History of the Whitehall Times
LEAVES 1880 BUILDING
Whitehall Times Moves
First Time In 78 Years
WHITEHALL. Wis. (Special) — The Whitehall Times, grandaddy of Trempealeau County's six weekly newspapers, has moved into larger quarters after 78 years in one spot.
Robert O. Gauger, editor and, publisher since purchasing The Times in 1952, recently bought the Briggs Motor Sales building farther north on Main street and this week published his first newspaper there. With this week's publication the format of the paper was changed slightly as a new automatic press was installed permitting the printing of four pages at a time.
* * *
The building from which The Times was moved had served as the newspaper office since 1880. Located at the east end of Dewey street, one of the main thoroughfares of the city, the white frame structure with the newspaper's name in black letters across the front was a landmark. The first newspaper was published in Whitehall in 1874 not far from the former premises in a building on what is now the city hall square
The Times, however, has a much longer history than 1880. With a 100-year history, it dates back indirectly to The Trempealeau Times, issued in 1858. and directly back to 1860 when the Galesville Transcript was founded by Samuel S. Luce. Mr. Luce retired from the Transcript in 1865, selling to Charles A. Leith and Hiram R. Gale. Two years later A. F. Booth bought Gale's interest in the business, and in 1867 Leith and Booth moved the plant to Trempealeau and changed the name of the paper to the Trempealeau County Record.
***
Two years later Booth became the sole proprietor and took T. D Stone as a partner.
In 1873 they sold the equipment to a Madison organization and the good will and subscription list to George S. Luce, who merged it with his Galesville Journal under the caption Journal-Record.
Then Bert Clark purchased it in 1874 and moved the plant to Whitehall, where it was known as the Messenger. The first editor here was Dan Camp.
* * *
In Jan. 1880, Fred E. Beach purchased the newspaper, called it the Whitehall Times, and in December of that year he was joined by his brother, Joseph B. Beach. The two brothers remained in partnership until 1887, when J. B. Beach became the sole owner.
In 1891 J. B. Beach changed the name to the Whitehall Times and Blair Banner. In the early 20s the name was changed back to the Whitehall Times.
Beach leased the paper to his brothers, Fred E. and Zachary T. Beach in 1915 and following J B.'s death in 1916, Fred Beach became the sole owner, remaining as such until forming a partnership with Scott B. Nichols in 1923.
Nichols purchased the newspaper from Beach in April 1929 and remained the owner until selling to the present editor and publisher, Robert O. Gauger of Arcadia in October 1952.
* * *
It is commonly said that once a printer, always a printer.
The four editors since 1880 got a whiff of printer’s ink early in life, grew up in the newspaper tradition, and stayed with it.
Joseph B. Beach, whose widow, Mrs. Hattie M. Beach, senior citizen of Whitehall in years of continuous residency, went to work for the Galesville Journal at the age of 21, two years later established the Galesville Independent, later started the North La Crosse Star with a partner, and came to Whitehall in 1880 to join his brother. Fred, who in January that year, had purchased the Whitehall Times from Dan Camp and B. F. Wing.
Nichols began his newspaper career at the age of 12 on the Melrose Chronicle and later was a journeyman printer in the west before coming to work for J. B. Beach on The Times in 1914. He left the printing trade in 1916 and farmed a few years, but returned to The Times m 1923 when he entered into partnership with Fred Beach. When he sold to Gauger in 1952, he moved to Lansing. Mich., but instead of retiring from the trade he was soon working in a job printing shop of that city.
* * *
The present editor was born into the Fourth Estate as his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Albert Gauger, have been in the business since their marriage, first in Kansas, then at Marshfield, and since 1939 at Arcadia. He was employed on the Arcadia News-Leader at the time he purchased The Times. This newspaper had the second linotype machine in Trempealeau County, purchasing a Model L in about 1918. The Independence News Wave has the distinction of having owned the first linotype, which it installed in about 1916.
The Times had the first automatic newspaper press folder in Trempealeau County, and some of the equipment still in use was here in 1880, includng the makeup stones which are of marble.
* * *
Until a few years ago when a new front door was installed in the former Times building, the year 1880 was engraved in the threshold, fixing the date when it was built. Whitehall was then an unincorporated village of 267 population. Its area was confined to the 19 city blocks of the original plat laid out in 1874 by Theodore H. Earle in the interest of his father-in-law, Henry Ketchum, who was then president of the Green Bay Minnesota (later Green Bay Western) railroad.
(from the Oct. 12, 1958, La Crosse [Wis.] Tribune.)
