The Press Democrat
newspaper based in Sonoma County, California
The Press Democrat is a daily newspaper published in Santa Rosa, California.
History
On January 2, 1896, the first edition of The Evening Press was published in Santa Rosa, California. The newspaper was founded by Ernest L. Finley, Grant Richards, and Charles O. Dunbar, who on October 7, 1897, merged their Evening Press with Thomas Thompson's Sonoma Democrat (originally created as a voice for the Democratic Party). The paper bought the Santa Rosa Republican in 1927.
Finley eventually acquired sole ownership and published the paper until his death in 1942. The paper was then passed on to his widow Ruth Woolsey Finley, daughter Ruth Finley Person and son-in-law Evert B. Person. In 1948, the Republican was consolidated into the Press Democrat.
After Mrs. Finley died in 1985, Evert Person sold the paper to The New York Times Company. The sale included The Healdsburg Tribune.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “The Press Democrat” as newspaper based in Sonoma County, California. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as newspaper based in Sonoma County, California. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 28, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3988817. Authority coordinates are 38.442, -122.715. 4 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1896, 1897, 1927 and 1942.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “The Press Democrat”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow The Press Democrat primary sources, The Press Democrat archive and Press research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “The Press Democrat”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “The Press Democrat” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.