Newspapers in Girard, Virden, Palmyra last issues were June 3

By Tom Emery

The newspapers of the northern Macoupin County towns of Girard, Virden, and Palmyra have come to an end.

The Girard Gazette, Virden Recorder, and Northwestern News ceased publication last week. The final issue of each paper was June 3.

Readers were informed with a front-page letter in each edition, as well as a similarly-worded auto-response email.

The papers were part of a chain owned by Arlington Heights-based Paddock Publications, which purchased them from the Norris family in 2016. That family had operated the papers for nearly a century.

The Girard Gazette dated to 1879, while the Virden Recorder was created with the purchase of two local newspapers in 1921.

The Northwestern News, which covered Palmyra, Hettick, Modesto, and Scottville, dated to 1969. The cluster formerly included the Panhandle Press, which handled the Raymond area, and was spun off by Paddock in recent years.

In the letter and email, Paddock management stated that “like many small businesses, we have been affected by higher costs in recent years, including rising prices for gas, paper, and other important raw materials.”

The communications from Paddock said that information on refunds to subscribers is forthcoming.