Grand River Times Archive

The Grand River Times, a Democratic paper with the masthead “Westward the Star of Empire Takes Its Way,” was first published in Grand Rapids, Michigan, by George Pattison in 1837, a year before the incorporation of that community. It endured until 1841, when it was succeeded by the Grand Rapids Enquirer  which lasted until 1863. However, some local histories, notably David H. Seibold’s Grand Haven: In the Path of Destiny (2007) claim that the title and possibly the press was bought by the Barns twins (James and John W.) and William N. Angell and relocated to Grand Haven, Michigan, in 1851, where the numbering started anew.

Once in Grand Haven, the press was initially based above Henry Griffin’s Drug Store at 29 Washington Street. The building also contained the desks of various Ottawa County officials, including the Register of Deeds (held by Angell) and Treasurer (held by Henry Pennoyer, briefly first editor of the Times). The Grand River Times was a weekly, published each Wednesday, and subscribed to for $1 annually for pickup or $1.50 for delivery within Grand Haven. In January of 1855, the Times’s offices and press moved along with the county offices and the post office across the street to the George Parks building at 16 Washington.

 In 1857, the Grand River Times was bought by Galen Eastman, who then moved the paper to Eastmanville, formerly called Scranton, some 15 miles upriver as part of an effort to relocate the county seat. At that time, each community was home to around 500 citizens, and Eastman believed the arrival of the Detroit and Milwaukee Rail Road in Eastmanville would help him shift the county seat away from Grand Haven. However, when the Ottawa County electorate voted on the issue in October 1858 they did so knowing that the railroad line to Grand Haven was all but complete, so they opted retain Grand Haven as the county seat. Eastman’s hopes dashed, he sold the Grand River Times back to the Barns brothers who returned the press to Grand Haven. The Barns brothers then sold the press itself to the publishers of the dual language (Dutch and English) De Hollander based in Holland, Michigan, 25 miles south of Grand Haven. Using a new press, the Barns brothers and a Mr. Fosha together launched the Grand Haven News. That paper published its first issue on December 22, 1858, with a celebration of the recent arrival of the railroad in Grand Haven.