1902 Iowa Post brought to Cedar Rapids from Iowa City by Henry Gundling.
1903 The Tribune, established by the Cedar Rapids Federation of Labor.
1906 The Cedar Rapidske Liste, Bohemian humorous weekly.
The Optimus, started at Cedar Rapids by E. C. Barber.
1909 West Side Enterprise, started December 30th by W. I. Endicott, owner and publisher.
Much of the early history of Linn county, and more especially of Cedar Rapids, is interwoven with the history of the Progressive Era, which afterwards became the Cedar Rapids Times. The Progressive Era was established by D. O. Finch in 1851. It was democratic in politics and claimed to be devoted to the interests of Cedar Rapids and Linn county. It was a seven column, four page paper, and rather a credit to the town at that time. Worse papers have been published since.
It was but a short time until Mr. Finch had all the newspaper experience he wanted. Joseph Greene then purchased the paper and ran it until 1854. During this time Ezra Van Metre, James J. Child, Esq., and James L. Enos were successively its editors.
James L. Enos had something to do with nearly every paper that was started during the early days of Linn county. He loved the smell of printer's ink. The types had a fascination for him. He delighted to see his thoughts reproduced in print. In September, 1854, he and F. Augustus Williams purchased Mr. Greene's interest in the Progressive Era. They changed the name to the Cedar Valley Times. They changed the politics of the paper from democratic to the new Americanism of that time. Then came the organization of the republican party. Like other adherents to the American party living in the north, the editors of the Times cast in their lot with the new republican party and warmly advocated and defended the principles on which it was founded.
One J. G. Davenport figures also in the early history of the Times. He had acquired an interest in the paper, and during the campaign he was its nominal editor, although there were not wanting those who declared that he had not the ability to write a three line notice of a church supper, let alone an editorial. Anyway, he made the Times his stepping stone into the postmaster's seat, and his conduct of that office was such that an investigation of his shortages followed. His bondsmen, one of whom was the late J. J. Snouffer, made good the loss, and shortly afterwards Davenport, after some more operations of a minor character and similar nature, left Cedar Rapids.
They were rare old political fighters in those days. Politics, rather than news, was the chief end and aim of the owner of a newspaper. When Greene, Merritt & Co. closed out Davenport, having held a bill of sale on the Times office, the Times was made the personal organ of Colonel William H. Merritt in his campaign against Kirkwood. To do this it had to change from republicanism to democracy, but it waged a hot fight, Colonel Merritt being its editor. However, Kirkwood was elected and in 1862 C. M. Hollis purchased the Times and he made great success of it up to 1866 when he disposed of the paper to Ayers and McClelland.