The ''Ledger-Enquirer'' is a newspaper headquartered in

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee ...

, in the United States. It was founded in 1828 as the ''Columbus Enquirer'' by Mirabeau B. Lamar who later played a pivotal role in the founding of the

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

and served as its third President. The newspaper is a two-time recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.The Pulitzer Prizes for 1926
pulitzer.org; retrieved September 2008The Pulitzer Prizes for 1955
pulitzer.org. retrieved September 2008

History

In 1874, the ''Columbus Enquirer'', until then a weekly publication, merged with Columbus's first daily newspaper, the ''Daily Sun'', to form the ''Columbus Enquirer-Sun''. The paper was published under this name for many years before eventually reverting to the name ''Columbus Enquirer''. The paper was purchased by R. W. Page in 1930. For many years the morning ''Columbus Enquirer'' and the afternoon ''Columbus Ledger'', a paper founded in 1886, and also owned by R. W. Page, published a combined Sunday paper known as the ''Sunday Ledger-Enquirer''. Knight Newspapers acquired the company in 1973, and in 1988 the papers merged the daily edition as well, adopting the name ''Columbus Ledger-Enquirer''. Knight Ridder was acquired by

The McClatchy Company McClatchy Media Company, or simply McClatchy and MCC, is an American publishing company incorporated under Delaware's General Corporation Law. Originally based in Sacramento, California, United States, and known as The McClatchy Company, it b ...

in 2006.The McClatchy Company - About
, mcclatchy.com; retrieved September 2008 Beginning Nov. 16, 2019, the Ledger-Enquirer began printing just six days a week, offering a Saturday newspaper in digital-only form.
ledger-enquirer.com; retrieved March 2023 In June 2024, the newspaper announced it will reduce its print frequency to two days a week.

1926 Pulitzer Prize

The ''Columbus Enquirer-Sun'' was awarded the 1926 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service "for the service which it rendered in its brave and energetic fight against the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

; against the enactment of a law barring the teaching of

evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...

; against dishonest and incompetent public officials and for justice to the

Negro In the English language, the term ''negro'' (or sometimes ''negress'' for a female) is a term historically used to refer to people of Black people, Black African heritage. The term ''negro'' means the color black in Spanish and Portuguese (from ...

and against

lynching Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged or convicted transgressor or to intimidate others. It can also be an extreme form of i ...

1955 Pulitzer Prize

The ''Columbus Ledger'' and ''Sunday Ledger-Enquirer'' were awarded the 1955 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for their "complete news coverage and fearless editorial attack on widespread corruption in neighboring

Phenix City, Alabama Phenix City is a city in Lee and Russell counties in the U.S. state of Alabama, and the county seat of Russell County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 38,817. Phenix City lies immediately west across the Chattahoochee ...

, which were effective in destroying a corrupt and racket-ridden city government. The newspaper exhibited an early awareness of the evils of lax law enforcement before the situation in Phenix City erupted into murder. It covered the whole unfolding story of the final prosecution of the wrong-doers with skill, perception, force and courage."

References

External links

*
The McClatchy Company's subsidiary profile of the ''Ledger-Enquirer''''Columbus Enquirer'' Archive
Digital Library of Georgia {{PulitzerPrize PublicService 1951–1975 Newspapers published in Georgia (U.S. state) McClatchy publications Pulitzer Prize–winning newspapers Mass media in Columbus, Georgia Pulitzer Prize for Public Service winners Newspapers established in 1828 1828 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)

History

1926 Pulitzer Prize

1955 Pulitzer Prize

See also

References

External links