Hunterdon County Democrat

The first newspaper to serve Hunterdon County was the Hunterdon Gazette and Farmers' Weekly Advertiser, established at Flemington on March 24, 1825, by Charles George, who shortened the paper's title to the Hunterdon Gazette in 1829.{{Cite book|title = The Press in Hunterdon County|last = Schmidt|first = Hubert G.|publisher = The Democrat Press|year = 1961|location = Hunterdon County Historical Society|pages = 9|publication-place = Flemington, N.J.}} He discontinued the Gazette on May 2, 1832, but retained his shop in Flemington and periodically published issues of the paper.{{Cite book|title = The Press in Hunterdon County|last = Schmidt|first = Hubert G.|publisher = The Democrat Press|year = 1961|location = Hunterdon County Historical Society|pages = 11–12|publication-place = Flemington, N.J.}} George sold the Gazette to John S. Brown, who returned the paper to weekly publication beginning with his first issue, published on July 18, 1838.{{cite book |title=The Story of New Jersey |last=Myers |first=William Starr |year=1945 |publisher=Lewis Historical Pub. Co. |page=179 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HtgMAAAAYAAJ }}{{Cite book|title = The Press in Hunterdon County|last = Schmidt|first = Hubert G.|publisher = The Democrat Press|year = 1961|location = Hunterdon County Historical Society|pages = 13|publication-place = Flemington, N.J.}}

On the Gazette's editorial page, Brown state that he was "'an old-fashioned Democrat,' which was in reality an admission that he was a Whig and opposed to the Jacksonian administration." While the Gazette retained a strong readership among Whigs and independents, Hunterdon County had become Democratic with the election of Andrew Jackson as president in 1828.{{Cite book|title = The Press in Hunterdon County|last = Schmidt|first = Hubert G.|publisher = The Democrat Press|year = 1961|location = Hunterdon County Historical Society|pages = 19|publication-place = Flemington, N.J.}}

In 1838, the same year that Brown bought the Gazette, a rival newspaper appeared under the name Hunterdon Democrat. The Democrat's editor, George C. Seymour, ensured that his newspaper held to the principles of the Democratic Party.{{Cite book|title = The Press in Hunterdon County|last = Schmidt|first = Hubert G.|publisher = The Democrat Press|year = 1961|location = Hunterdon County Historical Society|pages = 15|publication-place = Flemington, N.J.}} Within months, the rival editors began making personal attacks on each other in addition to their sniping on political topics. However, it "took more than politics to support a newspaper. The fight between Brown and Seymour was essentially one of trying to win readers and advertisers."

In 1843, Brown sold the Gazette to John R. Swallow.{{Cite book|title = The Press in Hunterdon County|last = Schmidt|first = Hubert G.|publisher = The Democrat Press|year = 1961|location = Hunterdon County Historical Society|pages = 24|publication-place = Flemington, N.J.}} The new owner hired Henry C. Buffington as editor. Earlier in his career, Huffington had worked at Philadelphia area newspapers with Seymour, the Democrat's owner and editor. "Seymour did not welcome his old colleague to Flemington" and within months he initiated a new personal feud. Early in 1844, Swallow sold the Gazette to Buffington, then moved to Lambertville where he started a newspaper. This venture lasted only three or four years before Swallow sold out and headed west.{{Cite book|title = The Press in Hunterdon County|last = Schmidt|first = Hubert G.|publisher = The Democrat Press|year = 1961|location = Hunterdon County Historical Society|pages = 26|publication-place = Flemington, N.J.}}

"In the meantime, Seymour of the Hunterdon Democrat and Buffington of the Hunterdon Gazettepursued their respective ways without much change or improvement. ... Actually, both editors were probably skating on thin financial ice at all times."

In 1852 Seymour sold the Democrat to Adam Bellis, also a staunch Democrat.{{cite book |title=The First 275 Years of Hunterdon County, 1714-1989 |last=Stothoff |first=Mrs. Frederick |url=http://www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/depts/c&h/275years.htm |access-date=2008-12-16 |year=1989 |publisher=Hunterdon County Cultural and Heritage Commission |chapter=Ch. 6, Communication |chapter-url=http://www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/history/Ch6-Communication.pdf }}

On July 3, 1867, The Hunterdon County Democrat made its debut, taking the place of both The Hunterdon Democrat and the erstwhile Gazette (which had changed its name to The Democrat after having been transformed into a Democratic paper in 1866). The editor during this time was Robert J. Killgore. His son, Anthony Killgore, later took over the editorship, serving until 1922. Alex L. Moreau and D. Howard Moreau then became the owners of The Democrat. Following the death of A.L. Moreau in 1933, D. Howard Moreau became sole owner of the newspaper, until his death on June 7, 1963. After Moreau's death his son-in-law H. Seely Thomas Jr. became publisher of The Democrat. Thomas hired Edward J. Mack as editor of the newspaper in 1965.

