About The Rathdrum tribune. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1903-1963
Rathdrum, Idaho (1903-1963)

The Rathdrum Tribune

The small community of Rathdrum, Idaho, was established in 1861. In the 1880s a mining boom began in northern Idaho, and Rathdrum developed as a supply center for the adjacent Coeur d'Alene Mining District, also known as the Silver Valley. The development of Rathdrum was aided by the construction of the Northern Pacific Railroad in 1883 and the placement of a railhead in the town. Agriculture and lumber were also important industries, primarily in support of mining.

In 1902, two brothers, Joseph R.M. and Charles W. Culp, purchased a local paper, the Silver Blade (1895-1902), with Joseph serving as editor. The following year, the Culp brothers changed its name to the Rathdrum Tribune. The Tribune was published in 1903-63, serving Rathdrum and Kootenai County. It appeared weekly on Friday as a four-page, six-column paper, with occasional six-page issues. In 1911-20, the Tribune's circulation hovered around 500.

The Rathdrum Tribune faced immediate criticism from a local competitor, the Democratic Panhandle News. The Panhandle's editor, William A. Logue, attributed the Silver Blade's demise to political motivations and predicted the Tribune's demise for the same reason. These charges were refuted in an editorial in the Tribune that claimed that the Silver Blade and Tribune were both free from political influence. The Tribune's editor went on to say that, "so far as existence is concerned, the Tribune will be on hand to record the death of the Panhandle News and, still later, to behold the giants of future forests growing over its grave." Although the Rathdrum Tribune claimed political independence, it was considered a Republican newspaper.

The Tribune covered national, state, and local news. National and state-wide politics dominated the paper's non-local content. Local news focused primarily on the town of Rathdrum. However, news from the small adjacent communities of Spirit Lake, Harrison, Coeur d'Alene, Athol, Bayview, and Post Falls often appeared in a recurring column, "Items of County Towns." Highly localized or personal news, like marriages, births, sporting events, and local business dealings was covered under "Local Paragraphs." The "Personal Mention" column recorded visitors to the Rathdrum community. During the Tribune's early years, members of the local Women's Christian Temperance Union edited a recurring "WCTU Column." Works of fiction were also occasionally featured.

In 1962, Eugene G. Rosin and his wife, Jeanette, purchased the Rathdrum Tribune. That same year, the Rosins moved the paper's operations to Post Falls and changed its name to the Post Falls Tribune (1963-current).

Provided by: Idaho State Historical Society