Brush-Moore Newspapers

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Brush-Moore Newspapers, Inc. was a United States newspaper group based in Ohio which had its origins in 1923 and was sold to Thomson Newspapers in 1967 for $72 million, the largest ever newspaper transaction at that time.[1][2]

In 1923, Louis Herbert Brush, who had joined the Salem News (of Salem, Ohio) as a manager in 1894 and purchased it in 1897,[3] entered into a partnership with Roy Donald Moore and William Henry Vodrey, Jr. to purchase The Marion Star from then-U.S. President Warren G. Harding.[4][5] By 1924, Time magazine already noted the group as one of the prominent newspaper groups in the country, with four papers and a total circulation of 30,906.[6] In 1927, the "Brush-Moore" chain was created from their holdings.[3]

Joseph K. Vodrey, son of W.H. Vodrey Jr., became general manager of Brush-Moore Newspapers, Inc. in 1946. Vodrey was Vice-President and a member of the Brush-Moore board of directors from 1951 to 1968, when he retired. He also served as Vice-President and as a Director of the Beaverkettle Company.

At the time of the 1967 sale, Brush-Moore owned 12 daily papers, including six in Ohio (the Canton Repository, East Liverpool Review, Salem News, Steubenville Herald, Marion Star, and Portsmouth Times) three in California (Times-Standard, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, and Oxnard Press-Courier), and one in Maryland (Salisbury Daily Times), Pennsylvania (Hanover Evening Sun), and West Virginia (Weirton Daily Times), with a total circulation of approximately 540,000.[1][7]

Holdings

Ohio

  • Salem News. Owned by Brush since 1897. Sold to Thomson in 1967.
  • East Liverpool Review. Acquired by Brush in 1901.[8] Sold to Thomson in 1967.
  • The Marion Star. Acquired in 1923 from President Warren G. Harding. Sold to Thomson in 1967.
  • Steubenville Herald Acquired 1925.[8] Sold to Thomson in 1967.
  • Canton Repository. Acquired 1927.[9] Sold to Thomson in 1967.
  • Portsmouth Times. Acquired 1930.[10][11] Sold to Thomson in 1967.
  • Canton Daily News. Acquired and shut down this 97-year-old paper in 1930, leaving Brush-Moore with the only evening paper in the town.[12]
  • Ironton Tribune. Acquired 50% interest in 1930, and full ownership in 1955.[11] Sold in 1960s prior to sale to Thomson.[citation needed]

California

Other

Radio

Ohio Broadcasting Co. was a subsidiary of Brush-Moore which focused on radio interests.

  • WHBC (AM) (Canton, Ohio). Purchased 1936.
  • WPAY (AM) (Portsmouth, Ohio), acquired in 1944 through purchase of Scioto Broadcasting company.[8]
  • WONE (AM) (Dayton, Ohio). Purchased in 1961,[20] sold in 1964 to Group One Broadcasting.[21][22]
  • WONE-FM (now WTUE) (Dayton, Ohio). Purchased in 1961,[20] sold in 1964 to Group One Broadcasting.[21][22]
  • WONE-TV (now WKEF). Dayton television station, purchased in 1961,[20] sold in 1963 to Springfield Television.[23][24]
  • WPDQ (Jacksonville, Florida). Sold in 1964 to Belk Broadcasting Co.[25]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Thomson Buys Paper Group, St. Petersburg Times (UPI), August 26, 1967
  2. ↑ Newspapers: Strength in the Afternoon, Time (magazine), September 8, 1967
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Louis H. Brush, 76, Publisher, Is Dead: Chairman of Board of Ohio Newspaper Chain is Stricken at Republican Convention, The New York Times, June 25, 1948
  4. ↑ The Press: Ledger to Brush-Moore?, Time (magazine), January 2, 1939
  5. ↑ Roy Moore Dead; Ohio Publisher, 66, The New York Times, May 2, 1954
  6. ↑ The Press: Magnates, Time (magazine), March 3, 1924 ("The group owned by Louis H. Brush, Roy D. Moore, and William H. Vodrey, Jr.: the Marion Star, the East Liverpool Tribune, the East Liverpool Review, the Salem News—total circulation 30,906 daily.")
  7. ↑ 12 Brush-Moore Newspapers Sold to Thomson, The New York Times, August 26, 1967
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 The National cyclopaedia of American biography, p.66 (1967)
  9. ↑ Newspapers May Finance: Brush-Moore Chain Buys Two Publications in Canton, The New York Times, June 22, 1927 (reference to "two publications" in headline is to the Evening Repository and the Sunday Repository)
  10. ↑ Harry E. Taylor, Ohio Editor, Dead, The New York Times, March 13, 1932 ("He sold the paper two years ago to the Brush-Moore interests")
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Ownership Of Ironton Newspaper Passes To Brush-Moore Co., Park City Daily News, May 13, 1955
  12. ↑ COX SELLS CANTON NEWS.; Brush-Moore Group to Discontinue Paper Don Mellett Served, The New York Times, July 4, 1930
  13. ↑ Eastern Company Buys Paper in West Covina, Los Angeles Times, March 17, 1960
  14. ↑ Ohio Company Buys Oxnard Press-Courier, Los Angeles Times, January 17, 1963
  15. ↑ Honoring the 150th Anniversary of the Times-Standard, Congressional Record, November 18, 2004
  16. ↑ Maryland Papers Sold; Salisbury Journals Are Published Now by Brush-Moore, The New York Times, July 9, 1937
  17. ↑ Out of the past: 25 years ago, Gettysburg Times, July 1, 1983
  18. ↑ Welch, Jack. History of Hancock County, p.97 (1963)
  19. ↑ The Arizona Star Is Sold Provisionally to Ohio Chain, November 26, 1964
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 WONE Bought, Billboard (magazine), October 24, 1964, p.26
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Summit Radio Unit Acquires Dayton, Ohio, Radio Station, The Wall Street Journal, October 5, 1964 ("The sale leaves WHBC in Canton as the only radio affiliate of BrushMoore's subsidiary")
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ WPDQ Jacksonville sold for $750,000, Broadcasting, Volume 66, pp. 9, 96 (1964)
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