“Newspapers are the vehicles of useful information. The intelligence and character of the citizens of any given section of our county may be readily ascertained from the number and character of the newspapers that circulate in it.”

Adolphus Fletcher, Volume 1, Edition 1 of the Jamestown Journal.

On June 21, 1826, Adolphus Fletcher published the first edition of the Jamestown Journal.

That means we’ve been here almost as long as Jamestown itself, first publishing near the current location of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church on North Main Street. Fletcher built a two-story wooden building and set up a wooden printing press on the second floor. Papers were published once a week, every Wednesday, when we first began publishing.

A lot has changed over the years. Journalism happens at a pace in 2026 that Adolphus Fletcher couldn’t have imagined with the technology of his time. We’ve had a few name changes – most notably after the 1941 merger of the Jamestown Journal and the Morning Post to become The Jamestown Post-Journal. What started as a weekly paper went to twice weekly and, eventually, a daily publication. In 2026 technological advances mean readers can get their news 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Adolphus Fletcher’s wooden press has given way to the modern press found today.

The method of delivery and frequency have changed, but the mission has not. We still strive every day to be the vehicle of useful information that Adolphus Fletcher wrote about nearly 200 years ago. Newspapers, whether you hold a paper copy in your hands or read it on your phone, have the space and resources to effectively serve the public good. We play an essential good, as Adolphus Fletcher so perfectly stated,

We’re proud of the work we’ve done over the past 200 years. We’re grateful for the support we’ve received from the community. After all, we’re nothing without those who spend time with our product each day. We cherish the idea of celebrating another 100 years of service to the Jamestown community, and that’s a goal we can’t reach without you. In that vein, the 200th anniversary of The Post-Journal isn’t just a celebration of the work we’ve done, it’s a chance to celebrate the region that we’ve worked to cover for the past two centuries. Just like us, Jamestown and the rest of Chautauqua County are constantly evolving, working to solve problems as they arise and, hopefully, celebrating our successes. One way we intend to celebrate our history is a weekly glance back at some of our historic front pages that will appear every Saturday. This year, as we celebrate some of our favorite pages, we also have an opportunity to reflect on our region’s past, appreciate the region we serve now and look forward to our shared future.