''The Messenger'' is a newspaper that is printed and delivered to the

Fort Dodge, Iowa Fort Dodge is a city in, and the county seat of, Webster County, Iowa, United States, along the Des Moines River. The population was 24,871 in the 2020 census, a decrease from 25,136 in 2000. Fort Dodge is a major commercial center for North Cen ...

, area. That area covers Buena Vista, Calhoun, Greene, Hamilton, Humboldt, Kossuth, Palo Alto, Pocahontas, Sac, Webster, and Wright counties. It was founded on July 31, 1856.''The Messenger''′s slogan is: "Spend a few minutes with us ... 7 days a week!" In early May 2020, The Messenger began delivering the Sunday edition on Saturday, effectively merging Saturday and Sunday into a weekend edition. According to the press release for the 2020 Iowa Newspaper Association Convention & Trade Show, The Messenger is a 'Daily Class I, a newspaper published daily with a circulation of 9,999 and under'. The Messenger is one of three newspapers serving Webster County, Iowa.

Brief history

''The Messenger'' of

, came into existence as the ''Fort Dodge Sentinel'' on July 31, 1856, as a weekly poetry and prose publication. Selling for $2 per year, ''The Sentinel'' had a circulation of 1,200 at the time. In 1860, the name changed to ''The Fort Dodge Republican'' and increased its size to eight pages. In 1864, the name was changed to ''Iowa North West'' to reflect the expanded coverage of the newspaper. In fact, the publication at the time was the only newspaper between

Sioux City, Iowa Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County ...

, and Fort Dodge. In 1884, the newspaper went daily as the population and news in the Fort Dodge region increased. In 1917, the newspaper merged with ''The Chronicle'', another Fort Dodge newspaper, and the name became ''The Fort Dodge Messenger and Chronicle''. In later years, the "Chronicle" title was dropped and the newspaper was officially known as ''The Fort Dodge Messenger''. In 1963, ''The Messenger'' was purchased by Ogden Newspapers of

Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling is a city in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located almost entirely in Ohio County, of which it is the county seat, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and also contains a tiny portion extending ...

, a newspaper group with more than 40 newspaper holdings. In 2006 ''The Messenger'' celebrated its 150th anniversary.

Sections

*Classifieds *Comics *Education *Lotteries *Obituaries *Opinion *Region *Sports *Weather

References

External links

''The Messenger'' web site

''The Messenger'' Virtual Newsroom

''The Messenger'' Printing web site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Messenger Newspapers published in Iowa Publications established in 1856 Fort Dodge, Iowa 1856 establishments in Iowa