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Joseph Harvey Long

Newspaperman Joseph Harvey Long (May 21, 1863-December 28, 1958) was once considered the dean of West Virginia newspaper publishers. He was born near Jonestown, Pennsylvania, the descendant of German immigrants. Long moved to Wheeling in 1881 to become a printer at the Wheeling Sun Leader. In 1890 he and a partner founded the Wheeling News. Moving to Huntington in 1893, he purchased the Herald, which he sold in 1895 when he acquired the Advertiser. Long built this small daily paper into the Huntington Publishing Company, which published the Herald-Dispatch as well as the Advertiser. He was chairman of the board when he died.

Long was active in many fields, although his passion was the newspaper publishing business. Governor Glasscock gave him the title colonel in 1911. From 1916 until 1921, he was the postmaster of Huntington. A five-term president of the Huntington Chamber of Commerce, 1936 to 1941, Long also served on the board of directors of the Ohio Valley Bus Company, First Huntington National Bank, Huntington- Ohio Bridge Company, Huntington Symphony Orchestra Association, and Morris Memorial Hospital. He was a leader in establishing the city’s flood wall system and several schools. He also actively supported the Democratic Party.

Written by Carter T. Seaton