Emma Carstens McKinney and her husband were the owners and publishers of The Hillsboro Argus in Washington County, Oregon. She bought a half share of the ownership in April 1904.[1] [2] W. Verne, her son, bought the other half in 1923, leading to the birth of McKinney&McKinney.
The daughter of F.J. and Henrietta (Deelwater) Carstens, she was a native of Washington County and was one of eight children. She married W. William McKinney in 1886. Emma McKinney died in 1964.[3]
McKinney received the Amos Voorhies Award, Oregon’s most prestigious newspaper award, in 1957. In 1982, she was inducted into the Oregon Journalism Hall of Fame.[4]
The Emma C. McKinney Award was established in National Newspaper Association 966 to honor a journalist, working or retired, “who has provided distinguished service and leadership to the community press and their community.” It is considered one of the “highest and most dignified tributes in journalism.”[5]