The Gallatin Democrat was discontinued, merged into the ongoing Gallatin North Missourian
Scout Harrison, publisher of the Gallatin Democrat, resided upstairs above the newspaper office. (date unknown)
Wesley L. “Uncle Wes” Robertson, editor of the Gallatin Democrat, was shot and killed at his desk Dec. 23, 1919, by disgruntled former Gallatin city clerk Hugh Y. Tarwater. The popular editor was the first president of Northwest Missouri Press Association in 1891. In 1901 he became the 31st president of Missouri Press Association and was one of the leading voices of the Democratic party in the state. He was posthumously inducted into the MPA Hall of Fame in 1998. [Original painting by James Burkhart for the Missouri Press Foundation, 1986]
An advertising rate card describing charges and services (date unknown)
C.M. Harrison, center, with printing room employees standing between the porch pillars of the Gallatin Democrat office on North Main Street.
Publisher Fred M. Harrison
The evolution of newspapers serving Gallatin is captured in this photo. The Gallatin Democrat merged into the Gallatin North Missourian (stone front, at right) which operated in the bottom two floors of a 3-story building (top floor barely shown owned by Masonic Lodge). In 1964, the first floor housed a News King printing press owned and operated by three neighboring newspaper publishers (Joe Snyder of Gallatin, M.O. Ridings of Hamilton, and Don Sheridan of Princeton). This business was known as Lakeland Publications. The printing presses were located at 205-207 North Main Street (first floor with remodeled white exterior). The 2-story portion once was home to the Gallatin Democrat, with publisher Scout Harrison living in the second floor apartment.
The 4-unit News King printing press printing newspapers provided the primary source of revenue for Lakeland Publications, a firm owned by neighboring newspaper publishers Joseph Snyder of Gallatin, M.O. Ridings of Hamilton, and Don Sheridan of Princeton, MO. Eventually, Mr. Snyder emerged as sole proprietor and sold the business to Darryl and Liz Wilkinson of Gallatin Publishing Company in the early 1980s. This press was used until 2008 when GPC relocated to 609B South Main Street after purchasing a 6-unit News King Press from the University of Missouri-Columbia, capable of full color process printing.
Publisher Joseph Snyder pauses at the GPC office after receiving the MPA Hall of Fame award. Notice the wall poster and FAX machine. When first available, Gallatin Publishing Company offered and promoted a fax service to the public charging a small transfer fee. Eventually fax machines became more commonplace and the community service was discontinued. GPC later introduced telephone access to the internet for Gallatin through equipment housed at the GPC office at 203 North Main Street, equipment owned and operated by the St. Joseph News-Press.
