Manchester Journal

The Manchester Journal is a weekly newspaper in Manchester, Vermont.[1] The paper, founded by Charles A. Pierce,[2] published its first issue on May 28, 1861. According to the American Newspapers Representative database, the Manchester Journal has a weekly circulation of 7,088 and is distributed every Friday.[3]

Manchester Journal
TypeWeekly Newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
Owner(s)New England Newspapers Inc.
PublisherNew England Newspapers Inc.
EditorDarren Marcy
FoundedMay 28, 1861
Headquarters3624 Main St., Manchester, VermontUnited States)
Circulation7,088
Websitehttps://www.manchesterjournal.com/

In 2012, the State of Vermont House of Representatives passed a Concurrent House Resolution (H.C.R. 39) congratulating the paper on its 150-year anniversary. The text of the resolution stated: “a reliable newspaper is an essential adjunct to facilitate the activities that transpire in a community such as Manchester, and whereas, since 1861, the Manchester Journal has ably fulfilled this role, chronicling the events of the day, promoting mercantile activity, and serving as a repository for legal notices…”[4]

Notable contributors and editors

One notable writer and editor for the Manchester Journal was Loveland Munson (1843-1921), who was an associate and later chief judge on the Vermont Supreme Court [source]. Munson served as a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1870. He edited the Journal from 1863–1866.[5]

Another writer for the Manchester Journal was Walter Rice Hard Sr., a Manchester, VT native[6] who ran the Johnny Appleseed Book Shop in Manchester. Hard wrote a regular column of unrhymed prose for the paper starting in 1924, in it sketching the nuances of Vermont people and life. Hard, who also authored nine books of poetry and two books of essays, wrote prose that described Vermont life in a unique way, earning him the admiration of more well-known writers like Robert Frost and Carl Sandberg.[7]

Management and ownership

The Manchester Journal was founded by Charles A. Pierce, who was a publisher from Battleboro, VT. Pierce hired D.K. Simonds to be on the paper's staff in 1871. D.K. Simonds purchased the paper later in 1871 remained owner and editor until 1905, when he sold it to Otto Bennett. The Bennett family owned the Journal until 1968, when it was sold to Jim and Gayle Gall. In 1983, it was acquired by the Kelton B. Miller family, who also owned the Bennington Banner, the Brattleboro Reformer, and the Berkshire Eagle, which was their largest circulation paper.[8] The four papers were acquired by MediaNews Group in 1995, which became Digital First Media after the 2008 market crash.[9] Under Digital First Media, all four papers saw significant staff reductions and, in 2015, they were once again offered for sale. This time, a group of local business people from Pittsfield, Massachusetts who wanted to reclaim the Berkshire Eagle as a local paper, purchased the papers’ parent company, known as New England Newspapers, Inc.

In 2016, Greg Sukiennik was named editor of the Manchester Journal.[10] After Manchester Journal's parent company, New England Newspapers Inc., was sold by Digital First Media to Birdland Acquisition, LLC (Young) in 2016, Greg Sukiennik became managing editor of all of New England Newspaper Inc.’s Vermont newspapers (the Bennington Banner, the Brattleboro Reformer, and the Manchester Journal).[11] Cherise Madigan was named editor of the Manchester Journal in January 2018.[12] In October 2018, 22-year veteran journalist Darren Marcy was named the Journal's editor.[13]

References
  1. Rowell, George Presbury (1887). Geo. P. Rowell and Co.'s American Newspaper Directory. Printers' Ink Publishing Company.
  2. Aldrich, Lewis Cass (1889). History of Bennington County, Vt: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. D. Mason. p. 190. manchester journal.
  3. "American Newspaper Representatives". gotoanr.com. Retrieved 2018-07-02.
  4. "Vermont State House of Representatives" (PDF). Vermont State House of Representatives. 2012. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  5. Ullery, Jacob G. (1894). Men of Vermont:an illustrated biographical history of Vermonters and sons of Vermont. Brattleboro. hdl:2027/loc.ark:/13960/t2n58w40j.
  6. "Walter Hard, Sr.: Vermont's Storekeeper—Writer, 1924 - Vermont Historical Society". vermonthistory.org. Retrieved 2018-07-03.
  7. "Epstein | Bookmarks: Walter Hard, a Vermont poet". The Brattleboro Reformer. Retrieved 2018-07-03.
  8. "A brief history of our newspapers". The Berkshire Eagle. April 22, 2016. ProQuest 1783558250.
  9. Kuttner, Robers (Winter 2018). "Saving the free press from private equity". The American Prospect: 22+ – via Gale General OneFile.
  10. "Manchester journal names its new editor". Bennington Banner. ProQuest 1822134198.
  11. Stroh, Sean (September 2017). "New England Newspaper Inc.'s". Editor & Publisher: 53 – via Gale General OneFile.
  12. Stroh, Sean (January 2018). "Manchester (Vt.) Journal". Editor & Publisher: 53 – via Gale General OneFile.
  13. "Veteran journalist appointed editor of the Journal". The Manchester Journal. Retrieved 2018-12-19.
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