The Tustin News has had several homes during its
85 years in the community, including this
two-story building on the east side of D (El
Camino Real) between Main and Third Streets.
The Tustin News
is celebrating its 85th anniversary this month;
although no one is certain if the first issue
appeared on Nov. 2 or Nov. 7. A banner headline
in the Nov. 2, 1923, issue of The Tustin News
declared, “The Tustin News is one year old
today.”
But The Daily
Register in Santa Ana had welcomed the new
publication on Nov. 7, 1922, with this message,
“Reflecting in its stirring articles a will to
boost the progress of its home, The Tustin News,
edited by Timothy Brownhill, recently from
Beaver City, Utah, made its initial appearance
today.”
Regardless of the
exact date, all agree the year was 1922. The
Tustin News was the fifth newspaper to be
launched in Tustin. By lasting an entire year,
until November 1923, it became the first to
survive.
The publisher
expressed his gratitude to the community for the
acceptance of his publication, especially gave
thanks to “Friends who said ‘Here’s $2, put me
down for a year’s subscription’ when they didn’t
know whether the paper would run six days or
sixty years.”
Merchants also
were praised, “They have paid for their
advertisements, they have given the News their
job printing and they have been pleasant about
it. The businessmen of Tustin are good sports.”
Despite this glowing message, Brownhill soon
turned the publication over to Rev. John
Winterbourne and his sons Frank and Dale. They
in turn passed The Tustin News on in 1925 to F.
H. Fowler, who published it until 1935.
Between 1935 and
1956, The Tustin News had six different
publishers. Clyde and Gretchen Simmons owned it
from 1935 to 1945. William Mast bought it in
1945 and sold it to Ed Reed and George Bronzan
the same year. They sold it to Harry Young in
1946. He kept it for a year before selling to
James Quinn, who published it until 1955. Bob
and Peg Evans owned it from 1955 to 1956.
William A. Moses
and his wife Lucille became publishers of The
Tustin News on July 25, 1956. A graduate of
Stanford University, Moses was an experienced
newspaper man, having been a war correspondent,
a reporter on the Bakersfield Californian, a
religion editor at the Los Angeles Times and
editor of the Newport Harbor News Press. Under
his guidance, the paper concentrated its
coverage on Tustin and grew along with the
community, gradually changing from a country
weekly to a suburban publication. Best of all,
it finally made a profit.
Moses sold The
Tustin News to The Orange County Register on
Feb. 23, 1995. Jill Leach took over as editor
and the paper moved from Tustin to the Register
headquarters in Santa Ana and then to Irvine,
where it shares offices with Irvine World News.
Jill retired in 2006 and Don Dennis took over as
editor. Once the paper arrived by mail, but it
is now delivered free along with the Register to
subscribers in the Tustin area. Those who don’t
receive it can pick up a copy at many locations
in Tustin. Although the paper has undergone many
changes over the years, it continues to be a
voice in the community.
Webguy's note:
If you can't find a paper copy, you can view the
current and recent back issues by visiting the
Orange County Register site , selecting the
"City-by-City" news drop-down box for Tustin,
and then selecting The Tustin News under their
E-Communities heading. |
