Although it has seen many changes since it opened in 1887, the Alliance Times-Herald has had one prevailing goal: to record the history of Box Butte County as it happens.
Serving Box Butte County for 133 years, the Alliance Times-Herald found its origin in Nonpareil, when it was launched by W.E. Hitchcock and H.B. Fetz in July, 1887 as the Northwest Times. In 1888, the newspaper and the building moved to the 100 block west of the main intersection, becoming the Alliance Times.
The Alliance Herald, a rival publication, consolidated with the Alliance Times, and on July 4, 1922, the Newspaper officially became known as the Alliance Times-Herald. Since then, the Alliance Times-Herald has seen numerous changes to better serve the citizens of Box Butte County.
“While one of our major functions as a media company is to keep people informed and up to date about what is happening in the communities we serve, another function is keep an ongoing record so that future generations may look back to see how their community was shaped,” said Director of Operations Shaun Friedrichsen. “There is a lot of valuable information in our pages. Nearly every week, we receive inquiries from people seeking to learn about the history of Box Butte County, or wanting to trace their family lineage through genealogy.”
In 2019, The Alliance Times-Herald moved their complete archives to the Knight Museum and Sandhills Center.
“The Knight Museum already had a majority of our archives at that time, so, in the end, we decided it would be easier to move the rest of our archives there so people can easily access them,” said Friedrichsen. “We are grateful for the partnership with the museum, as they are ready to help people with perusing our work.”
Currently the Times-Herald has a solid staff of three people working to put out a new edition every single week. Kathryn Kellar designs the paper every week. When she joined the staff, she undertook a major redesign of the Alliance Times-Herald.
“I went for a more modern design, to utilize space and color more efficiently than has been done in the past,” Kellar said. “Each week, I look for ways to have fresh and creative designs.”
Kellar also serves as the circulation director, making sure our subscribers receive a paper every week.
Erica Chipperfield took over as the Advertising Director in September 2019. Since then, she has worked to help promote local businesses and all that they have to offer the community.
“Not many people can say that they love their job, but I honestly enjoy it,” Chipperfield said. “I am fortunate to have been given the opportunity to come back to the Alliance Times-Herald after taking four years off to stay home with my children. I am blessed to assist the community members in growing their businesses, and I look forward to helping people for many years to come.”
Many projects have been planned for the future to expand the services offered by the Alliance Times-Herald, including developing a new, unique website. More information about the change will be released in the coming weeks. Staff at the Times-Herald asks people to continue following them on their journey as they record history in the making.