Indianapolis Journal

The ''Indianapolis Journal'' was a newspaper published in Indianapolis, Indiana, during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The paper published daily editions every evening except on Sundays, when it published a morning edition.

The first issue of the then-named ''Indiana Journal'' was published on January 11, 1825, by partners John Douglass and Douglass Maguire. From the outset the paper advocated for government sponsored internal improvements and protective tariffs that would aid Indiana’s agricultural economy. These positions led the ''Journal'' to align with the Whig Party beginning in the mid-1830s. Purchased in 1845 by John D. Defrees, and operated by him for nearly a decade, the paper was the first in Indianapolis to install a steam driven printing press. Under his leadership, the paper became Indianapolis's first permanent daily, the ''Daily Indiana State Journal'' in April 1851. The title changed to ''Indianapolis Morning Journal'' in 1853, then to ''Indianapolis Daily Journal'' the following year, and ultimately to ''Indianapolis Journal'' in 1867.

Berry R. Sulgrove, who had joined the ''Journal'' in 1854 as editor, acquired controlling interest in the paper a few years later and transitioned the paper from the Whig to the Republican camp. During the Civil War, Sulgrove published strong pro-Union columns supporting the policies of President Abraham Lincoln and of Indiana governor Oliver P. Morton. During the war, the ''Journal''s daily circulation reached 6,000; while that of the Democrat and Copperhead-aligned '' Indianapolis Sentinel'' saw a decline in its daily readership due to interference and shutdowns enforced by Morton.

John C. New, a banker, attorney, and leading Indianapolis-area Republican figure, purchased the ''Journal'' in 1880. New's leadership helped the paper excel, dramatically increasing its readership. Other rival papers, including the ''Indianapolis Mirror'' went out of business leaving the ''Journal'' as the only daily newspaper in the Indianapolis metropolitan area.

The paper featured regular columns from famous writers and figures including James Whitcomb Riley, Benjamin Harrison, and Eugene V. Debs. The poem Little Orphant Annie, by Riley, was first published in the paper in 1885. During most of its history, it carried eight pages and at its peak had a circulation of 11,000.

The paper commonly supported Republican candidates for office, and published editorials supporting Republicans positions. During the late nineteenth century competition from the '' Indianapolis Star'' began a decline in the ''Journals readership. The ''Star'' eventually took a majority readership in the region and the ''Journal'' eventually closed because of financial difficulties in 1904.

References

A Brief History of the Indianapolis Journal
from the State Library's Historic Newspaper Digitization Blog
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*{{cite book, title=James Whitcomb Riley: a life, author=Van Allen, Elizabeth J., publisher=Indiana University Press, year= 1999, isbn=0-253-33591-4, page=162

Mass media in Indianapolis
Publications established in 1823
Publications disestablished in 1904
Newspapers published in Indiana
Defunct newspapers published in Indiana
1823 establishments in Indiana
1904 disestablishments in Indiana