The Cincinnati Daily Star Archive

The Cincinnati Star began in 1872 with the creation of the Cincinnati Evening Star by Charles and John Karr and Lewis Alexander Leonard. The group only stayed together until 1873 when M.D. Hanover, a lawyer with political aspirations, purchased the Karrs’ stakes. Leonard edited the paper and would go on to become influential in the newspaper industry. The paper changed its name to the Star in 1874, but a year later the heading changed again to the Cincinnati Daily Star.

While most papers in Cincinnati had a political affiliation, the Star remained independent, focusing less on politics and more on the happenings of the greater Cincinnati area. The Star reported on national news, with a sprinkle of international news, but catered mainly to the needs of the readers in the Cincinnati area and the neighboring cities in Kentucky across the Ohio River. With a large reader base, the Star was also a prime spot for “Wanted” and other advertisements for various business, manufacturing, and agricultural interests.

The Star grew rapidly, reaching a circulation of 20,000 readers by 1878, which made it the most read newspaper in Cincinnati during its time in publication. A contributing factor to the dominance of the paper was its printing equipment. The Star used the first “perfect press” west of Pittsburgh, a technique that allowed a sheet of paper to be printed on both sides at once. With the speed that the Star was able to leave the printing press, the citizens of Cincinnati were able to get the most up-to-date news.

For as influential and wide-reaching as the Daily Star had become, it did not last long. Only eight years after its creation, in 1880, presumably after his failed political run, Hanover decided to leave the newspaper business. He was granted that opportunity when Charles P. Taft offered to merge the Daily Star with the Times to create the Cincinnati Times-Star. In 1958, the Times-Star merged with the Cincinnati Post to form the Cincinnati Post and Cincinnati Times-Star, which became the Cincinnati Post and Times-Star after publishing only 20 issues. The paper would eventually drop the “Times-Star” from its title to become the Cincinnati Post, which ceased publication in 2007.