150 years: 1873 to 2023

Tri-Weekly Astorian debuts

On the morning of Tuesday, July 1, 1873, a crowd milled at the corner of 10th and Commercial streets until Tri-Weekly Astorian Publisher DeWitt Clinton Ireland threw open his office doors and started selling papers.

The book “The Astorian” by Roger Tetlow reports that the city’s first newspaper since 1866 sold out by noon that day — and Ireland said he wished he had printed more than 500 copies.

Business? You could say it was booming.

That four-page issue of the Tri-Weekly Astorian established a tradition that celebrates its 150th “birthday” July 1, 2023.

The news of the day was presented differently in 1873. Headlines, when they were used, were in small type and confined to one column, as were the stories. Small news briefs, sometimes no more than a sentence long, were front-page news and had to share space with classified advertising.

These excerpts are taken from the pages of the first issue:

• “Capt. George Flavel, who has been to California overseeing work on the barkentine Jane A. Falkinburg for a month past, is expected home to-day.”

• “OUT OF SORTS – For the want of certain letters in the alphabet which the type founders neglected to send with the bulk of the type ordered, much that we wished to say to-day in the first issue of the ASTORIAN is necessarily omitted.”

• “U.S. Mail and Express. From Astoria to Clatsop Beach! Fast Horses! Good Carriage!”

• J.W. Gearhart — Dealer in hay, grain and feed with “a general assortment of groceries” including “flour, bacon, hams, shoulders, lard, butter, cheese and eggs.”

• The Steam Tug Varuna leaves Astoria Tuesday and Saturday mornings for Fort Stevens, Cape Disappointment and Unity carrying mail, passengers and freight.

• A yearly subscription to the four-page paper, published on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, cost only $5. Ads cost $1.50 per square per month.

Small beginnings, big dreams

With no education beyond age 12, Ireland learned the newspaper trade as an apprentice in South Bend, Ind. At 19, he founded his first paper in Mishawaka, Ind.

Three years after he began the Tri-Weekly Astorian, Ireland grew ambitious. The Tri-Weekly Astorian evolved into The Morning Astorian May 1, 1876 — Astoria’s first daily newspaper.

The daily glory lasted just over a month. Faced with low profits, Ireland was forced to cut publication to weekly status June 19, 1876.

To raise financial stability, the company branched out, printing salmon canning labels. In another year — on June 2, 1877 — the paper went daily again.

In 1881, Ireland sold the paper to John F. Halloran and Pitman W. Parker. The paper would change hands several times until 1930, when it merged with the Astoria Evening Budget, a separate paper founded in 1893 by Oscar W. Dunbar and John Gratke.

Evolution

In more than 150 years, The Astorian — be it Morning, Evening, Budget, Tri-Weekly or Daily — has changed.

News used to come to the remote city of Astoria by horse and buggy; now, computers and satellite links transmit news from around the world. Gone forever are the days of hand-engraved and hand-set type and pictures; our journalists use computers and smartphones to write and edit local stories, compose headlines and design pages.

However, some things never change. The names and places in the articles and advertisements from that July 1, 1873 issue are familiar. Gearhart, Van Dusen, and Flavel can be found in The Astorian today.

The Astorian was under the leadership of the Aldrich-Forrester family for nine decades. In 1968, Michael Forrester became editor; three years later he was named editor-publisher. In 1973, when the Astorian-Budget Publishing Company merged with the East Oregonian Publishing Company (later EO Media Group), Michael Forrester became editor of the East Oregonian in Pendleton and his father, J.W. Forrester, who had been at Pendleton, was appointed editor of The Daily Astorian.

In 1988, J.W. Forrester retired and his son, Steve Forrester, assumed the post.

Steve Forrester added the publisher role to that of editor in 2000.

In 2013, EO Media Group bought the Seaside Signal, Cannon Beach Gazette and Coast River Business Journal from Country Media to expand its coastal reach.

In July 2016, after 28 years at The Daily Astorian’s helm, Steve Forrester retired. David Pero, former chief operating officer of the Eugene Register-Guard, became the publisher and editor.

In August 2017, Jim Van Nostrand was named editor. Kari Borgen was named publisher in December.

Managing editor Derrick DePledge was promoted to editor in August 2019.

Timeline

1873 Tri-Weekly Astorian founded by DeWitt Clinton Ireland.

1877 Tri-Weekly Astorian (later Morning Astorian) moved to southwest corner of 10th and Commercial.

1892 Astorian bought first Linotype on Pacific Coast.

1893 Astoria Evening Budget founded by Oscar Dunbar and John Gratke.

1903 Morning Astorian sold to John S. Dellinger.

1919 Evening Budget sold to E.B. Aldrich, Lee Drake, Fred Lampkin and Merle Chessman of Pendleton.

1922 Astoria fire destroyed both the Morning Astorian and Evening Budget buildings. Astorian resumed printing three days later at The Toveri (Finnish) newspaper in town. Budget was printed for a while by the Seaside Signal.

1930 Upon death of J.S. Dellinger, Mrs. Dellinger sold to E.B. Aldrich, Fred Lampkin, Lee D. Drake and Merle Chessman. Name changed to Evening Astorian-Budget and moved to plant on Exchange Street.

1947 Publisher Merle Chessman died. His son, Robert Chessman, was named publisher and Fred Andrus editor.

1948 Bought new Duplex, 16-page press. Moved to remodeled Troy Laundry building at 10th and Duane.

1959 Chessman family sold stock to the other stockholders. Morgan Coe named publisher.

1960 Name changed from Astorian-Budget to The Daily Astorian.

1969 Fred Andrus retired and Mike Forrester became editor.

1970 Paper moved into new building at 10th and Exchange, and an offset web press was installed.

1971 Morgan Coe retired. Mike Forrester became editor.

1973 J.W. Forrester became editor, and Mike Forrester moved to East Oregonian.

1988 Steve Forrester named editor of The Daily Astorian, upon J.W. Forrester’s retirement.

1996 The Daily Astorian goes online at dailyastorian.com

2000 Steve Forrester named publisher of The Daily Astorian.

2003 Steve Forrester becomes president of East Oregonian Publishing Co.

2010 Goss Community press is retired and replaced with a newer model with expanded page and color capacity.

2012 Publishes first edition of Our Coast magazine and launches DiscoverOurCoast.com

2013 East Oregonian Publishing Co. changes its name to EO Media Group

2016 Steve Forrester retires.

2017 Kari Borgen named as publisher.

2019 The Daily Astorian again becomes The Astorian, publishing Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.  Derrick DePledge promoted to editor of the Astorian.

2024 The Astorian, as part of EO Media Group, is acquired by CMGEO.