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Chronicling America
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Newspaper The Public Ledger (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968 Daily public ledger / Daily Maysville Republican public ledger

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About The Public Ledger (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968

The Daily Public Ledger was an informative four-page Republican daily in Maysville founded in 1892 by eight men, including Maysville native Thomas A. Davis, who also served as editor. Davis had started in the printing trade at age 15, cutting his teeth on several newspapers while living in Philadelphia. Upon returning to Maysville, he took an interest in the city’s oldest paper, the Maysville Eagle. In 1867, Davis launched the Maysville Republican, and 25 years later he parlayed that experience into the Daily Public Ledger. Davis became the sole owner in short order, and the paper quickly gained a respected reputation in the community. Situated on the Ohio River, Maysville had been an old frontier settlement (originally known as Limestone) and a stopping point on the Underground Railroad. Maysville had also developed into a center for hemp and burley tobacco production. The Ledger reported on economic activity and Republican Party happenings in the area and never failed to carry local society, state, and national news as well. By 1907, the Ledger boasted the largest circulation of any daily in Mason County, of which there were several. In contrast to the intense business and political rivalries of most papers, the Ledger maintained a cordial relationship with its local Democratic competitor, the Daily Evening Bulletin. Little did either newspaper know that their paths would later converge.

In January 1907, Davis sold the Ledger to Arthur F. Curran. Davis continued to operate his own printing press and assumed an editorial position with the Maysville Daily Republican, the successor to the old Maysville Republican, now published by Daris and Hill. The two papers were closely aligned, and it is not unusual to find advertisements for the Republican in the Ledger. Meanwhile, the Ledger’s new owner became known statewide for his eloquent editorials. Like Davis, Curran had worked at several other papers, including Mason County’s Dover Public Messenger, before settling at the Ledger.

In 1915, both the Ledger and the Republican were sold to Clarence Mathews and William D. Cochran, who merged them to form the Public Ledger, which contined to publish six days a week. Mathews became the sole owner by 1920, and the paper stayed in the Mathews family until 1968. At that time, the Daily Independent, successor to long-time Democratic rival Daily Evening Bulletin, along with the Public Ledger, were bought by the Gadsden (Alabama) Times Publishing Company and joined to become the Public Ledger the Daily Independent. A year later the title changed for the final time to the Ledger-Independent, which still publishes in Maysville (http://www.maysville-online.com).

Provided By: University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Public Ledger (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968

Other Title

  • Daily public ledger
  • Daily Maysville Republican public ledger

Dates of Publication

  • 1913-1968

Created / Published

  • Maysville, Ky. : A.F. Curran, -1968.

Headings

  • -  Mason County (Ky.)--Newspapers
  • -  Maysville (Ky.)--Newspapers
  • -  Kentucky--Mason County
  • -  Kentucky--Maysville
  • -  United States--Kentucky--Mason--Maysville

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Daily (except Sun.)
  • -  Began in 1913?
  • -  -Sept. 30, 1968.
  • -  Logo title: Daily public ledger; Daily Maysville Republican public ledger.
  • -  Two editions daily.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format as part of the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  Description based on: Sept. 4, 1913.
  • -  Daily independent (Maysville, Ky.) (DLC)sn 82014711 (OCoLC)8791818
  • -  Public ledger the daily independent (DLC)sn 86069118 (OCoLC)13567059

Medium

  • volumes : illustrations ; 63 cm

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn85038022

OCLC Number

  • 11737644

ISSN Number

  • 2159-3779

Preceding Titles

Succeeding Titles

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 Public Ledger Maysville, Ky. -1968. (Maysville, KY), Jan. 1 1913. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn85038022/.

APA citation style:

(1913, January 1) The Public Ledger Maysville, Ky. -1968. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/sn85038022/.

MLA citation style:

The Public Ledger Maysville, Ky. -1968. (Maysville, KY) 1 Jan. 1913. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/sn85038022/.