The ''Cambridge Chronicle'' is a weekly newspaper that serves
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...
. The newspaper was founded by Andrew Reid in May 1846 and is the oldest weekly newspaper in the United States.Cambridge Chronicle, May 30, 1996 Owned by
Gannett
Gannett Co., Inc. () is an American mass media holding company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.
History
Early Days
The ''Cambridge Chronicle'' was first published on May 7, 1846. A few days before, Cambridge was incorporated as a city, and Scotsman Andrew Reid seized on the opportunity to publish a weekly newspaper. Cambridge was home to the first printing press in the Colonies, and nearby Boston was home to the first newspaper. The '' Publick Occurrences Both Forreign and Domestick'' was founded in 1690, albeit short-lived. But beginning in the 18th century, Boston developed a vibrant newspaper industry.
Several newspapers were started in Cambridge. In 1775 and 1776. Cambridge was home to the ''New England Chronicle'', earlier known as the ''Essex Gazette''. In 1840, the ''Cambridge Magnolia'' started its two years of publication.
1846 to 1896
Cambridge developed a vibrant newspaper industry. The ''Cambridge Press'' was founded by James Cox in 1866. Its city editor, James W. Bean, became co-owner of the ''Chronicle'' in 1891. He set out on this venture with C. Burnside Seagrave, who had been with ''
The Cambridge Tribune
''The Cambridge Tribune'' was a weekly newspaper published in Cambridge, Massachusetts from 1878 to 1966. It was founded by D. Gilbert Dexter and began publication on March 7, 1878, from offices at Brattle Square in Old Cambridge. In 1885 Dexter ...
''. ''The Cambridge Tribune'' from 1878 to 1966 was a competitor. It had been founded by D. Gilbert Dexter, who had worked for the '' Boston Journal'' as the Cambridge correspondent. The ''Cambridge News'' was founded by Daniel A. Buckley in 1879, who used it as a medium to promote his personal views. Since 1873, Cambridge's only daily newspaper has been ''
The Harvard Crimson
''The Harvard Crimson'' is the student newspaper of Harvard University and was founded in 1873. Run entirely by Harvard College undergraduates, it served for many years as the only daily newspaper in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Beginning in the f ...
''.
Editors
The first publisher, Reid, died on January 4, 1847, and John Ford took over his role.Cambridge Chronicle, May 9, 1946 Charles Burnside Seagrave served as editor and publisher for over 40 years, up to his retirement in 1935. Another influential editor of the paper was Eliot Spalding. He joined the ''Chronicle'' in 1926, and in 1939 became its editor, a role he held until 1971.
Corporate ownership
The Dole family acquired the ''Cambridge Chronicle'' in the 1930s. They merged it with its rival paper, the ''Cambridge Sun'', in 1935. The family sold the newspapers to
Fidelity Investments
Fidelity Investments, commonly referred to as Fidelity, earlier as Fidelity Management & Research or FMR, is an American multinational financial services corporation based in Boston, Massachusetts. The company was established in 1946 and is o ...
in 1991. It was integrated into the
Community Newspaper Company
Community Newspaper Company, or CNC, was the largest publisher of weekly newspapers in eastern Massachusetts in the 1990s and first decade of the 21st century. It also published several daily newspapers in Greater Boston.
The company's properti ...
, another subsidiary of Fidelity Investment, in 1996.
The Community Newspaper Company was sold to the Boston Herald's owner, Herald Media, in 2001. It was again sold to GateHouse Media, in 2006.
Cambridge TAB
In September 2012, the ''Chronicle'' merged with
Tab Communications
Tab Communications Inc. (also called Tabloid Newspaper Publishers), based first in Newton, Massachusetts, United States, then in nearby Needham, was a weekly newspaper publisher in Greater Boston before being bought by Fidelity Investments in 199 ...
The first editions were produced by hand press above the Holmes Grocery Store, on the corner of Magazine and Main Streets in Central Square. The paper is now printed in
Framingham
Framingham () is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. Incorporated in 1700, it is located in Middlesex County and the MetroWest subregion of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The city proper covers with a popul ...
.
Circulation is down to 7,500 as of 2010.
The articles are also published on ''WickedLocal.com'', a website owned by the Community Newspaper Company. The
classifieds
Classified advertising is a form of advertising, particularly common in newspapers, online and other periodicals, which may be sold or distributed free of charge. Classified advertisements are much cheaper than larger display advertisements used ...
are produced and shared across Community Newspaper Company's newspapers in the Greater Boston North area.