Family ownership continued in the 1980s when Thomas was joined in the publication of the newspaper by his three children, Catherine, John, and Howard. Catherine's husband, Jay Langley, became editor in 1988, while Mack rejoined

the newspaper in 1989 as general manager. Catherine Langley succeeded her father as publisher after his death in 1994.{{cite news |first=Joseph R. |last=Perone |title=Advance unit purchases five publications |work=The Star-Ledger |page=17 |date=2001-02-01 }}

In February 2001, Penn Jersey Advance, Inc., a unit of Advance Publications (Newhouse), bought The Democrat and its sister publications. Based in Somerville, New Jersey, Penn Jersey Advance is the parent company of NJN Publishing, a network of newspapers in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

On January 30, 2025, the paper ceased it's print edition and went online-only.{{Cite web |last=Sofield |first=Tom |date=2024-10-30 |title=Hunterdon County Democrat, Times Of Trenton & Star-Ledger Will Stop Printing |url=https://www.newhopefreepress.com/2024/10/30/hunterdon-county-democrat-times-of-trenton-star-ledger-will-stop-printing/ |access-date=2025-02-03 |website=New Hope Free Press |language=en-US}}

The Democrat purchased The Frenchtown Star in 1932, which had been published in Frenchtown since 1879, and renamed it The Delaware Valley News. In 1949 The Milford Leader was also purchased and combined with The Delaware Valley News. The newspaper was shut down in September 2008.{{cite news |first=Brandon |last=Lausch |title=Frenchtown-based weekly newspaper to cease publication after 129 years

|work=MyCentralJersey.com |date=2008-09-22 |access-date=2008-12-16 |url=http://www.mycentraljersey.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080922/NEWS/809220340 }}{{cite news |first=Rachael S. |last=Brickman |title=The Delaware Valley News closes |work=Delaware Valley News |date=2008-09-23 |access-date=2008-12-16 |url= http://www.nj.com/hunterdon/index.ssf/2008/09/the_delaware_valley_news_close.html }}

The Democrat launched a free-circulation weekly newspaper, The Hunterdon Observer, in August 1987. Another free weekly, The Warren Reporter, formerly served Warren County. A monthly magazine, Horse News, is also a member of The Democrat's publishing group.{{Cite web |title=@horse-news - nj.com |url=https://www.nj.com/topic/@horse-news |access-date=2024-06-08 |website=nj |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Cook |first=Caitlyn |date=2024-05-14 |title=Research Guides: New Jersey Digitized Historic Newspapers: Hunterdon County |url=https://libguides.njstatelib.org/digitized-newspapers/hunterdon |access-date=2024-06-08 |website=libguides.njstatelib.org |language=en}}{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2014-11-04 |title=November issue of Horse News is online |url=https://www.nj.com/horsenews/2014/11/november_issue_of_horse_news_i.html |access-date=2024-06-08 |website=Hunterdon County Democrat |language=en}} Penn Jersey Advance bought The Delaware Valley News, The Hunterdon Observer, The Warren Reporter, and Horse News in its 2001 acquisition of The Democrat.{{Cite news |date=February 1, 2001 |title=Penn Jersey Advance buys four community newspapers |work=Millville News |pages=15 |agency=Associated Press}}

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{{Reflist}}

• http://www.hcdemocrat.com/ Hunterdon County Democrat previous website
• [http://www.nj.com/hunterdon/ Hunterdon County Democrat news on NJ.com]
• [http://www.njnpublishing.info/hunterdoncontacts.html Contact information, NJN Publishing]

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Category:Newspapers published in New Jersey

Category:1825 establishments in New Jersey

Category:Hunterdon County, New Jersey

Category:Weekly newspaper companies of the United States

Category:Newspapers established in 1825

Category:Democratic newspapers (United States)