Enterprise News-Record Archive

Debuting on April 26, 1907, the News=Record of Enterprise, Oregon, had a checkered first year of publication. The paper was originally published as the Wallowa News for eight years in Wallowa, but owners Fred G. Conley and J. Arthur Bishop renamed it upon moving to Enterprise in 1907. A worsening nervous condition encouraged Conley to sell the News=Record shortly after leaving Wallowa. The new owner, a Portland journalist named James Corey, ran the publication for four months, during which time he tainted its reputation through excessive boosterism. Corey sold the nascent weekly to Homer A. Galloway in the same year.

Galloway immediately made changes to the paper, trying to combat the damage done to its reputation under Corey's management. In an editorial, "Forewarned, Forearmed," Galloway introduced himself and explained his plans to restore the weekly's credibility, suggesting he would work hard to filter content but admitting that he would not be neutral on local controversies.

In October 1907, Galloway offered prize-based incentives to individuals who sold the most subscriptions. The competition was successful, increasing readership just before the county court used annual subscription lists to determine which local publication would become the official county paper. After the competition, Galloway began praising Enterprise as the best location for the Wallowa County seat, a campaign that drew criticism from the Wallowa Sun. By June 1908, Galloway's efforts paid off, and Enterprise was voted to remain the seat of Wallowa County.

The News=Record covered local developments such as railroad, telegraph, and school construction. Enterprise was not without more sensational news, however. A July 1908 article, "Brave Woman in Runaway Accident," detailed the account of a woman who survived a wagon mishap. An April 1911 article, "Curtiss Describes Hydro-Aeroplane," described Glenn Curtiss' amphibious flying vehicle and anticipated launch from the coastal town of Astoria.

Advertisements in the News=Record included Castoria, Ayor's Hair Vigor, M. and M. Milling Company, Kodak, and Mica Grease. Mysteries and other works of fiction were published across several issues, taking weeks to conclude. Additionally, advice articles offered suggestions for gardening, home improvement, and better housekeeping.

Galloway's sister-in-law, Snow Heaton, joined the venture in January 1908. By July, they installed a Two-Letter Junior Merganthaler Linotype, making it the first county paper that did not use hand-set type. In October 1908 the team expanded when Ben Weathers of the Wallowa Chieftain accepted an offer from Galloway to combine their efforts and form the Enterprise Press.

Galloway ran each paper separately but with the same content. On January 2, 1909, he started publishing the News=Record semiweekly, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, a first in Wallowa County. The title of the paper was changed to the Enterprise News-Record on December 31, 1910. By 1911, Enterprise Press merged the Chieftain and the Enterprise News-Record to form the Enterprise Record Chieftain, a new paper "with one purpose and one interest."