Lancashire Telegraph - History

History

The newspaper was founded by Thomas Purvis Ritzema, a young newspaper manager, who purchased two shops at 19 and 21 Railway Road, Blackburn, for the launch of his venture. The first copy appeared on the streets on 26 October 1886 and sold for a ha’penny (1.2p). It was known then as the Northern Daily Telegraph and it was the first evening newspaper to be published in East Lancashire. In 1894 the head office was moved to the corner site of Railway Road and High Street.

From 7 September 1939 soon after the start of World War II, advertisements gave way to news on the front page. On 10 December 1956 it changed its title to the Northern Evening Telegraph and on 2 September 1963 the name changed again to Lancashire Evening Telegraph. The newspaper used full colour for the first time on 11 November 1963 with spot colour introduced on 25 January 1965 and colour in classified advertising following on 19 March 1965. In 1982 it moved to its present head office in the High Street, which marked the introduction of new computerised technology.

In 1995 it became the first regional newspaper in Britain to put daily, updated news on the internet.. On 17 July 2006 the newspaper changed its name to the Lancashire Telegraph as it switched to overnight printing in order to distribute copies in the morning. It is currently the north-west newspaper of the year (How Do awards 2011).