''The Oban Times'' is a local, weekly
newspaper
A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, 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 poli ...
, published in
Oban
Oban ( ; meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William, Highland, Fort William. During the tourist seaso ...
,
Argyll and Bute
Argyll and Bute (; , ) is one of 32 unitary authority, unitary council areas of Scotland, council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod ...
on a Thursday. It covers the West Highlands and Islands of
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
, reporting on issues from the
Mull of Kintyre
The Mull of Kintyre is the southwesternmost tip of the Kintyre Peninsula (formerly ''Cantyre'') in southwest Scotland. From here, the Antrim coast of Northern Ireland is visible on a calm and clear day, and a historic lighthouse, the second ...
to
Kyle of Lochalsh
Kyle of Lochalsh ( , "strait of the foaming loch") is a village in the historic county of Ross & Cromarty on the northwest coast of Scotland, located around west-southwest of Inverness. It is located on the Lochalsh peninsula, at the entranc ...
on the mainland, to the
Inner and
Outer Hebridean Islands with
Argyll
Argyll (; archaically Argyle; , ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county of western Scotland. The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975 and most of the area ...
, and
Lochaber
Lochaber ( ; ) is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig. Lochaber once extended from the Northern shore of Loch Leven, a distric ...
as its heartlands.
''The Lochaber Times'' is the Lochaber/Fort William/Highlands and surrounding area edition of The Oban Times.
History
In 1861 the ''Oban Monthly Pictorial Magazine'' was established by James Miller at a printing site on George Street in Oban.
In 1866 the monthly operation became a weekly and changed its name to the ''Oban Times & Argyllshire Advertiser'', although locally it was often referred to as ‘''The Highlander’s Bible’''.
Printing was later transferred to a printing plant at the top of John Street.
In 1882,
Duncan Cameron purchased ''The Oban Times'' newspaper for £4,000 following the death of James Miller.
Cameron was member of the printing and stationery firm of
Macniven and Cameron in Edinburgh. Cameron had ancestral connections to the area. After the purchase, Cameron appointed his twenty-one-year-old son, also named Duncan Cameron, as the editor.
The senior Cameron's daughter,
Flora Macaulay, became the paper's editor when her brother Duncan left for
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
to join the family's
stationery
Stationery refers to writing materials, including cut paper, envelopes, continuous form paper, and other office supplies. Stationery usually specifies materials to be written on by hand (e.g., letter paper) or by equipment such as computer p ...
business and another brother, Waverley, drowned at
Lismore.
Flora stayed involved with ''The Oban Times'' until her death at 99 in 1958. She was eventually succeeded as
editor
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...
by her nephew, Alan Cameron.
In June 1976, Alan Cameron decided to relinquish control of the paper, and ''The Oban Times'' was acquired by
Johnston Press
Johnston Press plc was a multimedia company founded in Falkirk, Scotland, in 1767. Its flagship titles included UK-national newspaper the '' i'', ''The Scotsman'', the ''Yorkshire Post'', the ''Falkirk Herald'', and Belfast's ''The News Letter'' ...
.
The control of the paper reverted to private ownership in 1983, when it was purchased by its present owner, Howard Bennett.
From 7 July 1866 until 23 November 1929 (3008 editions), ''The Oban Times'' was published as 'The Oban Times and Argyllshire Advertiser' being described as "The County paper of Argyllshire circulating extensively in
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
, Edinburgh,
Greenock
Greenock (; ; , ) is a town in Inverclyde, Scotland, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The town is the administrative centre of Inverclyde Council. It is a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, and forms ...
,
Paisley,
Stirling
Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...
,
Doune
Doune (; from Scottish Gaelic: , meaning 'the fort') is a burgh within Perthshire. The town is administered by Stirling Council. Doune is assigned Falkirk postcodes starting "FK". The village lies within the parish of Kilmadock and mainly with ...
,
Callander
Callander (; ) is a small town in the council area of Stirling (district), Stirling in Scotland, situated on the River Teith. The town is located in the historic county of Perthshire and is a popular tourist stop to and from the Highlands. De ...
,
Tyndrum,
Dalmally
Dalmally (Scottish Gaelic: ''Clachan an Dìseirt'' or ''Dail Mhàilidh'') is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is near the A85 road and is served by Dalmally railway station.
Former Labour Party leader John Smith was born in Dalmall ...
,
Kingussie
Kingussie ( ; ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, although the old route of ...
