Smyrna Times Archive

The Smyrna Telegraph was founded in 1849 in Smyrna, Delaware, by Samuel L. Jones. Within two years, however, it was discontinued. Abraham Poulson purchased the equipment of the Telegraph, including presses and type, and founded the Delaware Herald, which advocated for the prohibition of alcohol. From 1853 until 1854, Poulson published the newspaper under the longer title Delaware Herald and Peninsula Advocate.

In 1854, Abraham Poulson sold his interest in the newspaper to his son Thomas L. Poulson and Robert D. Hoffecker, who briefly continued the newspaper under the same name. Within a few months, however, Thomas Poulson decided to enter the ministry and Hoffecker became sole owner. The name of the paper was then changed to the Smyrna Times. Its first issue appeared on Wednesday, July 5, 1854, with the motto "A Family Paper, Devoted to Temperance, Education, Literature, Agriculture, and General Intelligence."

The Smyrna Times was the first permanently established newspaper in the town. Under Hoffecker's leadership, it gained in popularity and circulation increased. During the Civil War, the Times was a staunch defender of the Union and President Lincoln. In 1865, Robert Hoffecker sold the paper to his brother Joseph, who remained as owner and editor until his retirement in 1877, at which time Robert Hoffecker resumed leadership. In 1893, Robert Hoffecker passed ownership of the newspaper to his son, Robert Hoffecker, Jr.

The Smyrna Times continued to publish until 1987, when it merged with the Smyrna Clayton Sun to become the Smyrna Clayton Sun Times, a title that it retains today.