Brennan, W. A.

When the Summerside Journal began publishing in 1865, it was a politically nonpartisan newspaper which published news, fiction, anecdotes, agricultural articles and advertisements. During the first half of the 1870s, the paper developed a Conservative bias. It opposed Confederation and sectarian education, while supporting free trade. During the late 1870s and for most of the 1880s, the Journal's allegiance switched to the Liberal party. The Journal fought for reciprocity and opposed the National Policy. Towards the end of the 1880s, the Journal returned to supporting the Conservatives, although the editorials at this time were rarely political. The quantity of news in the Journal decreased during the 1890s, with fiction and anecdotes being the chief fare in the paper. Editorial concerns during the decade included the need for improved steamship service, the maintenance of the tariffs and the denunciation of the Liberals. The turn of the century brought excellent news reporting back into the Journal's pages. The paper maintained its Conservative bias until the beginning of World War II. Its causes during the first decades of the twentieth century included the building of a Canadian navy, improved steamship service for Summerside and protectionism. During the 1920s, comics, photographs and articles on housekeeping all became regular features. Various columns began to appear in the Journal during the 1930s and 1940s, including columns on health, photography, automobiles, boy scouts, religion and books. From 1940 until it ceased publication in 1951, the Journal's news coverage became more and more focused on the local. Sports articles began to be published during this decade. In 1951, the Journal merged with the Pioneer, to form the Journal-Pioneer.

Frequency note: Weekly on Thursdays, Nov. 30, 1865 - Aug. 29, 1878; Sept. 26, 1878 - Aug. 6, 1891; Feb. 2, 1939 - Sept. 14, 1939; Tri-weekly on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, Sept. 3, 1878 - Sept. 19, 1878; Weekly on Wednesdays, Aug. 12, 1891 - May 27, 1895; Weekly on Mondays, June 1, 1925 - Jan. 30, 1939; Daily, Sept. 21, 1939 - Jan. 5, 1942; Semi-weekly on Mondays and Thursdays, Jan. 8, 1942 - Jan. 27, 1949; Tri-weekly on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Jan. 31, 1949 - Oct. 3, 1951.

Publisher note: Bertram and Barnard, Nov. 30 1865 - Mar. 21 1867; Joseph Bertram, Mar. 28 1867 - Apr. 28 1870; Joseph Bertram and Charles W. Strong, May 5 1870 - 1872; Graves and McMurtry, 1872 - 1875; Graves and Co., 1875 - May 13 1880; W.A. Brennan, May 20 1880 - Mar. 6 1884; Journal Publishing Co. Ltd., Dec. 28 1904 - Oct. 3 1951; A.R. Brennan, July 12 1916 - June 20 1917.

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.