,
Inverness
Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...
,
Fort William,
Ballachulish
The village of Ballachulish ( or , from Scottish Gaelic ) in Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, is centred on former slate quarries, and now primarily serves tourists in the area.
Name
The name Ballachulish (from Scottish Gaelic, ''Baile a' Chao ...
,
Tobermory,
Easdale
Easdale () is one of the Slate Islands, in the Firth of Lorn, Scotland. Once the centre of the Scottish slate industry, there has been some recent island regeneration by the owners. This is the smallest of the Inner Hebrides' inhabited islands ...
,
Lochgilphead
Lochgilphead (; ) is a town and former burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, with a population of around 2,300 people. It is the administrative centre of Argyll and Bute Council. The village lies at the end of Loch Gilp (a branch of Loch Fyne) an ...
,
Ardrishaig
Ardrishaig () is a coastal village on Loch Gilp, at the southern (eastern) entrance to the Crinan Canal in Argyll and Bute in the west of Scotland. It lies immediately to the south of Lochgilphead, with the nearest larger town being Oban.
Hi ...
,
Inveraray
Inveraray ( or ; meaning "mouth of the Aray") is a town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Located on the western shore of Loch Fyne, near its head, Inveraray is a former royal burgh and known affectionately as "The Capital of Argyll." It is the ...
,
Portree
Portree (; , ) is the capital and largest town of the Isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.W.H. Murray, Murray, W.H. (1966) ''The Hebrides''. London. Heinemann. Pages 154-155. It is a civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish and lies ...
,
Stornoway
Stornoway (; ) is the main town, and by far the largest, of the Outer Hebrides (or Western Isles), and the capital of Lewis and Harris in Scotland.
The town's population is around 6,953, making it the third-largest island town in Scotlan ...
, the
Lewis
Lewis may refer to:
Names
* Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name
* Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname
Music
* Lewis (musician), Canadian singer
* " Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohe ...
,
Skye
The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye, is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated by the Cuillin, the rocky slopes of which provide some o ...
, the
Western Islands and many other districts". It has since 19th Oct 1929 been published as the 'Oban Times and West Highland Times,' firstly on Saturday and latterly on Thursday, being described as "The regional newspaper for the West Highlands, Islands and Argyll."
In 2016 the Lochaber News was purchased by ''The Oban Times''. The masthead in the northern edition changed to "The Oban Times - Incorporating Lochaber News" - In 2017 the masthead changed again to "The Lochaber Times & Oban Times".
A new website was launched in 2017 introducing a paywall. Whilst some news remained free, a paid-for subscription is required to read the rest. Articles are published behind the paywall over 7 days including up to date news as it happens.
In January 2024 all four websites were combined into one site calle
West Coast Todayallowing paid for subscribers to have one subscription to access all the news content (website and digital e-editions) produced on the West Coast of Scotland.
Cruachan Cam was a webcam which looked over Loch Etive towards
Ben Cruachan -
Cruachan (The Hollow Mountain) but due to a sale of the property, the webcam was discontinued.
Today
The Oban Times' is part of the Wyvex Media Group, which also publishes
The Argyllshire Advertiser' (est. 1886) covering Mid Argyll and North Kintyre – known locally as "The Squeak," ''
The Arran Banner'' (est. 1975) covering
Arran,
The Campbeltown Courier' (est. 1873) covering
Campbeltown
Campbeltown (; or ) is a town and former royal burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies by Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre Peninsula. Campbeltown became an important centre for Scotch whisky, and a busy fishing port.
The 2018 populatio ...
and
Kintyre
Kintyre (, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East Loch Tarbert, Argyll, East and West Loch Tarbert, Argyll, West Loch Tarbert in t ...
, The Lochaber Times which covers Fort William, Lochaber and the Highlands as well as magazines
Scottish Field the monthly ''Fish Farmer Magazine'' and associated website as well as a selection of calendars, specials, holiday supplements and local publications including Lochaber Life, West Coast Review, Holiday West Highland.
References
External links
Official Website150 Years of The Oban Times*Th
Arran Banner Web Camstill runs today
*Th
Ben Nevis Web Camis also operational
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oban Times
Newspapers published in Scotland
Mass media in Argyll and Bute
Mass media in Highland (council area)
Mass media in the Outer Hebrides
Newspapers with Scottish Gaelic content
Newspapers established in 1861
1861 establishments in Scotland
Oban