| Western Nebraska Observer | |
| Type: | Weekly newspaper |
| Owners: | Gary and Sue Stevenson |
| Founder: | Charles H. Randall |
| Foundation: | May 1, 1885 |
| Headquarters: | 118 E. 2nd StreetKimball, NE 69145 |
The Western Nebraska Observer is a weekly newspaper covering Kimball, Nebraska and surrounding Banner County. It has a circulation of 892 copies[1] and is currently owned by Gary and Sue Stevenson.[2] The newspaper is the town's oldest continuously owned business.
Founded May 1, 1885[3] [4] by Charles H. Randall, it was the first paper in Kimball, founded when the town, then called Antelopeville, had only four buildings.[5] The first issue was cranked out on Randall's old army hand press.[5] Originally dubbed the Nebraska Observer, the name was changed to the Kimball Observer after the town's name was changed from Antelopeville to Kimball. In the late 1800s it passed through a series of owners, including A. B. Beard, G. L. Carlyle, R. D. Wilson, and V. B. Cargill.[6] While the paper's name would change several times throughout the 20th century, the paper was first called the Western Nebraska Observer in 1886.[7]
The paper moved from hand press to linotype machine in November 1915,[8] and to offset printing in 1964.[9]
Robert J Pinkerton, publisher of the paper, starting in December 1962,[10] [11] was elected president of the Nebraska Press Association in 1972.[12] He had worked at the paper as an editor from 1958 forward,[12] and was a 1954 graduate of the University of Nebraska School of Journalism.[13] In 1995, while still publishing the paper, he was named master editor-publisher by the Nebraska Press Association, the highest honor awarded by that organization.