The ''Sun Journal'' is a

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sport ...

published in

Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ; officially the City of Lewiston, Maine) is the second largest city in Maine and the most central city in Androscoggin County. The city lies halfway between Augusta, the state's capital, and Portland, the state's most populous cit ...

, United States, which covers central and western

Maine Maine () is a U.S. state, state in the New England and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and territories of Canad ...

. In addition to its main office in Lewiston, the paper maintains satellite news and sales bureaus in the Maine towns of

Farmington Farmington may refer to: Places Canada *Farmington, British Columbia *Farmington, Nova Scotia (disambiguation) United States * Farmington, Arkansas *Farmington, California * Farmington, Connecticut *Farmington, Delaware * Farmington, Georgia ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

and

Rumford Rumford may refer to: People * William Byron Rumford (1908–1986), California politician * Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford (1753–1814), American-British-German inventor, scientist, soldier, and official * Kennerley Rumford (1870–1957), ...

. Its daily circulation is approximately 18,600, making it one of the most-read dailies in the state. Though its history dates back to 1847, the ''Sun Journal'' has existed in its current iteration since 1989, when Lewiston's two largest newspapers, the morning ''

Lewiston Daily Sun ''The Lewiston Daily Sun'' was a newspaper published in Lewiston, Maine. Established in 1893, it became the dominant morning daily in the Lewiston- Auburn city and town area. In 1926, its publisher acquired the '' Lewiston Evening Journal'' and p ...

'' and afternoon '' Lewiston Evening Journal'' were combined into one publication. Long owned and published by the Costello family, the newspaper was purchased by Reade Brower, owner of MaineToday Media, in 2017.

History

The lineage of the ''Sun Journal'' can be traced back to May 20, 1847, when printer William Waldron and future

Governor of Maine The governor of Maine is the head of government of the U.S. state of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive. The current governor of Maine ...

, Dr. Alonzo Garcelon founded Lewiston's first paper, a weekly called the ''Lewiston Falls Journal''. In 1857, former employee Nelson Dingley Jr. became owner and publisher, and the paper entered into full-time daily publication in April 1861. It rebranded in 1866 as the ''Lewiston Evening Journal''. In 1893, ''

The Lewiston Daily Sun ''The Lewiston Daily Sun'' was a newspaper published in Lewiston, Maine. Established in 1893, it became the dominant morning daily in the Lewiston- Auburn city and town area. In 1926, its publisher acquired the '' Lewiston Evening Journal'' and ...

'' emerged as a competitor and would, under the stewardship of George W. Wood, became the leading morning daily in the region. The two papers maintained a fierce rivalry until Wood purchased the ''Journal'' from the Dingley family on February 1, 1926, moving production from the

Dingley Building The Dingley Building, formerly the Oak Street School, is a historic municipal building at 36 Oak Street in Lewiston, Maine. Built in 1890, it is a distinctive local example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture, designed by local architect Geo ...

to ''The Suns facility at 104 Park Street in Lewiston. By 1945, when Wood died, the ''Sun'' and ''Journal'' were the fourth and fifth most-read dailies in the state with circulations of 27,480 and 14,088, respectively. Wood's heir was

Louis B. Costello Louis Bartlett Costello (September 14, 1876May 6, 1959) was an American banker and newspaper publisher who served as general manager and then president of ''The Lewiston Daily Sun'' and ''Lewiston Evening Journal'' in Lewiston, Maine. He began ...

, who began as ''The Suns business manager in 1898 and was promoted to general manager and treasurer of the papers' publishing company in 1926. He, in turn, left the papers to his son Russell, who, in 1989, combined the two papers form the ''Sun Journal''. In 2017, the Sun Media Group was sold by the Costello family to Reade Brower, owner of MaineToday Media. The Sun Journal began publishing its Monday paper online-only March 2, 2020, along with three other Maine Dailies owned by MaineToday Media. On May 21, 2022, the Sun Journal celebrated 175 years of publication.

Prices

The ''Sun Journal'' prices are: $2 daily, $3 Sunday.

Sister weeklies

On October 1, 2007, the ''Sun Journal'' purchased Kirkland Newspapers of Farmington, the publisher of four

weekly newspaper A weekly newspaper is a general-news or Current affairs (news format), current affairs publication that is issued once or twice a week in a wide variety broadsheet, magazine, and electronic publishing, digital formats. Similarly, a biweekly new ...

s:"Lewiston, Maine, Newspaper Firm Buys 4 Other Maine Papers". ''NEPA Bulletin'' (Boston, Mass.), page 3, October 2007. * ''The Franklin Journal'' of Farmington (4,500 twice-weekly circulation) * ''The Rangeley Highlander'' of Rangeley (2,300 biweekly) * ''The Penobscot Times'' of

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...

(3,300 weekly) * ''Livermore Falls Advertiser'' of Livermore Falls (2,300 weekly) The ''Sun Journal'' also owns '' The Forecaster'', a free regional paper. '' The Advertiser Democrat,'' ''Bethel Citizen,'' and ''Rumford Falls Times'' (weeklies) are published by the ''Sun Journal'' as well.

References

External links

''Sun Journal'' Website
* {{Authority control Newspapers published in Maine Mass media in Androscoggin County, Maine Mass media in Lewiston, Maine Publications established in 1847 1847 establishments in Maine