Morning Sentinel
Encyclopedia
The Morning Sentinel is a seven-day morning daily newspaper published in Waterville, Maine
, USA. From 1998 to 2009, it was owned by Blethen Maine Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Seattle Times Company
. It was then sold to MaineToday Media. The newspaper covers cities and towns in parts of Kennebec County, Somerset County, Franklin County and Penobscot County. The paper is printed at the Kennebec Journal
press in Augusta, Maine
.
; and future mayor L. Eugene Thayer, leavened by newspaper veteran Thomas F. Murphy -- the Waterville Morning Sentinel, within a year, grew from a three-desk operation to requiring its own building, on Silver Street.
In 1911, a financially ailing Davis sold the paper to bond holders; ten years later, it was bought by Guy Gannett, who was in the process of building a newspaper, radio and television empire in Maine. His holdings included the Portland Press Herald
and, after 1929, the Sentinel's in-county competitor, the Kennebec Journal
.
Gannett's ownership also saw the paper become less politically biased.
Gannett and his heirs -- no relation to the Virginia-based chain called Gannett Company
-- held the three Maine dailies until 1998, when they sold them to The Seattle Times Company
, which rechristened the chain "Blethen Maine Newspapers." Frank Blethen, a descendant of Seattle Times founder Albert Blethen, a Maine native, later called the purchase "the largest and riskiest investment in our history" but a necessary move to keep the newspapers from becoming part of a corporate chain.
In December 2009, the newspaper was criticized for firing one of its journalists who had made negative remarks about the gay-rights group Human Rights Campaign
.
Waterville, Maine
Waterville is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, United States, on the west bank of the Kennebec River. The population was 15,722 at the 2010 census. Home to Colby College and Thomas College, Waterville is the regional commercial, medical and cultural center....
, USA. From 1998 to 2009, it was owned by Blethen Maine Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company is a privately owned publisher of daily and weekly newspapers in the U.S. state of Washington. Founded in Seattle, Washington, in 1896, the company is now in its fourth and fifth generations of ownership by the Blethen family....
. It was then sold to MaineToday Media. The newspaper covers cities and towns in parts of Kennebec County, Somerset County, Franklin County and Penobscot County. The paper is printed at the Kennebec Journal
Kennebec Journal
The Kennebec Journal is a seven-day morning daily newspaper published in Augusta, Maine. From 1998 to 2009, it was owned by Blethen Maine Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Seattle Times Company. It was then sold to MaineToday Media. The newspaper covers the capital area and southern Kennebec...
press in Augusta, Maine
Augusta, Maine
Augusta is the capital of the US state of Maine, county seat of Kennebec County, and center of population for Maine. The city's population was 19,136 at the 2010 census, making it the third-smallest state capital after Montpelier, Vermont and Pierre, South Dakota...
.
History
Originally founded in 1904 by officials of the Waterville Democratic Party -- Waterville mayor Cyrus Davis; future U.S. Senator Charles Fletcher JohnsonCharles Fletcher Johnson
Charles Fletcher Johnson was a Democratic U.S. Senator from Maine from 1911 until 1917.-Biography:Born in Winslow, Maine, he attended the public schools and the Waterville Classical Institute. He graduated from Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine, in 1879. He was the principal of the high school of...
; and future mayor L. Eugene Thayer, leavened by newspaper veteran Thomas F. Murphy -- the Waterville Morning Sentinel, within a year, grew from a three-desk operation to requiring its own building, on Silver Street.
In 1911, a financially ailing Davis sold the paper to bond holders; ten years later, it was bought by Guy Gannett, who was in the process of building a newspaper, radio and television empire in Maine. His holdings included the Portland Press Herald
Portland Press Herald
The Portland Press Herald publish daily newspapers in Portland, Maine, USA...
and, after 1929, the Sentinel
Kennebec Journal
The Kennebec Journal is a seven-day morning daily newspaper published in Augusta, Maine. From 1998 to 2009, it was owned by Blethen Maine Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Seattle Times Company. It was then sold to MaineToday Media. The newspaper covers the capital area and southern Kennebec...
.
Gannett's ownership also saw the paper become less politically biased.
Gannett and his heirs -- no relation to the Virginia-based chain called Gannett Company
Gannett Company
Gannett Company, Inc. is a publicly-traded media holding company headquartered in Tysons Corner, Virginia, United States, near McLean. It is the largest U.S. newspaper publisher as measured by total daily circulation. Its assets include the national newspaper USA Today and the weekly USA Weekend...
-- held the three Maine dailies until 1998, when they sold them to The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company is a privately owned publisher of daily and weekly newspapers in the U.S. state of Washington. Founded in Seattle, Washington, in 1896, the company is now in its fourth and fifth generations of ownership by the Blethen family....
, which rechristened the chain "Blethen Maine Newspapers." Frank Blethen, a descendant of Seattle Times founder Albert Blethen, a Maine native, later called the purchase "the largest and riskiest investment in our history" but a necessary move to keep the newspapers from becoming part of a corporate chain.
In December 2009, the newspaper was criticized for firing one of its journalists who had made negative remarks about the gay-rights group Human Rights Campaign
Human Rights Campaign
The Human Rights Campaign is the United States' largest LGBT advocacy group and lobbying organization; according to the HRC, it has more than one million members and supporters...
.