Virginia Mountaineer: August 4 could be the last issue
Aug. 5—GRUNDY, Va. — Thursday was a 100-year-old newspaper's final edition under its current ownership, but there are hopes that it could resume publication under new owners in a few weeks.
The weekly Virginia Mountaineer in Buchanan County, Va. started in 1922. In late July, the newspaper announced that it could close if new owners could not be found. The newpaper had lost local and regional advertisers over the years.
Publisher Sam Bartley said that the plan was to print the Aug. 4, 2022 edition and see if there were any buyers or other interested parties. If no buyers had expressed interest, the newspaper would reevaluate options and see if closing was necessary.
Bartley said that Thursday's edition was his last, but there are some hopes that the Virginia Mountaineer could reopen in the near future.
"Well, we're still currently in talks with a couple of interested groups," he said. "This week's issue was our last under my current ownership. Hopefully, this will work out. There may be a two or three or a few weeks time lapse without an issue, but hopefully it will continue under new ownership. That's what I'm praying for. I'd hate to lose the newspaper."
Bartley said that local support for the Mountaineer has been "overwhelming."
"The Virginia Mountaineer has been around for 100 years and it's been respected for 100 years, and people hate to lose that," he said.
— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com
Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com
