Carrington Newspapers

The Carrington News was established the spring of 1883 by J. Morley Wyard, who lived on the farm now owned by J.R. Rusk and for whom Wyard Township was named.  The Carrington News occupied a small building in the vicinity of the present Thompson Yards and the entire staff consisted of Mr. Wyard and his "printer's devil" Herb Trubshaw, who later published the Courier at Cooperstown with his brother Perry Trubshaw.

In the following year of 1884 a second newspaper was started in Carrington.  This was called the Foster County Gazette owned and edited by one Knute Fanning and located in the block in which the Carrington Laundry now stands.

The two papers became bitter enemies and the two editors argued back and forth through their respective publications.  Early papers were not censored but printed ideas, facts, events and all news in the raw or as the editor saw it.

Mr. Wyard was a very tall man with a red beard and a yen to "start something!" and he was blessed with a brilliant mind.  He was a deacon of the Congregational church, Carrington's only church for some years, and was rabid in his view of right and wrong.  He was very set in his political ideas and set them forth in a most dramatic manner.

Mr. Farming's ideas in regard to the political and social affairs of the territory and community and also in other things, did not agree with those of Mr. Wyard and he did not refrain from airing his sentiments freely.  The battle between the two papers made reading them most interesting and the editorials were relished by the town.

In about 1887 or 1888 the two newspapers were sold and combined into one.  This new paper went by both the name of the Foster County Independent and the Carrington Weekly under different editors and was a continuation of the Carrington News and the Foster County Gazette.  The Foster County Independent serves its town, county, and state today as it has done throughout the years.

Another newspaper of the city of Carrington was the Carrington Record originated about 1900 and continued for some 21 years when it was discontinued.

(Report by Mrs. William Smith)

Source: A History of Foster County 1983 Page 231