Kansas City Journal-Post
Encyclopedia
The Kansas City Journal-Post was a newspaper
in Kansas City, Missouri
from 1854 to 1942 which was the oldest newspaper in the city when it folded.
It started as a weekly The Kansas City Enterprise on September 23, 1854, a year after the city's founding and shortly after The Public Ledger had folded. Kansas City's first Mayor William S. Gregory
and future mayors Milton J. Payne
and E. Milton McGee along with city fathers William Gillis, Benoist Troost, Thompson McDaniel, Robert Campbell
and Kansas City's first bank and biggest store Northrup and Chick pooled $1,000 to start it.
William A. Strong was its first editor and David K. Abeel was the first publisher. It operated above a tavern at Main Street and the Missouri River in the River Market
neighborhood.
In 1855, Strong enlisted another future mayor Robert T. Van Horn
to take over the paper. Van Horn bought it for $250 and retained Abeel as publisher.
In 1857 it became The Western Journal of Commerce and in 1858 it became The Kansas City Daily Western Journal of Commerce.
During the lead up to the American Civil War
the paper was to espouse the popular Missouri view that the status quo should not be disrupted. Missouri should remain in the Union and remain a slave state. When the war erupted Van Horn enlisted in the Union Army and the paper became staunchly Republican.
The paper was to actively encourage city fathers to invest to get the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad
to build the first bridge across the Missouri River at Kansas City. The construction of the Hannibal Bridge
in 1869 was to make Kansas City the dominant city in the region.
In 1880 William Rockhill Nelson
started The Kansas City Star
which would become the Journal-Post's primary competitor.
In 1896 Van Horn sold the paper to Charles S. Gleed and Hal Gaylord who renamed it The Kansas City Journal.
In 1906 Fuller Brooker founded The Kansas City Post proclaiming in its first issue:
In 1909 Denver Post publisher Frederick Gilmer Bonfils
and Harry Tammen bought the Post with J. Ogden Armour
being the silent partner. The Post with its tabloid format, red headlines and yellow journalism
was to tie its star to the rise of the Tom Pendergast
political machine.
In 1921 Walter Dickey bought the Journal. He bought the Post in 1922 and combined their operations and 22nd and Oak. Dickey poured money into the papers to compete with the Star ultimately bankrupting his own lucrative clay pipe manufacturing company. The papers combined as The Kansas City Journal-Post on October 4, 1928.
Dickey died in 1931 and his home was to become the first building at what would become the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
In 1938 with the beginning of the collapse of the Pendergast machine, the paper jetisoned the Post name and became The Kansas City Journal. Also in 1938 Journal photographer Jack Wally ran an undercover
photo expose of gambling houses under Pendergast that ran in Life Magazine.
The paper's last publication was on March 31, 1942. The paper's demise spelled the end of the last daily competition to the Star.
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
in Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
from 1854 to 1942 which was the oldest newspaper in the city when it folded.
It started as a weekly The Kansas City Enterprise on September 23, 1854, a year after the city's founding and shortly after The Public Ledger had folded. Kansas City's first Mayor William S. Gregory
William S. Gregory
William S. Gregory was the first mayor of Kansas City, Missouri in 1853.When Kansas City was incorporated on March 18, 1853, it had an area and a population of 2,500. 63 votes were cast for mayor and Gregory defeated Dr...
and future mayors Milton J. Payne
Milton J. Payne
Milton Jameson Payne , who served six one-year terms as Kansas City, Missouri Mayor, was also the city's youngest mayor ....
and E. Milton McGee along with city fathers William Gillis, Benoist Troost, Thompson McDaniel, Robert Campbell
Robert Campbell (Frontiersman)
For a list of other individuals by the same name, see Robert Campbell.Robert Campbell was an Irish immigrant who became an American frontiersman, fur trader and businessman. His St...
and Kansas City's first bank and biggest store Northrup and Chick pooled $1,000 to start it.
William A. Strong was its first editor and David K. Abeel was the first publisher. It operated above a tavern at Main Street and the Missouri River in the River Market
River Market
The River Market is a riverfront neighborhood in Kansas City, Missouri that comprises the first and oldest incorporated district in Kansas City.-Background:...
neighborhood.
