''The Intelligencer'' (locally nicknamed the ''Intell'') is the daily (except on Sundays and certain holidays) newspaper of
Belleville, Ontario
Belleville is a city in Ontario, Canada situated on the eastern end of Lake Ontario, located at the mouth of the Moira River and on the Bay of Quinte. Belleville is between Ottawa and Toronto, along the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. Its populat ...
, Canada. The paper is regarded mainly as a local paper, stressing local issues over issues of more national or international scope.
History
![Hastings County Archives HC01477 (21326313568)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Hastings_County_Archives_HC01477_%2821326313568%29.jpg)
The ''Belleville Intelligencer'' was founded in 1834 by
George Benjamin, who, after just arriving in the city, is said to have stopped in at a hotel and asked to purchase the local newspaper. He was then informed of the young city's lack of a local newspaper, as several attempted newspaper publications turned out to have been short lived and had failed. This innocent question eventually led to George Benjamin establishing the Intelligencer in 1834, although it was originally regarded as another attempt that was likely destined for failure in the long run.
Many newspapers predated the ''Intelligencer'' in Belleville, and all folded quickly. The first recorded paper was ''The Anglo-Canadian'' in 1829 which folded within a year. Other attempts included ''The Phoenix'' in 1831, ''The Hastings Times and Farmers' Journal'' in 1833, and finally ''The Standard of Moira'' which lasted only six weeks in 1834. These previous failed newspaper publications dampened the original public opinion of the Intelligencer, although the outlooks eventually lightened.
The ''Intelligencer'' originally consisted of only four small pages and was originally only a weekly publication. In 1897,
D'Alton Corry Coleman
D'Alton Corry Coleman (July 9, 1879October 17, 1956) was a Canadian railway executive and businessman. He began working for the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in 1899, and was promoted through its ranks until serving as president from 1942 to ...
became city editor for the ''Intelligencer'' at age 18. Later on it would be sold to a young
Sir MacKenzie Bowell
Sir Mackenzie Bowell (; December 27, 1823 – December 10, 1917) was a Canadian newspaper publisher and politician, who served as the fifth prime minister of Canada, in office from 1894 to 1896.
Bowell was born in Rickinghall, Suffolk, En ...
(a future Canadian
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
), who had come to work for George Benjamin at the ''Intelligencer''. It has also been stated that MacKenzie Bowell's political career started at the ''Intelligencer'', with its then firm political views. After obtaining the ''Intelligencer'' MacKenzie Bowell would remain its owner until 1917 the year of his death at the age of 94.
The media group
Sun Media purchased the newspaper in 2009. The purchase moved the paper's editorial policy significantly to the right.
In spring 2014, the ''Intelligencer'' and other Sun Media properties were sold to
Postmedia
Postmedia Network Canada Corp. (also known as Postmedia Network, Postmedia News or Postmedia) is a Canadian media conglomerate consisting of the publishing properties of the former Canwest, with primary operations in newspaper publishing, news ...
, owner of The ''
National Post
The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...
'' in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
.
The ''Intelligencer''s current advertising director is Gerry Drage, its managing editor W. Brice McVicar.
In September 2017, PostMedia transferred the ''Intelligencer''s distribution to a private distribution company. Big Creek Services Corporation is based in Napanee Ontario and manages the distribution of 5 of PostMedia's newspapers and has a network of almost 500 on contract newspaper carriers.
See also
*
List of newspapers in Canada
This list of newspapers in Canada is a list of newspapers printed and distributed in Canada. Daily newspapers
Local weeklies
Alberta
* Airdrie – '' Airdrie Echo''
* Bashaw – '' Bashaw Star''
* Bassano – ''Bassano Times''
* Beaumont †...
*
Belleville, Ontario#Media
References
External links
*
ISSN 0839-1912
{{DEFAULTSORT:Intelligencer Belleville
Mass media in Belleville, Ontario
Publications established in 1834
Daily newspapers published in Ontario
Postmedia Network publications
1834 establishments in Canada