About Woman's chronicle. (Little Rock, Ark.) 1888-1???
Little Rock, Ark. (1888-1???)

Woman’s Chronicle

Little Rock, capital of Arkansas and the seat of Pulaski County, is situated in the center of the state. The first permanent European settlement in the Little Rock area was in 1820, making it one of the oldest cities in the state. It quickly became the political focal point, and in 1821 the territorial capital moved from its previous location at Arkansas Post to Little Rock.

As Little Rock developed in the 1880s, the first women-focused newspapers opened in the capital city. In 1884 Mary Ann Webster Loughborough began the Ladies' Little Rock Journal, the first woman's paper in Arkansas (Ladies Little Rock Journal; Little Rock Ladies' Journal (1884-1884), Arkansas Ladies' Journal (1884-1886), Southern Ladies' Journal (1886-18??). The Ladies' Journal ceased publication a few years later in 1887 with Loughborough's death.

The Ladies' Journal paved the way for the Woman's Chronicle, and in 1888 the Chronicle became the second newspaper dedicated to women in Arkansas. Owned and operated by women, the Chronicle's all-female team of writers included Catherine Campbell Cuningham, Mary Burt Brooks, and Haryot Holt Cahoon. They listed themselves on the paper as associate editors Mrs. William Cahoon, Jr., and Mrs. Mary B. Brooks, with Miss Kate Cuningham as the main editor. In addition to their newspaper business, Cuningham worked as a teacher and Brooks was a principal. The Chronicle was an 8-page paper published every Saturday. By 1890 it had a subscriber count of about 1,000 in a city of 26,500 people.

In its debut issue, the editors asserted that the Woman's Chronicle was "devoted to the Interests of Women" and "announces now at the very outset that it is radically different from all other newspapers, and will be published for purely selfish reasons … [with] two distinctly defined motives. The first is to make a little money; the second is to make a little more money." This is in spirit with the rest of the newspaper, which was full of witty commentary on local affairs and politics, with special attention to promoting women's issues and interests. The Chronicle supported both temperance issues and white women's suffrage. The National American Woman Suffrage Association's Committee on Southern Work recommended that all committee members read the Chronicle to keep up with the latest suffrage news. The Chronicle also became the official publication of the Arkansas Woman's Christian Temperance Union. In addition to these two big issues, the paper promoted quality education and charitable organizations. The editors delivered the Chronicle to each legislator when the Arkansas General Assembly was in session in an effort to ensure that lawmakers heard women's concerns.

Like the Ladies' Journal, the Chronicle ceased publication in 1893 with Cuningham's ill health. Despite the quip that the Chronicle aimed to make money and more money, the paper never made a profit. However, the Chronicle was devoted to women's interests and promoted women's suffrage, which was finally achieved 27 years after the paper ended. Cuningham's headstone is inscribed with the words "I did the best I could."

Provided by: Arkansas State Archives