanway as president. The development of the Salt Creek oil fields had commenced at this time and Casper showed encouraging signs of developing into a city, and the Tribune keeping pace with the conditions, made improvements as its patronage justified. On February 9, 1916, the Casper Daily Tribune was established and has grown to be the leading newspaper, with the best equipped plant, in the state. The weekly Natrona County Tribune was absorbed by the Wyoming Weekly Review on February 19, 1921. The Review was a state newspaper, and its mission was to present a review of the week's happenings not only of Wyoming, but of the nation. The Tribune Publishing company was the owner of the Review. On August 25, 1922, J. E. and E. E. Hanway sold the Tribune and Weekly Review to Charles W. Barton of New York City, and on September 20, 1922, the publication of the Review was discontinued and merged with the Sunday Morning Tribune. The Casper Press was established in August, 1908, by a man named Merrill of Wheatland, with Alex T. Butler as owner. Merrill retired in about ten months and Mr. Butler edited the paper until January, 1909, when H. J. Peterson took charge and conducted the business until August n, 1911. Mr. Peterson then bought a new plant and established the Casper Record, and C. Littlefield bought the Press plant from Mr. Butler, who conducted the paper as a weekly until June 19, 1914, when a small daily paper was issued. Neither the weekly nor the daily was a paying proposition; the town was small and the newspaper field was limited; instead of three weekly papers and one daily to cover the field and reap the harvest one weekly was sufficient, and the survival of the strongest was the only road to supremacy. In about a year the Press became so heavily involved in financial difficulties that Robert D. Carey, the heaviest stockholder, took over the plant and leased it to Henry F. Brennan. This was Mr. Brennan's first venture in the newspaper business, and he was making no better success than his predecessor, and on March I, 1916, W. W. Slack, an experienced printer, became editor-manager, in partnership with Mr. Brennan, on a lease agreement with Mr. Carey. Mr. Brennan retired September 30, 1916, and Wm. Jardine formed a partnership with Mr. Slack. On December 23, 1916, the Press and Record were consolidated and H. J. Peterson became sole proprietor. The. oil business at that time brought great prosperity to Casper, and the Press-Record prospered with all other lines of business here. On November I, 1917, Percy E. Cropper and associates of Salt Lake bought the Press-Record from Mr. Peterson but in about six months it became involved in financial difficulties and the creditors relieved Mr. Cropper. A. J. Mokler was appointed temporary receiver and remained until the financial difficulties were straightened out. Within ten days the business was put on a paying basis, and on June 15, 1918, W. B. Holliday bought the plant and changed the evening paper to a morning publication. It was not long until failure again showed her face at the door and there were so many men at the helm attempting to keep the publication from sinking that a list is unobtainable, but the creditors in the fall of the year appointed Ira W. Naylor receiver, "on account of the assets of the company being in danger of disruption." The daily publication was suspended October 30, 1918, and the Weekly Press was issued on Thursdays and the Record on Sundays. New life and new blood was injected into the business, and on November i8th, the Press resumed publication as a daily morning paper with W. W. Sproul as editor. It was short-lived, however, for on December 23, 1919, the Weekly Record and Daily Press suspended "on account of the lack of financial and business support," and the dpors of the office were closed by the creditors, and this was the last of the Press and Record, the fifth and sixth newspapers of the county to give up the ghost. The Wyoming Oil World, published in Casper, was founded June, 1918, by Victor Clark, who conducted the publication for one year, when L. C. Bailey took charge until April, 1921. The Wyoming Oil World and the Wyoming Oil Review were consolidated in July, 1920, and in February, 1922, the publication absorbed the Northwest Oil News. A. J. Hazlett bought the publication in April, 1921, and in January, 1922, changed the name to the Inland Oil Index. As its name indicates, its news and business is wholly with the oil interests. From the remains of the Casper Press-Record plant sprung the Casper Herald. Frank M. O'Brien, Elizabeth D. O'Brien and P. C. Kelley were the original stockholders