Geneva County Reaper

The Reaper was founded as the Geneva Reaper on July 3, 1901,[5] with Ed M. Johnson as editor and proprietor.[6][7] The Reaper absorbed the competing Geneva Journal in 1902.[8] By 1906, Johnson had moved purely to the business side of the paper, bringing on M. M. Brannen as head of editorial.[9]

Horace J. Wilkinson took over the paper from his father, Horace G. Wilkinson.[10] Horace J. printed the paper from 1928 until his sudden death in 1945, at the age of 48. Wilkinson made a note in his final printing of the paper, "Unless I feel stronger very quick, I won't attempt to issue a paper next week. I need a week's rest." He died 10 days later.[10] The paper was purchased by Howard, Clarence, and Alton Scott but did not publish another edition until February 1946, months after Wilkinson died.[11] In 1953, the three brothers also launched WGEA, the "Voice of the Geneva County Reaper." The station shut down in 2017.

Orsen Spivey, a former president of the Alabama Press Association,[12] was editor of the paper from 1947 until 1954.[13]

He handed the paper over to Joel P. Smith, who ran the paper until 1958. Sue Thomas became the general manager and editor in 1958.[14] For some time it was edited and published by Karol Fleming, the second woman to be elected to the Alabama Journalism Hall of Fame.[15]

Spivey sold the paper, along with three papers, to Specht Newspapers Inc. in 1984 for an undisclosed amount.[16]

Brenda and Moe Pujol purchased the Opp News and Geneva County newspapers, including the Geneva County Reaper, in 2008.[17] The formed Pujol Printing and Publishing LLC and operated the papers under that umbrella. Brenda Pujol died of breast cancer in 2016.[17][18]