One hundred and forty years is a long time.

When George Hosmer published the first issue of the Plainsman Herald in the spring of 1887, Baca County had not yet been organized. There was no courthouse, no county government, and many of the communities that would eventually dot the High Plains had yet to be established. Through all the changes that followed, one thing remained remarkably constant. Week after week, the Herald recorded the story of this place and the people who called it home.

During those 140 years, the newspaper has passed through many hands: George Hosmer, Charles Mechler, Arthur Henbest, L. A. Wikoff, Silas Speckman, Doc Emerson, Sam Konkel, I. C. Rosa, Ralph Williams, Juanita Williams, Bruce Thompson, Melvin and Ruth Stults, Joe and Penny Self, the Cohoon family, Kathy Nutt, Sarah Steinman, and for the past seven years, us.

Looking back over that list, it’s clear that none of us ever truly owned the Herald. We simply accepted the responsibility of caring for it until it was time to pass it to the next steward.

These past seven years have certainly been memorable. We became publishers just as COVID changed nearly every part of daily life. We watched industrial hemp arrive with tremendous intrigue before fading almost as quickly as it appeared. We covered county fairs, elections, school activities, championship individuals and teams, new businesses, anniversaries, celebrations, and, unfortunately, far too many obituaries.

Along the way, we also continued something that has always mattered deeply to me: preserving the history of Baca County and southeastern Colorado. Old photographs, newspapers, family collections, and forgotten stories found their way into these pages because we’ve long believed a community without its history eventually loses part of its identity. After all, today’s newspaper becomes tomorrow’s history book.

The newspaper business, however, is not the same business it was even twenty years ago. The advertising model that supported community journalism for generations has changed dramatically. Readers now receive information from countless sources the moment something happens. Across America, community newspapers continue to disappear, and every time one closes, a community loses more than a business. It loses part of its memory.  That’s why this announcement is different.

As I’ve thought about writing this column, I’ve realized something. I’m the fortunate one. Across America, publishers of small-town newspapers are too often forced to write the final edition, turn out the lights, and close the doors for good. I don’t have to do that. Instead, I get to introduce the next publisher of a newspaper that has served this community since the spring of 1887—before Baca County even existed. That’s a much better story, and one I’m grateful to tell.

When I first imagined writing this editorial, I assumed it might be a more gut-wrenching task about the end of a newspaper. I’m grateful that instead I get to write about its future.

Sam Konkel, Herald publisher from 1913 to 1930, understood that a newspaper was about more than ink on paper. When he purchased the Herald in 1913, he wrote that while a newspaper’s first responsibility was to report the news, it should also encourage the development of the county and give expression to the interests of its people. Seventeen years later, when he stepped away, he spent very little time writing about himself. Instead, he thanked his readers, expressed confidence in the future, and introduced the next publisher.

Nearly a century later, we’d like to do the same. In August, ownership and publication of the Plainsman Herald will pass to Tyler Hook, a native of Southwest Kansas.

Tyler brings an impressive combination of experience in farming, manufacturing, local journalism, and community service. He began writing for the Ulysses News several years ago and has since taken on the Johnson Pioneer and the Elkhart Tri-State News, helping ensure those communities continue to have a local news presence.

Over the past several months, I’ve spent time reading Tyler’s work. He writes thoughtfully about agriculture, local government, schools, families, volunteers, and the everyday events that matter in rural communities. He understands that community newspapers are built on trust. Readers invite a newspaper into their homes every week, and that trust is earned one issue at a time.

Every publisher leaves a different mark on a newspaper. George Hosmer’s Herald wasn’t Sam Konkel’s. Konkel’s wasn’t Ralph Williams’. Bruce Thompson’s wasn’t ours, etc etc.  Tyler’s Herald won’t be exactly like ours, nor should it. Every publisher must adapt to the challenges of his own time while remaining faithful to the community he serves. That’s how newspapers survive for 140 years. I’ll leave it at that and let Tyler tell you more about himself in the weeks ahead.  

What should never change is the commitment to accurately record the life of a community, preserve its history, and remind people that what happens in Baca County matters.

That responsibility will soon belong to Tyler, and I can’t think of a better way for year 140 of the Herald to transition…

Before we close this chapter, there are some people I need to thank. Thank you, Hunter.  We were tossed together in this thing and usually found a way to keep this train rolling.  

Thank you to every subscriber who continued to believe a local newspaper was worth supporting. I’d like to thank my kids, Lexi and Colin. They didn’t grow up in Springfield, but the Herald gave them the chance to become part of this community for a little while. Lexi spent four years helping cover events and producing the paper, while Colin, during one summer with us, was instrumental in establishing the Herald’s online presence and solving countless technology challenges behind the scenes. 

Most of all, thank you to the people of Springfield and Baca County for welcoming them as your own. They may not have grown up in Baca County, but this community will now always be part of their lives.

Finally, thank you to everyone who shared family photographs, newspaper clippings, documents, and memories so they could be preserved for future generations. It has been one of the great privileges of my life.

Tyler, welcome to the Plainsman Herald.    The story that began in the spring of 1887 continues, and I look forward to reading the next chapter.

Kent   Brooks