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Newspaper The Saint Paul Sun (St. Paul, Minn.) 1941-1976

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About The Saint Paul Sun (St. Paul, Minn.) 1941-1976

Twin City Observer and the Saint Paul Sun were sister newspaper titles published weekly between the 1940s and the 1970s, offering coverage of the Twin Cities African American community. The two were distinct from the other African American newspapers published in Minnesota at the time because of the Republican political views of their publisher and editor, Milton G. Williams.

Williams moved to the Twin Cities in 1918 and worked for about two decades in finance, as a stock salesperson for the W.B. Foshay Co. and as a loan officer for the Atlas Finance Co. In 1931, he served as advertising manager for Timely Digest magazine, and briefly worked in the Minneapolis Spokesman and St. Paul Recorder newspaper office after their founding 1934. In the late 1930s, Williams began his newspaper career in earnest, working as a reporter and columnist, sports editor, and advertising salesperson for the African American Twin-City Herald and its successor, Twin-City Leader.

Williams published the inaugural issue of Twin City Observer in Minneapolis on May 7, 1943. It began with a four-page, six-column format, and it expanded to seven columns in 1945. In 1948, it moved to a tabloid format with eight pages of five columns each. Coverage comprised local, national, and international news and commentary specifically related to African Americans and their communities and interests.

Williams began publication of the Observer‘s sister title, the Saint Paul Sun, on October 11, 1951.  The two titles were identical save for the mastheads until mid-1955, when differences in advertisements and articles began to appear. From 1956 on, at least one page and up to three pages of each issue contained separate content. Especially in election years, the papers contained completely different ads for St. Paul or Minneapolis candidates for various national, state, or local elections.

Williams stood out among Twin Cities Black leaders of the time for his staunch Conservatism. He attended GOP events in the Twin Cities and sought out connections with major Republican politicians, including President Eisenhower and Nelson Rockefeller. In 1929, he hosted a lavish reception at the Foshay Tower for Illinois Republican congressperson Oscar De Priest, the first African American elected to Congress since Reconstruction. He attended the 1952 and 1956 Republican National Conventions, serving once as assistant sergeant at arms and once as assistant door keeper. In 1959, Williams was appointed to the Minneapolis Fair Employment Practices Committee by the city’s Republican mayor. In the late 1950s, Williams’s editorial stances became more politically independent, favoring politicians of either party who supported African American interests, and criticizing those who didn’t.

Williams died January 10, 1963 at the age of 59, and his sister, Alvai J. Stephens, assumed the role of publisher. Editorial duties for both titles were taken on by newspaper manager/columnist Mary J. Kyle, with the assistance of staffers Estyr Bradley Peake and Robert Jones. Stephens was later succeeded as publisher and editor by her daughter, Jeanne Stephens Cooper. Cooper suspended publication of the Observer and the Sun in May 1976 due to financial constraints caused by inadequate advertising revenue; publication never resumed.

Provided By: Minnesota Historical Society; Saint Paul, MN

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Saint Paul Sun (St. Paul, Minn.) 1941-1976

Dates of Publication

  • 1941-1976

Created / Published

  • St. Paul, Minn. : Twin City Observer-Sun Pub. Co.

Headings

  • -  African Americans--Minnesota--Saint Paul--Newspapers
  • -  African Americans
  • -  Minnesota--Saint Paul
  • -  United States--Minnesota--Ramsey--Saint Paul

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Weekly
  • -  Began with issue for May 7, 1941; ceased in 1976.
  • -  Publication suspended Jan. 14-Apr. 28, 1976.
  • -  Available on microfilm from the Minnesota Historical Society.
  • -  Description based on: Vol. 4, no. 39 (Oct. 11, 1951).

Medium

  • volumes : illustrations

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn84025909

OCLC Number

  • 1714837

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress believes that the newspapers in Chronicling America are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions. Newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety. Any newspapers in Chronicling America that were published less than 95 years ago are also believed to be in the public domain, but may contain some copyrighted third party materials. Researchers using newspapers published less than 95 years ago should be alert for modern content (for example, registered and renewed for copyright and published with notice) that may be copyrighted. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

The Saint Paul Sun St. Paul, Minn. -1976. (Saint Paul, MN), Jan. 1 1941. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn84025909/.

APA citation style:

(1941, January 1) The Saint Paul Sun St. Paul, Minn. -1976. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/sn84025909/.

MLA citation style:

The Saint Paul Sun St. Paul, Minn. -1976. (Saint Paul, MN) 1 Jan. 1941. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/sn84025909/.