Lawson, Henry

The Examiner was founded in 1847 by Edward Whelan. It printed news, anecdotes, fiction, poetry and advertisements. It was a weekly Liberal newspaper, crusading for Responsible Government and opposing the Family Compact. It favoured the Land Purchase Act and the Loan Bill as the means of ridding P.E.I, of its absentee landlords. During the 1850s, the Examiner supported the extension of the franchise and the Free Education Act.

In the 1860s, the settlement of the Land Question was the chief preoccupation of the Examiner. It opposed the Land Commission Award, suggesting other parliamentary reforms. Confederation was strongly advocated by the Examiner until 1867, when its founder Edward Whelan died. Thereafter, the paper opposed Confederation. In the final years of the 1860s, reciprocal trade with the United States was demanded.

During the 1870s, the construction of the railroad and nonsectarian education were the two main issues for which the Examiner fought. In 1873, when W.L. Cotton became the paper's editor and publisher, its politics became Conservative and attacks on the Liberals became freguent in its pages. Tariffs and reciprocity were often discussed. In 1877, the Examiner became a daily publication. The Weekly Examiner (see also) continued to be published alongside the daily until at least 1901.

The years between 1880 and 1922 saw the gradual decline of the Examiner. News reporting during the 1880s was good but by the beginning of World War I it was only minimal. Political commentary became less and less frequent in the paper, although it did remain Conservative until it finally ceased publication. Issues featured in the Examiner during these years included Liberal overspending and corruption, the poor rail and steam service to P.E.I., and temperance. Fiction ceased to be published in the early 1890s. In 1915, the Examiner was merged with the Charlottetown Guardian, and in 1922 it was absorbed by the Guardian.

Publisher note: Edward Whelan, Aug. 7 1847 - Jan. 11 1851(?); Feb. 27 1854 - Dec. 9 1867; Walter C. Grant, Apr. 13 1868 - Dec. 27 1869; Examiner Printing & Publishing Co., 1871 - May 17 1875; William L. Cotton, Aug. 16 1875 - Dec. 25 1876; Examiner Publishing Company, 1877 - 1914; J.R. Burnett, 1914 - 19155; Guardian Publishing Co.(?), 1915 - 1922.

Frequency note: Weekly on Saturdays, Aug. 7 1847 - Mar. 11 1848; Weekly on Mondays, Mar. 20 1848 - Feb. 19 1849(?); Feb. 27 1854 - Jan. 23 1860; Oct. 29 1860 - Dec. 25 1876(?); Weekly, Jan. 12 1850(?) - Feb. 16 1850; Apr. 14 1851 - July 7 1851; Semi-Weekly, Feb. 23 1850 - Apr. 10 1851(?); Weekly on Tuesdays, Jan. 31 1860 - Oct. 23, 1860; Daily, Mar. 21 1877 - May 29 1922.

The Patriot began publication in 1864 as a Liberal newspaper. It was the successor to the Protestant and Evangelical Witness. During the late 1860s and early 1870s the Patriot opposed Confederation and the building of the railroad. Education was a frequent topic in the paper, with the Free School Act being endorsed. During the latter part of the 1870s, the Patriot fiercely attacked the Conservatives, opposing protectionism and tariffs. Fiction, news, poetry, and advertisements were all published in the Patriot during these early years.

During the 1880s, political opinion took a less prominent role in the Patriot, with local, national and international news coverage taking precedence. Local reporting was particularly good, especially of meetings. In its editorials the Liberal Patriot denounced the National Plan, supporting reciprocity with the United States.

In the 1890s, news coverage, including sporting events, the law courts and the House of Assembly, continued to be good. Editorial concerns included Tory corruption and overspending, education, the abolition of the Legislative Council, lower tariffs and lower taxes.

The first decade of the twentieth century brought editorials which promoted the Liberal party. News coverage continued to be particularly good, and photographs and headlines began to appear. Between 1910 and 1919, editorials discussed agriculture, the war, the merits of reciprocity and a variety of local issues. During World War I, the Patriot only tentatively supported the Union Government.

The 1920s saw the introduction of a number of new features in the Patriot. These included a sports page, comic strips, crossword puzzles and a women's page, which featured fashion and housekeeping. News coverage was excellent and editorials discussed education, taxation, government spending and temperance from a Liberal viewpoint. Photographs appeared only occasionally during this decade.

