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Cheney Free Press
TypeWeekly newspaper
Owner(s)Free Press Publishing
Founded1896
LanguageEnglish
Headquarters1616 W. First St. Cheney, WA 99004
Circulation3,695 (as of 2022)[1]
OCLC number17315741
Websitecheneyfreepress.com

The Cheney Free Press is a weekly newspaper published in Cheney, Washington since in 1896.[2][3] It was not the first newspapers there; the North-West Tribune was published in Cheney from June 1880 to about 1886, and was the second in Spokane County.[4][5]

History

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The Cheney Free Press was established by three Northwest newspaper veterans,[2] H. H. Hubbard, Dr. D. J. Turner and A. L. Ames.[6] It first published in April 1896.[7] The paper's first editor was George H. Wallis. It was originally delivered by horseback riders and the press stood underneath a tree as there was no building to house it.[8] The paper was launched in opposition to the Cheney Sentinel.

In May 1896, Wallis entered a post office to get his mail when he was assaulted by Richard A. Hutchinson in the lobby. The two fought and Wallis ended up with a large gash across his temple and a tracked skull. Hutchinson was upset about an article in the paper accusing him of corruption. Witnesses alleged Hutchinson attacked Wallis with a billy club or a slungshot, but no weapon was found.[9][6][10] At trial, the defence argued Wallis actually hurt his head after falling against a desk.[11] The jury convicted him of simple assault.[12]

In May 1898, Spencer L. Alexander purchased the paper.[13] Brothers Furman and Merrill Alexander bought the Union Printing Co.[14] Soon after the purchase, it was announced in a neighboring paper that the Free Press had deserted the Republican party and endorsed the People's Party and the fusion movement.[15]

In 1912, the Free Press began dedicating one of its six pages to the local high school, whose students assumed editorial control of the page's contents.[16] In that same year the Free Press lost a libel suit worth $1,250, and was joined by other Washington newspapers in its call for the state to update its libel laws.[17]

In 1915, Willis Swank bought the paper. He sold it in 1926 to Vernon Frost and M. L. Spencer, dean of the school of journalism at the University of Washington.[8]

In 1932, the paper was part of Medical Lake Press.[18] In 1936, Harry N. Beall and Max Schafer bought the paper.[19] In 1953, it was acquired by Guyel T. Frost.[20]

In 1989, Jeff Fletcher, owner of the Grant County Journal,[2] purchased the Free Press from the Wilbur and Jantz families. At the time the paper has a circulation of 3,200.[21][22] Journal News Publishing was controlled by majority partner Jeff Fletcher, owner of the Grant County Journal.[2]

In 2007, Fletcher's sold his company, Journal News Publishing, to Bill Ifft. He renamed the company Free Press Publishing;[2] at the time the company owned several weekly newspapers in eastern Washington, including the Spokane Valley News Herald (its largest paper), the Davenport Times, and several specialty publications, and owned 70% of the Ritzville Journal.[23]

The company had previously had an ownership stake in the Newport Miner and the Grand Coulee Star, but had sold its interest to the local owners. The company planned to buy an additional press to support its own publications and also to serve other publications such as the Adams County Journal, the Wilbur Register, and the Miner.[2][23]

In Mach 2020, Free Press Publishing acquired the Odessa Record and The Whitman County Gazette. Both newspapers are published weekly.[24]

References

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  1. ^ "The Decline of Local News and Its Impact on Democracy" (PDF). League of Women Voters of Washington Education Fund. 2022-11-14.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Bagwell, Steve; Stapilus, Randy (2013). New Editions: The Northwest's newspapers as they were, are, and will be. Carlton, Oregon: Ridenbaugh Press. p. 196. ISBN 978-0-945648-10-9. OCLC 861618089.
  3. ^ "The State Press (seattle)". The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. April 23, 1896. p. 4. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  4. ^ Oliphant, J. Orin (July 1948). "Newspapers of Washington Territory". The Pacific Northwest Quarterly. 39 (3): 235.
  5. ^ Oliphant, J. Orin (January 1927). "Additions to Professor Meany's: Newspapers of Washington Territory". The Washington Historical Quarterly. Vol. 18, no. 1. pp. 33–54. JSTOR 40475079.
  6. ^ a b Hubbard, H. H.; Turner, D. J.; Ames, A. L. (May 28, 1896). "Regarding The Cheny Affray | Mr. Sutton Has No Connection With the Free Press". The Spokesman-Review. p. 3.
  7. ^ "The State Press". The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. April 23, 1896. p. 4.
  8. ^ a b "Spencer Buys Cheny Paper; Pioneer Publication Sold to Dean of Journalism at State University". Spokane Chronicle. March 12, 1926. p. 34.
  9. ^ "A Serious Fight At Cheny | George Wallis Badly Beaten by Dick Hutchenson". The Spokesman-Review. May 27, 1896. p. 1.
  10. ^ "Assault With A Deadly Weapon | Complaint Filed By Wallis Against Senator Hutchinson". The Spokesman-Review. May 30, 1896. p. 3.
  11. ^ "Fate Of A Senator | Hutchinson Assault Case Concluded and Given to the Jury". The Spokesman-Review. June 18, 1896. p. 7.
  12. ^ "Notes of the Courts". The Spokesman-Review. June 19, 1896. p. 7.
  13. ^ Edwards, Jonathan (1900). An Illustrated History of Spokane County, State of Washington. Eastern Washington Genealogical Society. p. 568.
  14. ^ The Inland Printer. Maclean-Hunter Publishing Corporation. 1900. p. 554.
  15. ^ "The Cheney Free Press". The Ellensburg Dawn. August 5, 1898. p. 2.
  16. ^ Oliphant, J. Orin (1912). "Featuring High School News". The Washington Newspaper. p. 231.
  17. ^ "The Cheney Free Press Libel Suit". The Washington Newspaper. 1912. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  18. ^ "Cheney Free Press- EWU". Eastern Washington University Library. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  19. ^ "Cheney, Wash., April 17". Medford Mail Tribune. Associated Press. April 17, 1936. p. 7.
  20. ^ "Cheney Free Press Publisher Dies". Corvallis Gazette-Times. Associated Press. July 19, 1968. p. 9.
  21. ^ "Editor & Publisher 1989-01-28: Vol 122 Iss 4". Editor and Publisher. Duncan McIntosh. January 28, 1989. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  22. ^ "1989 Non-Daily Newspaper Sales". Editor and Publisher. Duncan McIntosh. January 6, 1990. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  23. ^ a b Gustafson, Jeanne (July 26, 2007). "Cheney News Publisher Buys Out Partner". Journal of Business. Northwest Business Press Inc. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  24. ^ Thomas, Virginia (March 12, 2020). "Free Press Publishing acquires two newspapers: Cheney company adds weekly publications in Whitman County, Odessa". Spokane Journal of Business. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
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