About Mountain Home Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1915-1946
Mountain Home, Idaho (1915-1946)

Mountain Home Republican, Elmore County Republican and The Republican

The Mountain Home Republican, published in 1915-46 in Mountain Home, Elmore County, Idaho, was the successor to the Elmore County Republican (1910-15) and the Republican (1903-09).

The Mountain Home Republican was originally owned by the Mountain Home Co-Operative Irrigation Company and edited by Ralph W. Simpkins. In January 1916, the Republican merged with another paper owned by the Mountain Home Co-Operative Irrigation Company, the Elmore Times (1914-15). The merger resulted in the Republican moving its publishing office to the former Times office and absorbing the Times's subscription list. George F. Lee replaced Simpkins as editor and business manager for the Republican in September 1916. The Mountain Home Republican was less partisan than its predecessor. According to editorials, the Republican wanted to be a booster for the Mountain Home community and inform its readers about politics, not to propagandize on behalf of one party or tell its readers how to vote.  However, the Republican did cover more Republican policies and candidates for office than those of the Democratic Party.

The Republican was published weekly, originally distributed on Saturdays, and typically contained six or eight pages with six columns. In 1917-18, 10- and 12-page issues became more common. Local news coverage included all of Elmore County, but focused on the city of Mountain Home. Settlement, reclamation, and irrigation were popular topics. Increased coverage of national and international news stories in the Republican coincided with the United States'; involvement in the First World War. Serialized works of fiction were regularly featured. Other semi-regular columns included "Home Page of the Republican," featuring illustrated articles appealing to women with subjects like fashion and gardening. The "News and Pictorial Section" focused primarily on World War I. A regular column titled "Church Notes" featured the news and goings-on of a variety of local churches.

In August 1922, the Republican was sold to two newspapermen from Kansas, Tom and Fred Lindsey, who acted as the paper's publishers and editors. With new leadership came changes. The Lindsey brothers changed the day of distribution to Friday and announced that the Republican's politics would now be independent. The brothers managed the Republican for just two years. Following their brief term of ownership, George Wharton edited the paper from 1924 to 1935. Milton Jones purchased the Republican from Wharton and served as its editor until 1946, when he sold it to Lewis Elmer Newcomb. Newcomb named his son-in-law, Robert Cooley, publisher and editor. Cooley changed the name of the newspaper to the Mountain Home News, which operates to this day.

Provided by: Idaho State Historical Society