Early Newspapers
of Sonoma County
Cloverdale
In the Spring of 1872, W. J. Bowman started the Cloverdale Review, the first paper in Cloverdale, but abandoned it after a few issues. Soon after, J. B. Baccus published the Cloverdale Bee for six months, before moving his paper to Lakeport where it became known as the Lakeport Bee. In Nov 1876, the Cloverdale News was started by W. S. Walker. After several issues, he sold his interest to J. F. Hoadley.
Guerneville
The Guerneville Times was successor to the Russian River Advertizer. Andy Smith, who had retired after 40 years as press foreman of a San Francisco paper was owner and editor of the Times.
Healdsburg
In Jan 1860, the Healdsburg Review was started by a pioneer from Napa named Alexander J. Cox, which ran until 1863. In May 1864, Fenno and Warren commenced the Advertiser with Cox as editor. A year later the name was change to the Weekly Advertizer. It changed hands again in 1865 and the name was also changed to the Democratic Review with J. E. Fenno as publisher and Cox as editor. Soon after it was sold to Mr. Farley who moved it to Clearlake, Lake County, where is became known as the Clearlake Courier.
Oct 7, 1865, the Democratic Standard was issued in Healdsburg. It was published by W. R. Morris and W. A. C. Smith, under the firm name of W. R. Morris & Co. Oct 3, 1866, Morris became sole proprietor and a few weeks after, transferred a half interest to J. B. Fitch. Jan 1867, Fitch became the sole proprietor and only one month later, sold out to Boggs and Menefee. A few weeks later, Mr. Boggs retired, with Smith taking his place, and the firm became Menefee & Co. In the winter of 1867-68, the Standard was again transferred to Fitch and Davis. In the Fall of 1868, the paper was sold to John G. Howell who changed the name to the Russian River Flag. In 1876, Howell sold the Flag to Mr. L. A. Jordan.
In the Spring of 1876, the Healdsburg Enterprise was started by Mulgrew Bros. & Wood. In 1888, the Tribune was established by Meyer and Abrams. Then the Sotoyome Sun was started by J. C. Keene in 1898. In 1929, the Tribune bought the Enterprise and The Tribune's owner operated the Enterprise as a seperate paper until 1938, when they were consolidated into a single newspaper, the Healdsburg Tribune and Enterprise. The name was later shortened to the Healdsburg Tribune.
Petaluma
The second newspaper in the county was the Petaluma Weekly Journal, published on Aug 18, 1855, by partners Thomas L. Thompson and Henry L. Weston, In Mar of 1856 Thompson sold his interest to Weston. Nov 1862 Weston sold a part interest in the Journal to T. W. Abraham and together they continued publication.
Meanwhile, on Nov 1859, J. J. Pennebacker launched a rival paper, the Petaluma Argus. In Dec 1860, Pennebacker sold his interest in the Argus to A. Drouilliard. In Jul 1861, he sold the Argus to James H. McNabb and Samuel Cassiday.
In Feb 1864, Weston decided to go to Nevada and start a paper there. He and Abraham sold the paper to McNabb and Cassiday, now the owners of the Argus. They merged the two papers into the Petaluma Journal & Argus.
In 1869, Weston, whose Nevada Journal had burnt to the ground a year after it's founding, returned to Petaluma. The Journal & Argus was sold back to him and he was publisher of the paper for the next ten years. In 1879, Cassiday also returned to Petaluma and became Weston's partner on the paper.
In the Summer of 1870, the first daily newspaper in Sonoma County, the Petaluma Daily Crescent began, with C. B. Woods as editor and A. McGuire as publisher. In the Spring of 1872, the Crescent was sold to H. M. Woods who discontinued it in the fall of that year. In the Fall of 1876, the Petaluma Courier was started by W. F. Shattuck, with attorney E. S. Lippitt as editor.
Santa Rosa
Alpheus W. Russell launched Santa Rosa's first newspaper, the Sonoma Democrat, on Oct 22, 1857. Less than a year later, on Aug 20, 1858, he sold the paper to E. R. Budd and S. H. Fowler. Fowler retired three months later on Nov 12, 1858 and was succeeded by B. F. Pinkham. In April of 1860, Thomas L. Thompson bought the Democrat. When it looked as if the railroad might bypass Santa Rosa, Thompson sold his Democrat in 1868, to Peabody, Farrell & Co., and moved to Vallejo, only to buy it back, in 1871.
In 1874, William A. Wheeler launched the Santa Rosa Press, as an alternative to the already established Democrat. In Dec 1875, The Press was purchased by George Marr, who changed it's name to the Santa Rosa Times. Thompson countered the competition from the Times, by starting a new publication, the Daily Democrat, in Jul 1875. The daily newspaper was an addition rather than a replacement to the regular weekly and did not survive. In 1895, Ernest L. Finley and two partners established a daily newspaper, the Evening Press. In 1897, Finley bought the Democrat from Thompson and merged the two papers into the Press Democrat.
Sonoma
Alexander J. Cox started the county's first newspaper, the Sonoma Bulletin, in June 1852. He folded the Bulletin, in 1855 and went to Vallejo where he published a newspaper. The next year he is found in Napa as editor of the Napa Reporter. He left the Reporter in 1858 to begin the Napa Sun. Soon after, he returned to Sonoma County and launched the Healdsburg Review in 1860.
With the departure of A. J. Cox in 1855, Sonoma remained without a newspaper for 24 years, until the Sonoma Index appeared on Apr 17, 1879, founded by Benjamin Frank. The Index had changed hands thirteen times and it's name changed to the Sonoma Tribune, when in 1884 Harry Granice came to Sonoma and purchased the paper from Edward L. Livernash. Granice soon had the paper paper on it's feet and changed the name to the Sonoma Index-Tribune. Granice ran a successful newspaper for thirty years until his death in 1915. Shortly before his death, Granice had married a young bride who inherited his entire estate including the newspaper. Granice's daughter Celeste and her husband Walter L. Murphy borrowed money from several old Sonoma families and purchased the paper from the estate.
In 1889, an opposition paper called the Sonoma Valley Expositor was started. The same year Thomas Bewsy Holmes launched the Sonoma Valley Whistle in El Verano. A newspaper called the Forum was started in 1915, by Harry and Adolph Lutgens. Two years later the Forum was sold to Mr. Waters of the Expositor and merged to form the Expositor-Forum.
My Elusive Ancestors
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