Whitehall Times Moves
First Time In 78 Years
WHITEHALL. Wis. (Special) — The Whitehall Times, grandaddy of Trempealeau County's six weekly newspapers, has moved into larger quarters after 78 years in one spot.
Robert O. Gauger, editor and, publisher since purchasing The Times in 1952, recently bought the Briggs Motor Sales building farther north on Main street and this week published his first newspaper there. With this week's publication the format of the paper was changed slightly as a new automatic press was installed permitting the printing of four pages at a time.
* * *
The building from which The Times was moved had served as the newspaper office since 1880. Located at the east end of Dewey street, one of the main thoroughfares of the city, the white frame structure with the newspaper's name in black letters across the front was a landmark. The first newspaper was published in Whitehall in 1874 not far from the former premises in a building on what is now the city hall square
The Times, however, has a much longer history than 1880. With a 100-year history, it dates back indirectly to The Trempealeau Times, issued in 1858. and directly back to 1860 when the Galesville Transcript was founded by Samuel S. Luce. Mr. Luce retired from the Transcript in 1865, selling to Charles A. Leith and Hiram R. Gale. Two years later A. F. Booth bought Gale's interest in the business, and in 1867 Leith and Booth moved the plant to Trempealeau and changed the name of the paper to the Trempealeau County Record.
***
Two years later Booth became the sole proprietor and took T. D Stone as a partner.
In 1873 they sold the equipment to a Madison organization and the good will and subscription list to George S. Luce, who merged it with his Galesville Journal under the caption Journal-Record.
Then Bert Clark purchased it in 1874 and moved the plant to Whitehall, where it was known as the Messenger. The first editor here was Dan Camp.
* * *
In Jan. 1880, Fred E. Beach purchased the newspaper, called it the Whitehall Times, and in December of that year he was joined by his brother, Joseph B. Beach. The two brothers remained in partnership until 1887, when J. B. Beach became the sole owner.
In 1891 J. B. Beach changed the name to the Whitehall Times and Blair Banner. In the early 20s the name was changed back to the Whitehall Times.
Beach leased the paper to his brothers, Fred E. and Zachary T. Beach in 1915 and following J B.'s death in 1916, Fred Beach became the sole owner, remaining as such until forming a partnership with Scott B. Nichols in 1923.
Nichols purchased the newspaper from Beach in April 1929 and remained the owner until selling to the present editor and publisher, Robert O. Gauger of Arcadia in October 1952.
* * *
It is commonly said that once a printer, always a printer.
The four editors since 1880 got a whiff of printer’s ink early in life, grew up in the newspaper tradition, and stayed with it.
Joseph B. Beach, whose widow, Mrs. Hattie M. Beach, senior citizen of Whitehall in years of continuous residency, went to work for the Galesville Journal at the age of 21, two years later established the Galesville Independent, later started the North La Crosse Star with a partner, and came to Whitehall in 1880 to join his brother. Fred, who in January that year, had purchased the Whitehall Times from Dan Camp and B. F. Wing.
Nichols began his newspaper career at the age of 12 on the Melrose Chronicle and later was a journeyman printer in the west before coming to work for J. B. Beach on The Times in 1914. He left the printing trade in 1916 and farmed a few years, but returned to The Times m 1923 when he entered into partnership with Fred Beach. When he sold to Gauger in 1952, he moved to Lansing. Mich., but instead of retiring from the trade he was soon working in a job printing shop of that city.
* * *
The present editor was born into the Fourth Estate as his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Albert Gauger, have been in the business since their marriage, first in Kansas, then at Marshfield, and since 1939 at Arcadia. He was employed on the Arcadia News-Leader at the time he purchased The Times. This newspaper had the second linotype machine in Trempealeau County, purchasing a Model L in about 1918. The Independence News Wave has the distinction of having owned the first linotype, which it installed in about 1916.
The Times had the first automatic newspaper press folder in Trempealeau County, and some of the equipment still in use was here in 1880, includng the makeup stones which are of marble.
* * *
Until a few years ago when a new front door was installed in the former Times building, the year 1880 was engraved in the threshold, fixing the date when it was built. Whitehall was then an unincorporated village of 267 population. Its area was confined to the 19 city blocks of the original plat laid out in 1874 by Theodore H. Earle in the interest of his father-in-law, Henry Ketchum, who was then president of the Green Bay Minnesota (later Green Bay Western) railroad.
(from the Oct. 12, 1958, La Crosse [Wis.] Tribune.)