of the new enterprise, which made its first appearance as a morning newspaper on July 20, 1919. Much new machinery and equipment was added and the paper became very popular as a morning publication from the beginning. The business was conducted as a partnership until the spring of 1921, when the Casper Herald Publishing company was incorporated with a capital stock of $100,000, with the three original owners as the principal stockholders. On September 18, 1922, Mr. O'Brien sold the controlling interest in the Herald to M. M. Levand, who had been connected with the Denver Post and the Kansas City Post. The Free Press, published in Casper, for the enlightenment and in the interest of organized labor, was first issued June 18, 1920. Its founder and first editor, John F. Leheney, proudly boasted that the publication was started on a sheet of wrapping paper. Miss Bessie McKinney and John D. Salmond, leaders of organized labor, and Michael J. Quealey, a capitalist, were interested in the Free Press with Mr. Leheney in a financial way, and had it not been for their influence and timely financial assistance there would be nothing further to chronicle in this connection, except to announce the date of its suspension, but now, like Tennyson's brook, it hopes to "go on forever." For the first year, and in fact ever since its existence, the Free Press has been in a precarious financial state, and while it cannot claim the distinction, like Topsy, in "Uncle Tom's Cabin," of being entirely without parentage, it was a homeless wanderer for more than a year. It was conceived in idealism, born in poverty and nurtured in adversity. It was printed by one of the local printing offices for the first fourteen months, but since August, 1921, it has been issued from its own plant, which was installed at an initial cost of about $15,000, the greater portion of which is causing the stockholders to loosen their purse strings at regular intervals when the payments become due, and at the same time serves as a reminder that while the editorials in a labor journal generally beam with brilliancy, "all is not gold that glistens." In February, 1921, the Free Press Publishing company was incorporated, with a capitalization of $50,000. Under a provision of the by-laws then adopted, stock may be sold to organized labor only. The outstanding stock is, therefore, owned by the various labor unions throughout the state of Wyoming and by the members of union labor. In September, 1921, Mr. Leheney resigned as president of the board of directors and as editor, and John A. Barker was elected to the positions, but on February, 1922, E. A. Shields was elected president; Charles L. Howard, secretary-treasurer; Austin Riley, Edna Hoffman, George Vogel, A. E. Gosnell, Wm. Schatzlein and John A. Barker, as the board of directors, with Mr. Barker as editor. The Mills Item had very bright prospects to "fill a long felt want" in the new town of Mills, but it was the shortest lived newspaper ever published in Natrona county. The first, last and only issue was published on Saturday, May 27, 1922. Theo. Flanagan was the editor and publisher. He had no type or machinery but arranged with a Casper printing establishment to furnish these necessary articles. In his salutatory he said he "hoped the people of Mills would form a good impression of both the paper and the editor. The Item is for Mills first, last and all the time." Inasmuch as the Item as well as Mr. Flanagan did not again make their appearance the people of Mills did not form a good opinion of the paper or the editor as he had hoped they would. Mr. Flanagan moved from Mills to North Casper, where he established the North Casper News, "a community paper, published in the interest of North Casper." The Salt Creek Gusher, with E. A. Gatewood and Gregory Powell as publishers, whose motto, carried at the top of the paper "'Tis a Privilege to Live in Salt Creek," and whose editorial policy was "Our Aim is to Serve Salt Creek," was established April 8, 1922. The first issue was a six-page four-column, home-print sheet, and was a credit to the town it represented, and had bright prospects of surviving the vicissitudes that usually are encountered by a small-town weekly newspaper. The Salt Creek Journal, with Frank O'Brien as publisher, was the second newspaper venture in Salt Creek. This paper was published in the Casper Herald office, with Salt Creek news items and the events of the day taken from the Herald columns. M. M. Levand became proprietor of this publication on September 18, 1922, when he purchased the Herald. 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