The Florida Times-Union

The Florida Times-Union is a daily newspaper in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Widely known as the oldest newspaper in the state, it began publication as the Florida Union in 1864. Its current incarnation started in 1883, when the Florida Union merged with another Jacksonville paper, the Florida Daily Times.[2]

The Florida Times-Union
The 5 March 2007 front page of
The Florida Times-Union
TypeDaily newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
Owner(s)Gannett
Founder(s)
  • J. K. Stickney
  • W. C. Morrill
  • Charles H. Jones
EditorPaul Runnestrand
Founded1864 (1864) (as the Florida Union)
Headquarters1 Independent Drive, Suite 200
Jacksonville, Florida 32202
US
Circulation27,818[1]
ISSN0740-2325
Websitejacksonville.com

In 1983, Morris Communications of Augusta, Georgia, purchased Florida Publishing Company. The Times-Union became the largest newspaper of this chain, which owns a number of newspapers around the country. The paper is now owned by Gannett. Its editor is Paul Runnestrand.

History

In 1864, during the American Civil War, J. K. Stickney and W. C. Morrill published the first edition of the Florida Union. It was a Northern and Republican paper, at the time when Jacksonville was occupied by the Union Army. By 1867, Stickney sold the Florida Union to Edward M. Cheney, of Boston. Cheney tried to make the paper into a daily publication but lacked the needed money. The Union was sold to Walton, Fowle & Co. in 1873. Stockholder C. F. Mawbey assumed control and turned the Union into a daily publication. Cheney returned to the Union as an editor.

In 1876, the Union was in decline and abandoned daily publication. Financially doomed, it was sold to H. B. McCallum, who then returned it to daily publication and converted it from an afternoon to a morning paper. Charles H. Jones wanted to buy the Union but was refused by McCallum. Annoyed, Jones started a rival paper, the Florida Daily Times, in November 1881. By 1883, the Daily Times was dominating the Union. McCallum became ill and finally decided to sell the paper to the Daily Times. The Union then combined with the Daily Times to form The Florida Times-Union, whose first edition was published on February 4, 1883.[3]

The paper was partisan and worked to promote railroad interests.[4] The Daily Times was reporting on election related violence in 1882.[5]

On February 11, 2018, The Florida Times-Union printed its last papers in Jacksonville after 154 years. The Florida Times-Union newspapers are now printed at The Gainesville Sun and The Daytona Beach News-Journal, which are both owned by Gatehouse Media.[6] On April 1, 2019, The Florida Times-Union moved to the Wells Fargo building at 1 Independent Drive, Suite 200 in downtown Jacksonville.[7]

  • The Florida Times-Union (far right) in the 1880s.
    The Florida Times-Union (far right) in the 1880s.
  • The pressroom in 1911.
    The pressroom in 1911.
  • The Florida Times Union employees using linotype machines in 1972.
    The Florida Times Union employees using linotype machines in 1972.
  • The offices of The Florida Times-Union from 1967 to 2019.
    The offices of The Florida Times-Union from 1967 to 2019.

Ownership

For most of the 20th century, The Florida Times-Union was owned by the Florida Publishing Company, which was in turn jointly owned by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, the Florida East Coast Railway, and the Seaboard Air Line Railway, the three main railroads serving Jacksonville, having been acquired in equal shares by them or their corporate predecessors about 1896.[8] The Coast Line and the Seaboard merged in 1967 and were predecessors of CSX Transportation; the Florida East Coast has maintained its corporate identity into the 21st century. Both railroads have their headquarters in Jacksonville, the railroad hub of the state.

In 1983 Morris Communications of Augusta, Georgia, acquired the Florida Publishing Company for $200 million.[9] In October 2017 Gatehouse Media acquired the Times-Union from Morris Communications, in conjunction with numerous other papers across the country, for $120 million.[10]

See also

References
  1. "Member Directory". Florida Press Association. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  2. "The Florida Times-Union". Morris Communications Company, LLC. Archived from the original on May 3, 2007. Retrieved March 5, 2007.
  3. Foley, Bill. "History of the Florida Times-Union". Jacksonville.com. Archived from the original on February 25, 2011. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  4. "The Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville, Fla.) 1903-Current". Library of Congress.
  5. Congress, United States (1889). "Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress".
  6. Benfield, David (February 11, 2018). "End of an era: Florida Times-Union prints its last paper in Jacksonville". WJXT. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  7. "Florida Times-Union moves to Wells Fargo building downtown". Jacksonville.com. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  8. United States Senate, Committee on Interstate Commerce (1942). Investigations of Railroads, Holding Companies, and Affiliated Companies, and Related Matters, Volume 16, Part 26: Seaboard Air Line Railway. Washington, D. C.: U. S. Government Printing Office. pp. 11785–11812. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  9. "Fact Sheet". morris.com. Archived from the original on May 12, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  10. "Times-Union gets new ownership with closing of purchase by GateHouse Media". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
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