Baldwin Times
| Type | Twice weekly Newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner(s) | Gulf Coast Newspapers, Osteen Publishing Company |
| Publisher | Parks Rogers |
| Editor | Cliff McCollum |
| Founded | 1890 |
| Headquarters | 901 N. McKenzie St., Foley, Alabama, United States |
| Circulation | 1,000 |
| OCLC number | 11836647 |
| Website | http://www.gulfcoastnewstoday.com/baldwin-times/ |
The Baldwin Times is a twice-weekly newspaper serving the Bay Minette area in the U.S. state of Alabama. It has a current circulation of about 1,000 as of 2018.[1]
History
Founded in 1890 as the Daphne Times the paper was relaunched five years later as the Baldwin Times after local lawyer Abner Smith bought the publication for seventy-five dollars at a foreclosure auction in 1894.[2][3][4] Initial subscriptions numbered only around 250.[2] The paper moved from Daphne to Bay Minette in 1901[5] where, suffering from illness, Smith sold it in 1905 to Ira Jones,[2][6] but later bought back the paper, running it from 1911 to his death in 1922.[2] It was sold to R.B. Vail, a former manager at the Western Newspaper Union in July 1922.[7][8] The following year Vail would go on to buy the Atmore Record.[8] In 1927, he was elected president of the Alabama Press Association.[9]
The Times was acquired in 1936 by James W. Faulkner, a recent college graduate who later ran for Governor, and served both in the Alabama Senate and as mayor of Baldwin.[10] Faulkner expanded his holdings in 1947 when he bought the Monroe Journal from A.C. Lee (Harper Lee's father) for fifteen thousand dollars.[11] Jimmy Faulkner was later given a "Lifetime Achievement Award" by the Alabama Press Association and both Faulkner University and Faulkner Community College System are named in his honor. The Faulkner family owned the Baldwin Times until 1974, when they sold it to Frank Helderman and his son.[12] [13]
Helderman Jr. sold the Baldwin Times, which was then part of the Baldwin Publishing Company, to Terry Everett in 1981.[14] In 1983, Everett established Gulf Coast Media, which included the Baldwin Times, along with five other papers he purchased.[14] Everett went on to sell all of his papers in 1988 and was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992, where he served until 2009.
Gulf Coast Newspapers was sold by Worrell Enterprises Inc. to Heritage Newspapers Inc. in 1996.[15] It was owned by Crescent Publishing Company from 2000-2014.[16] In 2014, Gulf Coast Newspapers was purchased by Osteen Publishing Company News.[16] As of 2018, Osteen Publishing Company still owns and publishes the Baldwin Times.[17]
Awards
In 2018, Gulf Coast Newspapers and the Baldwin Times won the first place award from the Alabama Press Association for the following:[18]
- Best Editorial Column or Commentary for “Alabama can be better” by Cliff McCollum
- Best Humorous Column for “Call center crazies” by Cliff McCollum
- Best Editorial for “What will you decide to do?” by Gulf Coast Media Editorial Board
References
- ^ "Baldwin Times". Mondo Times. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
- ^ a b c d Crosby, Samuel Neil (2002). The Sleeping Juror & Other Baldwin County Courtroom Tales and History. Alabama Law Foundation. ISBN 9780971777606.
- ^ "Personal and Pertinent". Pensacola News. Pensacola, Florida. 8 April 1895.
- ^ "Among the Alabama Papers". The Alabama Inquirer. Hartselle, Alabama. 11 April 1895.
- ^ Lewis, John C.; Outlaw, Harriet Brill (2009). Baldwin County. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9780738568348.
- ^ "Baldwin Times Changes Hands". Atmore Record. Atmore, Alabama. 12 January 1905.
- ^ "Welcome, Friend Vail, into the Community Newspaper World". The Weekly Herald. Wetumpka, Alabama. 13 July 1922.
- ^ a b "Atmore Record Now Owned by R.B. Vai". The Florala News. Florala, Alabama.
- ^ "APA to Honor Past Presidents In Convention at Panama City". The Montgomery Advertiser. Montgomery, Alabama. 9 July 1952.
- ^ "Handsome, Young Mr. Faulkner Puts Color in the Governor Race". The Anniston Star. Anniston, Alabama. 28 March 1954.
- ^ Shields, Charles J. (2007-04-01). Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee. Macmillan. ISBN 9781429900911.
- ^ Jr, John Northrop; Suitts, Steve; Tullos, Allen; Waid, Candace; Goodwyn, Larry; Blackwell, Gloria; Thrasher, Sue; Conway, Leonard; English, John. Focus on the Media. The Institute for Southern Studies.
- ^ "3 Baldwin Weeklies Are Sold - Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2018-08-13.
- ^ a b "Everett Buys Balwin's Six Weeklies - Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2018-08-13.
- ^ "Redirect Page". bi.galegroup.com. Retrieved 2018-08-13.
- ^ a b "Five Baldwin newspapers under new ownership - Lagniappe Mobile". Lagniappe Mobile. 2014-09-03. Retrieved 2018-08-13.
- ^ "About Us | The Sumter Item". www.theitem.com. Retrieved 2018-08-13.
- ^ "Gulf Coast Media newspapers win 7 Alabama Press awards". GulfCoastNewsToday.com. Retrieved 2018-08-14.