In 1855, Strong enlisted another future mayor Robert T. Van Horn
Robert T. Van Horn
Robert Thompson Van Horn was a lawyer, the owner and publisher of the The Kansas City Enterprise, mayor of Kansas City, Missouri during the parts of the Civil War, member of the Missouri General Assembly, and representative to the Forty-seventh Congress of the United States.Born in East Mahoning...
to take over the paper. Van Horn bought it for $250 and retained Abeel as publisher.
In 1857 it became The Western Journal of Commerce and in 1858 it became The Kansas City Daily Western Journal of Commerce.
During the lead up to the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
the paper was to espouse the popular Missouri view that the status quo should not be disrupted. Missouri should remain in the Union and remain a slave state. When the war erupted Van Horn enlisted in the Union Army and the paper became staunchly Republican.
The paper was to actively encourage city fathers to invest to get the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad
Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad
The Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad was the first railroad to cross Missouri starting in Hannibal in the northeast and going to St. Joseph, Missouri, in the northwest...
to build the first bridge across the Missouri River at Kansas City. The construction of the Hannibal Bridge
Hannibal Bridge
The First Hannibal Bridge was the first bridge to cross the Missouri River and was to establish Kansas City, Missouri as a major city and rail center....
in 1869 was to make Kansas City the dominant city in the region.
In 1880 William Rockhill Nelson
William Rockhill Nelson
William Rockhill Nelson was a real estate developer and founder of The Kansas City Star. He donated his estate for the establishment of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.-Early life:...
started The Kansas City Star
The Kansas City Star
The Kansas City Star is a McClatchy newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri, in the United States. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes...
which would become the Journal-Post's primary competitor.
In 1896 Van Horn sold the paper to Charles S. Gleed and Hal Gaylord who renamed it The Kansas City Journal.
In 1906 Fuller Brooker founded The Kansas City Post proclaiming in its first issue:
- It will be our purpose in politics to avoid participation in factional disputes and personal quarrels, and seek the general welfare of the Democratic party as a whole, and that only.
In 1909 Denver Post publisher Frederick Gilmer Bonfils
Frederick Gilmer Bonfils
Frederick Gilmer Bonfils , U.S. publisher who made the Denver Post into one of the largest newspapers in the United States....
and Harry Tammen bought the Post with J. Ogden Armour
J. Ogden Armour
Jonathan Ogden Armour was an American meatpacking magnate in Chicago, and owner and president of Armour and Company. During his tenure as president, Armour & Co...
being the silent partner. The Post with its tabloid format, red headlines and yellow journalism
Yellow journalism
Yellow journalism or the yellow press is a type of journalism that presents little or no legitimate well-researched news and instead uses eye-catching headlines to sell more newspapers. Techniques may include exaggerations of news events, scandal-mongering, or sensationalism...
was to tie its star to the rise of the Tom Pendergast
Tom Pendergast
Thomas Joseph Pendergast controlled Kansas City and Jackson County, Missouri as a political boss. "Boss Tom" Pendergast gave workers jobs and helped elect politicians during the Great Depression, becoming wealthy in the process.-Early years:Thomas Joseph Pendergast, also known to close friends as...
political machine.
In 1921 Walter Dickey bought the Journal. He bought the Post in 1922 and combined their operations and 22nd and Oak. Dickey poured money into the papers to compete with the Star ultimately bankrupting his own lucrative clay pipe manufacturing company. The papers combined as The Kansas City Journal-Post on October 4, 1928.
Dickey died in 1931 and his home was to become the first building at what would become the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
In 1938 with the beginning of the collapse of the Pendergast machine, the paper jetisoned the Post name and became The Kansas City Journal. Also in 1938 Journal photographer Jack Wally ran an undercover
Undercover
Being undercover is disguising one's own identity or using an assumed identity for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization to learn secret information or to gain the trust of targeted individuals in order to gain information or evidence...
photo expose of gambling houses under Pendergast that ran in Life Magazine.
The paper's last publication was on March 31, 1942. The paper's demise spelled the end of the last daily competition to the Star.