Sachem's History shows many changes since 1974
Barbara A. Martindale- For What It's Worth January 20-February 3, 2014
With another change to the Sachem, reflecting on its long history and its 159th birthday on Feb. 6, brings to mind that for approximately 120 years from 1856 to 1974 the newspaper remained much the same, other than a move from Caithness Street west in 1865 to its present location.
Surrounding the steadfastness of the Sachem, its Caledonia community progressed with the times from a town with mills to the gypsum plant that employed a large number of Caledonia men to a community with a growing population.
The Sachem was printed first with letters set by hand and put back in the type case and then by linotype after 1923. The size of the newspaper continued as a broadsheet and it was printed in house on a hand-fed foot treadle machine. Each newspaper was hand folded, too. That printing press was still printing the Sachem up to 1974 when a whole new era began.
For about 140 years, from the time that Thomas Messenger launched the Sachem, first the Advertiser then less than 10 months later the Grand River Sachem, his motto remained, "He is a freeman whom the truth makes free and all are slaves besides." In that spot today appears "The voice of Caledonia since 1856.”
Those early years of Thomas Messenger weren't easy, but his legacy is twofold: the Sachem name for his newspaper and the building in which it continues to operate.
Publishers of The Sachem from Thomas Messenger's era were family connected until 1982 when it was sold to The Tillsonburg News: Messenger to Wm. T. Sawle to Henry B. Sawle to Mrs. H.B. Sawle to the Martindales. Harrison Martindale celebrated 50 years in 1977 first as a printer with Mrs. Sawle and then as a co-owner from 1945 to 1981 when he retired. Harrison continued to hold a Sachem office spot until 1995 when he passed away.
The Sachem, for all those years until 1982, was not only a newspaper but a commercial print establishment too. Today's Pressmens Printing grew from the Sachem print part of the operation.
The big change in May 1974 was moving The Sachem newspaper from letterpress or linotype to offset. New equipment, new layout tables, a whole new way of putting out a newspaper took a few weeks to get it all together.
All news copy and advertising was set on a phototypesetting machine; printing off strips of film, waxing and laying out the strips on paste-up pages. When all paste-up pages were ready, it was a trip to The Tillsonburg News to have it printed. No more folding by hand, though. The newspaper came back to the office ready for labelling and delivery.
The Sachem's change from letterpress to offset in 1974 was primarily initiated by the co-partner of Harrison Martindale, his son Chester. The new change to issuing a broadsheet newspaper meant advertising had to be sold the position taken on by Ches, a reporter was hired and a part time photographer came into the picture. To take care of commercial printing and newspaper requirements, there was a staff of six employed full time.
The mid to late 1970s winter weather was much the same as it is this winter. Flooding was part of it too and Sachem news coverage with a dominance on large photographs, and community help became a necessity. The new dam in 1980 and GRCA controls eliminated that threat thereafter.
The tragic Feb. 27, 1980 death of co-publisher Chester due to a car accident threw the Sachem into more change. Son Tony took over his advertising sales at the time and his wife, your column writer, took on his co-publishing duties with her father-in-law. Harrison retired in 1981 and the Sachem was sold in 1982 to Otter Publishing, the Tillsonburg company that was printing the Sachem at the time.
Henceforth the Sachem's commercial print operation was taken over by Ches' second son Perry Martindale and his partner, Randy Peirson. They renamed their new company Pressmen's Printing, today located in a building around the corner from the Sachem and the actual commercial printing operation is carried on in their Paris Pressmens/Hastings location.
By 1987, Otter Publishing was sold to Newfoundland Capital, a newspaper company doing business in St. John's Newfoundland.
The Sachem went through another change in 1992 when it was preserved from extinction by four Sachem employees: Dave Cunliffe, Lynda Dunn, Andrea Lucas, Jackie Hoover and silent partner Ron Winegard. A change to Hamilton Web as the printer came into being too, remaining to this day.
Neil Dring came into the grouping in 1993 while working for the Spectator. In 1995 Neil left the Spectator and bought the Sachem outright. The Flyer Force department at the Sachem has been in existence since 1997 when Neil brought in this new newspaper enhancement.
The Sachem's broadsheet size was changed to tabloid in 1999. The Glanbrook Gazette, published by Michelle Ball as of Feb. 27, 1997 with its first edition, was purchased in 2003 and the Sachem and Glanbrook Gazette emerged.
Another huge difference to the Sachem came together in 2004 when paid subscription circulation was let go and free papers were delivered to all Haldimand and Glanbrook residents. At the same time, Torstar Corporation's Metroland group of newspapers bought the Sachem and today boasts 114 community newspapers and three daily newspapers in Southern, Central and Eastern Ontario, along with flyer and circular distribution plus other business related services.
As a result, the Sachem has about 60 carriers who deliver to a circulation of over 20,000 Haldimand residents and about 8,500 in the Glanbrook area of Binbrook and Mount Hope. There are 13 employees at the Sachem now, many who work out of the newly renovated interior Sachem office building in Caledonia. The Sachem has a satellite office in Dunnville.
As of Jan. 1, 2014, the Sachem and Glanbrook Gazette were re-launched with redesign and regrouped with Brant News and Norfolk News under the new Haldimand Norfolk Brant West Division. Neil Dring is the General Manager of the Sachem and Glanbrook Gazette while Len Offless is the General Manager of the whole division. Matt Day, formerly with the Dunnville Chronicle, is the new Sachem reporter, also part of the re-launch and redesign.
So… the Sachem's era of newspaper publishing and delivery today marks this 159th birthday on February 6th as one that 1856 founder Thomas Messenger would no doubt look on as a sign of the times but gratified his legendary name "Sachem" remains, still doing business in his 1865 building designed for newspaper publishing.
