Page:History of Oregon Newspapers.pdf/396

Rh 1887 E. C. Phelps was editing the Mail, but it died soon afterward. Aldrich carried on his paper until 1889. Development was not meeting expectations.

C. D. Ullmer entered the picture with another Newport paper, the Yaquina Republican, in 1888, issuing on Thursdays. The paper lived three years.

In the depression year of 1893 came the founding of the two newspapers which have come on down to the present. February 20 saw the official establishment of the new county of Lincoln, and this event no doubt is responsible for the two successful journalistic ventures.

The Yaquina Bay News came first, by a matter of five weeks, for it was launched February 2, at Newport, while the Lincoln County Leader was started in the up-river town of Toledo March 9.

By that time the other Newport papers had faded out, but Van Cleve was conducting the Post at Toledo.

The News, edited by John E. Matthews, was not received with tremendous acclaim in its opening days. Other papers had died, the railroad was in the receiver's hands, and the idea of a local paper in such a small place was regarded as just not good sense. But the paper is st running, in the hands of the same family as started it. The paper was for Republicanism and prohibition; still is. The News started and has been, most of the time, a seven-column, 13-em paper. The early editions had two of the four pages "patent," shipped in from Portland by Palmer & Rey, and later, American Type Founders. Times were dull, and of the 28 columns only 3 were devoted to advertising. The subscription rate of $1.50 was none too easy to get. In 1905 Capt. William Matthews succeeded his father in the editorship. J. E. Matthews died March 23, 1935, after an active connection of 38 years with the News, having been inactive only during the last few years.

The Newport Journal, a Wednesday weekly, was started by Robert E. Davey in 1925. Mr. Davey is assisted by his wife, who is linotype operator.

The Lincoln County Leader, of Toledo, began its 47th year March 9, 1939. J. F. Stewart was running the World at Woodburn in opposition to the Independent, and when the new county was established he saw a chance to get away from his competition and grow into a promising field. He visited Toledo, looked the situation over, and March 9 he was out with volume 1, No. 1 of the Lincoln County Leader. The streets of the young town were mud roads, population was scant, and the place had little but its hopes. Yaquina, the railroad terminal, was still the leading commercial town on the bay; Newport had its developing tourist trade, and even they were not prosperous newspaper towns; Yaquina's papers, in fact, had de-