Final paper printed at The Commercial Dispatch
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – The Commercial Dispatch was created in 1922 with the merger of two local papers.
Since then, it has printed each edition on its own presses.
On Tuesday, that tradition came to an end.
The three pressmen and others heard Goss Urbanite press ring for the last time as The Dispatch printed its final paper in house Tuesday night.
Publisher Peter Imes said it will be emotional.
“I grew up coming down to press, seeing it run. As a child, I grew up around the building and took many school tours that came through here. That’s a long legacy that The Dispatch has had, teaching them about the journalism process,” said Imes.
He said the press room was always the highlight of school tours.
The Dispatch first bought the Goss Urbanite press– used– in 1969.
“It’s one of the last presses of its kind in the country. And anytime something goes wrong on the press, it’s just getting increasingly hard to find parts and it’s hard to find people who know how to work on this type of press,” said Imes.
And though the paper may not be printed in the building anymore, it will still print — just in a different location.
Starting this week, The Dispatch will now be printed by Journal Inc. in Tupelo.
“People can expect their papers the same time they’ve always received them. The only difference is instead of having two or three sections in their paper. There is going to be one single large section that they can flip through like a single large newspaper,” said Imes.
He said there will also be more color in the paper, but the size and content will remain the same.
Pressman Kenneth Dodge has worked for The Dispatch for almost three years.
“Day-to-day (operations) is not only operating the press, but I make the plates, I have to remove the plates, put plates on. I start the press, run the press, shut the press down,” said Dodge.
After the paper is printed and folded, it’s sent to the mail room on a conveyer belt for inserts and delivery.
Since the press will no longer run at The Dispatch, Dodge will now work for Journal Inc. to help print the paper in Tupelo.
“This is all mechanical pressed and the new press we’ll be working on is all controlled by computer. So, it’s a lot to relearn,” said Dodge.
Though Dodge will be working with new equipment, he said he is up for the challenge.
The mailroom was also affected by the transition.
The final run started around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.
After being sent digitally, Journal, Inc. will print the paper, and Dispatch workers will pick it up and take it to local post offices.
The first 2026 Dispatch paper will be delivered on Friday, January 2.
