Western Mail (Western Australia)

7 April 1927 edition, with the Countryman behind

The Western Mail, or Western Mail, was the name of two weekly newspapers published in Perth, Western Australia.

Published 1885-1955

The 1897 Christmas Number

The first Western Mail was published between 19 December 1885[1] and 23 October 1896 as a joint venture by Charles Harper and John Winthrop Hackett, the co-owners of The West Australian, the State's major daily paper. It was printed by James Gibbney at the paper's office in St Georges Terrace, Perth.[2]

Considerable numbers of regional and local newspapers in Western Australia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries included the word 'Mail' in their names.

The Western Mail Annual editions (1897–1955) carried significant collections of Western Australia art, photography and writing [3]

West Australian Newspapers management experimented with a variety of formats in the late 1940s and early 1950s, including the Weekend Mail for five years (see publication details below).

The paper was renamed to The Countryman on 27 January 1955.[4] However, the name Western Mail was recycled for a last Christmas Annual in 1956.

Published 1980-1988

In 1980 the name was resurrected for a new weekly, published by Western Mail Limited. The push for a new paper was made by Robert Holmes à Court and Bell Group following his failed takeover attempt of The Times (UK).

The venture was wound up in 1988.[5]

1929 WA Centenary cover

Publication details

1885-1955 (WA Newspapers)

The Western Mail. Perth, W.A: West Australian Newspapers.

Days of issues
Special Issues and supplements
Weekend Mail. Perth [W.A.] 
West Australian Newspapers Ltd.

1980-1988 (Western Mail Ltd)

The Western Mail, Perth, W.A : Western Mail Ltd., 1980–1988.

Editors

1944: Malcolm Uren

Note on sources

Most dates are derived from the entries in the State Library's reference catalogue:

Notes

  1. A New Weekly Journal Western Mail, 19 December 1885, at Trove. Initially, a Country Edition was published for despatch on Fridays and the Town Edition for sale on Saturdays
  2. Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954) Trove Digitised Newspapers, at Trove
  3. Murphy, Ffion; Nile, Richard, 1958–; Murphy, Ffion, 1950–; Fremantle Arts Centre Press (1990), The Gate of dreams : the Western mail annuals, 1897–1955, Fremantle Arts Centre Press, ISBN 978-0-949206-84-8
  4. A Change of Name The Western Mail, 20 January 1955, p. 3, at Trove
  5. The Western Mail, Western Mail, 1980–1988, retrieved 30 June 2012
  6. The Christmas Number Western Mail, 24 December 1897, at Trove
  7. The Western Mail Centenary Number, 4 July 1929 at Trove

References

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