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Curry Coastal Pilot

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Curry Coastal Pilot
TypeWeekly newspaper
Owner(s)Country Media, Inc.
PublisherDavid Thornberry
Founded1946
LanguageEnglish
Headquarters519 Chetco Avenue Unit 7, Brookings OR 97415
Circulation5,223
Sister newspapersDel Norte Triplicate
OCLC number30721815
Websitecurrypilot.com

The Curry Coastal Pilot is a weekly newspaper published in Brookings, Oregon, United States, since 1946.[1][2] It is published on Fridays by Country Media, Inc. and has a circulation of 5,223.[1][3]

History

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The paper originated as the Dayton Tribune of Dayton around 1911[4] before relocating to Brookings decades later.[5] The first Tribune editor was D. C. Eshmun. In the paper's first year of existence, Eshmun was beaten with an umbrella by Mrs. J. J. Jones after he penned an article implying the type of sewing machine her husband sold was low quality. Eshmun wrote a retraction.[6] He then quit and was replaced Fred T. Mellinger.[7]

Mellinger was called up for the Mexican Border War and bought the paper back in 1917 from H. D. Skinner.[8] He then quit and left town in 1923. Local businessmen and the Telephone Register of McMinnville tried to keep the paper alive but it shuttered after a month.[9] A year later A. N. Merrill of Bay City moved his Bay City Chronicle plant to Dayton and restarted the Tribune.[10]

The paper was then purchased by Charles W. Van Wormer in 1927[11], E. B Stolle and C. M. Sutton in 1931,[12] Byron Hughes in 1934,[12] J. R. Todd in 1935[13] and Milo Taylor in 1938.[14] After 11 months Taylor sold the Tribune to John M. Biggs Jr.[15] Ownership reverted back to Taylor after several months who then sold it again in 1940 to Dewy Akers.[14] A few years later Akers discontinued the paper and relocated his printing plant to Brookings to launch the Brookings Harbor-Pilot on March 7, 1946.[5][16] Akers was killed in a plane crash in 1952 and his widow sold the paper two years later to Joe Murphy and Bud Pisarek.The co-publishers became known by locals as "The Boys" and doubled the circulation within a few years.[17]

In 1958, Vern Shomshak bought the paper, and sold it in 1961 to John Jenkins, former advertising manager of the Grants Pass Daily Courier.[18] About a year later Jenkins sold the Harbor-Pilot to Richard W. and Polly W. Keusink.[19] The couple owned the paper for 19 years, increased circulation from 2,000 to 7,000 and changed its name in July 1978 to the Curry Coastal Pilot. They sold it in 1981 to Western Communications of Bend.[20] The company went bankrupt and sold the paper to Country Media of Salem in July 2019.[21][22]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Curry Coastal Pilot". Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
  2. ^ "Curry Coastal Pilot (Brookings, Or.) 1978-Current". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  3. ^ Staff Report. "Country Media adds to its publications". Curry Pilot. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  4. ^ Turnbull, George S. (1939). "Yamhill County" . History of Oregon Newspapers . Binfords & Mort.
  5. ^ a b "Dayton Tribune Goes Into History". The Capital Journal. Salem, Oregon. January 29, 1946. p. 2.
  6. ^ "Editor Beaten By Woman Retracts | Mrs. Jones Wields Umbrella On Dayton Publisher". The Oregonian. December 19, 1911. p. 1.
  7. ^ "Oregon Sidelights". The Oregon Daily Journal. December 27, 1911. p. 8.
  8. ^ "Dayton Tribune Sold". The Oregon Daily Journal. April 6, 1917. p. 20.
  9. ^ "Dayton Tribune Career Is Closed". The Daily Astorian. August 30, 1923. p. 1.
  10. ^ "Dayton Tribune to Resume". The Oregonian. August 22, 1924. p. 17.
  11. ^ "Dayton Tribune Changes Hands". The Oregonian. November 9, 1927. p. 14.
  12. ^ a b "Hughes Of Ohio Is New Owner Tribune". Statesman Journal. Salem, Oregon. October 2, 1934. p. 10.
  13. ^ "Dayton Tribune Sold". The Oregonian. August 14, 1935. p. 12.
  14. ^ a b "Takes Over "Tribune"". The Capital Journal. Salem, Oregon. March 9, 1940. p. 8.
  15. ^ "Purchases Dayton Tribune". East Oregonian. Pendleton, Oregon. July 8, 1939. p. 3.
  16. ^ "Brookings Newspaper Issues First Edition". The Oregon Daily Journal. Portland, Oregon. March 9, 1946. p. 5.
  17. ^ McKillips, Drew (May 6, 1957). "Growing Up With Town | 'The Boys' Publish Brookings Offset Paper". The World. Coos Bay, Oregon. p. 9.
  18. ^ "Brookings Paper Sold To Jenkins". The News-Review. Roseburg, Oregon. Associated Press. April 15, 1961. p. 5.
  19. ^ "Paper Is Sold". The Daily Herald. Everett, Washington. United Press International. September 6, 1962. p. 25.
  20. ^ "Weekly Brookings paper sold". Corvallis Gazette-Times. Associated Press. June 19, 1981. p. 28.
  21. ^ Cureton Cook, Emily (June 4, 2019). "Oregon Buyers Bid On Sister Papers, Not Bend Bulletin". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on October 3, 2023. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
  22. ^ Kenfield, Ben (July 12, 2021). "Making changes to improve your paper". Curry Coastal Pilot. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
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