Four generations of newspaper publishing ends
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
From left, Lucy Northrop Corwin, director of news for the Observer-Reporter; Tom Northrop, publisher, and Grace Northrop Dalmolin, digital strategist, pose for one last photo in front of the Observer-Reporter on South Main Street in downtown Washington.
Observer Publishing Co. founder John L. Stewart with his grandsons, William B. Northrop Sr., left, and John L.S. Northrop, in 1940.
John L. Stewart
Margaretta Stewart, owner and publisher of The Observer and The Reporter, presses the start button on the new Goss Headliner press on June 21, 1959. From left are general manager James Lyon, Lucy Stewart Northrop, John L.S. Northrop and William B. Northrop.
Brothers and co-publishers John L.S. Northrop, left, and William B. Northrop Sr. pose with the new MAN-Roland Mediaman offset press in June 1993.
It’s with a heavy heart that I write this for the final day of ownership for our family. After 116 years, we have sold the newspaper we were privileged to own and operate for four generations.
John L. Stewart, my great-grandfather, who led the Observer Publishing Co. from 1902 until his death in 1940, established a legacy of community involvement that we have always tried to follow. Our decision to sell was difficult, but ultimately we decided that the best way to serve our community was to make sure the Observer-Reporter could endure for many more generations. Ogden Newspapers are committed to local news and local advertising, and they have a track record of retaining every newspaper they’ve purchased. Ogden will also actively participate in the incubator project with Washington & Jefferson College, which could have a significant impact on the community.
As our family’s era ends, I want to thank our staff, our advertisers and our readers.
To my work family: Words don’t adequately describe the admiration and respect I have for our staff, as fine a group of people I’ve ever known. They are dedicated to getting it right every day and passionate about their jobs.
To our advertisers: We wouldn’t have survived this long without a strong base of loyal, local advertisers. I would encourage everyone to buy locally when possible.
To our readers: Thank you for your passion. Local news can’t survive without engaged readers who care about what they read each day. I have taken a lot of calls from disgruntled readers over the years, and quickly learned that if the call started with “When I read my paper,” the call would generally go well. When it began, “When I read your paper,” I was in trouble. I would much rather have had those types of calls than none at all. Keep on caring.
It is difficult for any business to make it into five generations. Our family grew up with the Observer-Reporter at its heart. Most of us worked here during summers. We all did stints at the county fair. We worked in marketing, painted the basement, went door-to-door selling subscriptions, delivered papers to carriers at midnight, grew up to serve on the board, and shared a love of the special smell of ink and paper. Whether we made journalism a career or not, we all learned that we have a responsibility to the community and a duty to search for the truth.
We loved that sense of family, and it sustained us as we suffered together the tragic loss of a cousin, sister and daughter.
I’m grateful for the mentorship from my father and uncle and the support of my family over the years. I’m proud of all we’ve accomplished and believe we’ve made a difference. Thank you for your support.