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Chronicling America
National Endowment for the Humanities

Newspaper The Daily Ardmoreite (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-Current Sunday Ardmoreite-press / Ardmoreite / Evening Ardmoreite / Morning Ardmoreite

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About The Daily Ardmoreite (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-Current

Newspapers rapidly appeared throughout the five nations of Indian Territory after the 1889 land run, and the Santa Fe and MKT railways penetrated the area. Thousands of non-Indian settlers organized towns along the lines, establishing dozens of newspapers. The Daily Ardmoreite first appeared on October 28, 1893, in Ardmore, Carter County. Established by several local businessmen, the Ardmoreite was the first daily newspaper published in Indian Territory. It was just another small community newspaper in the Chickasaw Nation until Sidney Suggs purchased it in June of 1897 for $2,400. Under his direction, the Ardmoreite became the leading news provider in Indian Territory.

By 1901, Ardmore had grown to be the largest city in Indian Territory, and the Ardmoreite informed 1,077 subscribers. Suggs purchased the first Linotype machine in the territory and bought newsprint by the rail carload. The Ardmoreite was the best equipped, best paying, and most quoted newspaper in territory. Suggs’ success and pioneer spirit was recognized in 1903, when his peers elected him president of the Territorial News Press Association. By the time Oklahoma achieved statehood in 1907, the Ardmoreite’s circulation had reached 2,049.

Suggs used his newspaper’s increasing popularity to further his political agenda. He expressed strong opposition to separately admitting Indian Territory to the United States. He joined many Oklahoma Territory politicians in proposing that the two territories form a single state. After 1907, he used his influence to advocate for well-laid roads. Suggs was appointed inspector of public roads in 1910 by Governor Charles Haskell, and became the first director of the newly created Oklahoma Highway Department in 1911. He gradually retired from the Ardmoreite to concentrate on his new role.

In 1917, John Easley purchased the newspaper from Suggs. Easley had been a reporter for the Ardmoriete 20 years earlier. The newspaper continued to be successful, eventually acquiring a radio and television station. Easley’s son-in-law, Albert Riesen, and his brother Earnst Riesen managed the paper until 1956. In 1955, Easley gave ownership to his daughter Maurine and her three children, John Riesen, Betty Dillard, and Buddy Riesen.

The Admoreite prospered under the Riesen family until 1983. After 65 years, the family- owned paper was sold to Stauffer Communications. In 1995, the Morris Communications purchased the paper and then sold it to its current owner, Gatehouse Media in 2007. The Daily Ardmoreite continues to inform its readers in local, state, national, and world news.

Provided By: Oklahoma Historical Society

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Daily Ardmoreite (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-Current

Other Title

  • Sunday Ardmoreite-press
  • Ardmoreite
  • Evening Ardmoreite
  • Morning Ardmoreite

Dates of Publication

  • 1893-current

Created / Published

  • Ardmore, Okla. : John F. Easley

Headings

  • -  Ardmore (Okla.)--Newspapers
  • -  Carter County (Okla.)--Newspapers
  • -  Chickasaw Nation, Oklahoma--Newspapers
  • -  Chickasaw Nation, Oklahoma
  • -  Oklahoma--Ardmore
  • -  Oklahoma--Carter County
  • -  United States--Oklahoma--Carter--Ardmore

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Daily (except Monday), Sept. 22, 1992-Apr. 7, 1993
  • -  Began Oct. 28, 1893.
  • -  Some Sunday issues published as: Sunday Ardmoreite-press.
  • -  Suspended with Apr. 19, 1895 issues, resumed with May 7, 1895 issue.
  • -  Title varies slightly: Ardmoreite (Nov. 1-2,5,12,26, 1893), Evening Ardmoreite (Nov. 1-3, 1893), and Morning Ardmoreite (Nov. 5,12,26, 1893).
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format as part of the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  Weekly eds.: Weekly Ardmoreite, <1894-1922>, and: Ardmore statesman and the weekly Ardmoreite, May 4,1922-<1927>, and: Weekly Ardmoreite combined with Ardmoreite statesman <1927>, and: Ardmore democrat, Aug. 31, 1931-<1981>.
  • -  Description based on: Vol. 1, no. 5 (Nov. 1, 1893).
  • -  Latest issue consulted: 124th yr., no. 251 (Sept. 28, 2018).

Medium

  • volumes

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn85042303

OCLC Number

  • 12101538

ISSN Number

  • 1065-7894

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 Daily Ardmoreite Ardmore, Okla. -Current. (Ardmore, OK), Jan. 1 1893. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn85042303/.

APA citation style:

(1893, January 1) The Daily Ardmoreite Ardmore, Okla. -Current. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn85042303/.

MLA citation style:

The Daily Ardmoreite Ardmore, Okla. -Current. (Ardmore, OK) 1 Jan. 1893. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, aj.sunback.homes/item/sn85042303/.