Local news reporting declined in the Patriot during the 1930s, as did the amount of political commentary, although the paper did continue to support the Liberal party. Temperance, roads and Conservative overspending were all discussed in the paper's editorials. Photographs were featured in every issue, with portraits of famous people predominating.

The Liberal bias of the Patriot completely disappeared during the 1940s. Editorials rarely dealt with politics, often promoting improvements for P.E.I, and dealing with the war and product shortages. Agricultural articles and political cartoons appeared occasionally during this decade. During the 1950s, the Patriot's editorials were generally politically nonpartisan, although a Liberal bias was occasionally expressed in them. International events and agriculture were often the subjects of editorials. Local photographs began to appear in the paper during this decade, and, at the end of the 1950s, a weekend magazine and coloured comics were added to the Patriot on Saturdays. In 1957, the Patriot Publishing Company was purchased by Thomson newspapers, following a fire which destroyed the Patriot plant.

Provincial news came to predominate in the pages of the Patriot during the 1960s. Editorials continued to avoid controversy, and a wide variety of syndicated columns were printed. The subjects of these columns included federal politics, health, bridge, horoscopes and advice. Television listings were printed daily. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Patriot continued to publish very much unchanged. Editorials discussed current events, promoted Prince Edward Island and reviewed political developments. The Patriot is still being published today.

Over the years, different editions of the Patriot have appeared alongside the evening daily. Between 1875 and 1909, the Weekly Patriot (see also) was published. It was succeeded by the Semi-Weekly Patriot which was published until 1913. A morning daily edition was published between 1913 and 1918. The last known issue of the Evening Patriot was published June 9, 1995.

Frequency: Weekly, July 1 1864 - June 1867(?); Semi-weekly on Thursdays and Saturdays, July 4 1867(?) - Apr. 2 1881; Daily, Apr. 4 1881 to June 9 1995 (last known publication date).

The Weekly Patriot, the weekly edition of the Patriot, printed short news articles, poetry, fiction, and advertisements when it began publication in 1874. It was a Liberal newspaper which supported the Free School Act. During the 1880s it opposed the National Policy and Tory corruption. The Weekly Patriot ceased publication in 1909.

Proprietor note: Laird & Mitchell, July 2 1875 - Dec. 29 1876(?); Henry Lawson, Apr. 14 1881(?) - Nov. 30 1882; David Laird, Dec. 7 1882 - Feb. 14 1884(?).

The Summerside Progress began publication in 1866 under the editorship of Thomas Kirwin and the ownership of Robert T. Holman. It was a politically independent newspaper which supported the annexation of P.E.I, to the United States and opposed Confederation. Other issues discussed in the paper included reciprocity, the railroad and education. Foreign and local news, fiction, poetry, anecdotes and advertisements were all printed in the Summerside Progress, with local news coverage being especially good. Editorials were quick to criticize any government party.

In 1869, the Progress fell into the hands of Henry Lawson and it became a Liberal newspaper. Its Liberal bias was sustained in 1876 when Thomas P. Gorman became the paper's proprietor and editor. Over the next three years, the Summerside Progress defended the rights of the Irish and the French Catholics in Prince County. During the debate on the School Question, the paper opposed the Education Act and the Liberal Davies administration for not supporting a separate school system.

In 1879, the Progress was sold to R. MacDonald and it became a Liberal-Conservative newspaper under the editorship of C.B. McNeill, the Liberal-Conservatives supporting the Conservative party but favouring free trade. In January of 1881, the Progress was sold to W.A. Brennan, the proprietor of the Conservative Summerside Journal. This sale was seen by the deposed editor, C.B. McNeill, as inimical to the interests of the Liberal-Conservatives, and so, for a short time following the takeover, he published a rival paper, True Progress, from Charlottetown.

In February of 1881, the Summerside Progress was again sold, the purchaser being Simon Delaney. Delaney and Gay published the paper until 1882, when it finally folded.

Publisher note: Thomas Kirwin, July 16, 1866 - May 8, 1869; C. B. McNeill, 1879 - Jan. 1881; Progress Publishing Company, Jan. 1881 - Feb. 1881; Delaney and Gay, Feb. 1881 - 1882.