The Straits Times: Origins and Background
Reproduction of the very first issue of The Straits Times on July 15, 1845
How The Straits Times was first conceived remains in dispute. The account given by Charles Burton Buckley – an amateur historian and a prominent resident of colonial Singapore – claims that the idea for establishing the newspaper came from an Armenian merchant, Marterus Thaddeus Apcar, who had employed an editor and ordered printing equipment from England for the purpose. Unfortunately, the intended editor died suddenly and Apcar went bankrupt before the arrival of the equipment. As a favour to Apcar, fellow Armenian Catchick Moses bought over the printing press and launched the newspaper in 1845 with Robert Carr Woods, an English journalist from Bombay, as the editor. Historian Constance Mary Turnbull disputed this account, arguing that it was unlikely that an Armenian merchant would have wanted to set up an English-language newspaper. In addition, she argued that given the limited size of the potential readership, it was unlikely that one would have wanted to start a newspaper to rival The Singapore Free Press, which was more established. However, it has also been postulated that Apcar wanted to set up a printing press to publish books in Armenian.
The newspaper was originally known as The Straits Times, and Singapore Journal of Commerce, a weekly paper first published on 15 July 1845. The first issue consisted of eight folio pages. The content comprised advertisements, an editorial, local news as well as foreign news extracted from overseas newspapers. The newspaper operated from its offices at No. 7 Commercial Square (present-day Raffles Place). With no more than 100 subscribers paying $16 a year, the newspaper struggled to survive. Moses withdrew from the business and left it to Woods in 1846. Timeline:
- 15 Jul 1845: First issue of The Straits Times, and Singapore Journal of Commerce is published, with Robert Carr Woods as editor.
- 1858: Newspaper becomes an afternoon daily and is renamed Singapore Daily Times.
- 16 Feb 1869: Fire razes Straits Times office premises and printing equipment.
- 1883: Daily issue is renamed The Straits Times.
- 1888: Arnot Reid is appointed editor.
- May 1900: Newspaper becomes a joint-stock company.
- 1908: Alexander William Still is appointed editor.
- 1928: George William Seabridge is appointed editor.
- 1931: Newspaper purchases a rotary press.
- 1937: Alfred Charles Simmons is appointed general manager.
- 1942–45: Newspaper stops production during the Japanese Occupation.
- 7 Sep 1945: First issue of the newspaper published after the occupation.
- Mar 1950: Newspaper becomes a public limited company.
- 1954: Printers go on a two-week strike.
- 3 Apr 1958: New office at Times House begins operatons.
- 1959: Newspaper headquarters relocates to Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore premises become a branch office.
- 1966: Printers and journalists go on a five-day strike.
- 1971: Printers and journalists go on an eight-day strike.
- 1973: Newspaper restructured into two companies: Straits Times Press (Singapore) and New Straits Times.
- 1975: The Straits Times Press (1975) Ltd is incorporated.
- 1982: S. R. Nathan is appointed executive chairman; SNPL is formed as a competitor to the Straits Times Group.
- 1984: The Straits Times Press, SNPL and Times Publishing Bhd are merged to form SPH, a multiplatform media organisation.
- 1988: Lim Kim San is appointed executive chairman of SPH.
- 2002: SPH headquarters moves to Toa Payoh North.
- 2015: The Straits Times celebrates its 170th anniversary.
- Aug 2015: The Straits Times reaches a daily average circulation of 481,700.
The Straits Times
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The Straits Times (also known informally by its abbreviation ST) is a Singaporean daily English-language newspaper owned by the SPH Media Trust. Established on 15 July 1845, it is the most-widely circulated newspaper in the country and has a significant regional audience. The newspaper is published in the broadsheet format and online, the latter of which was launched in 1994. It is regarded as the newspaper of record for Singapore. Print and digital editions of The Straits Times and The Sunday Times had a daily average circulation of 364,134 and 364,849 respectively in 2017, as audited by Audit Bureau of Circulations Singapore. In 2014, country-specific editions were published for residents in Brunei and Myanmar, with newsprint circulations of 2,500 and 5,000 respectively.
The original conception for The Straits Times has been debated by historians of Singapore. Prior to 1845, the only English-language newspaper in Singapore was The Singapore Free Press, founded by William Napier in 1835. Marterus Thaddeus Apcar, an Armenian merchant, had intended to start a paper, hired an editor, and purchased printing equipment from England. However the would-be editor died abruptly, prior to the arrival of the printing equipment, and Apcar went bankrupt. Fellow Armenian and friend, Catchick Moses, then bought the printing equipment from Apcar and launched The Straits Times with Robert Carr Woods, Sr., an English journalist from Bombay as editor. The paper was founded as The Straits Times and Singapore Journal of Commerce on 15 July 1845.
The Straits Times was launched as an eight-page weekly, published at 7 Commercial Square using a hand-operated press. The subscription fee then was Sp.$1.75 per month. As editor, Woods sought to distinguish The Straits Times from The Singapore Free Press by including humour, short stories, and foreign news, and by making use of regular steamship services carrying mail that launched shortly before The Straits Times was launched. Historian Mary Turnbull disputes this account of The Straits Times' founding, saying that it was unlikely an Armenian merchant would have wanted to find an English-language newspaper, particularly given the presence of the more established Singapore Free Press. In September 1846, the paper was given to Woods outright because the press proved unprofitable to run and Moses was unable to sell it. The paper struggled with a lack of subscribers and newsworthy items to coverage. Woods covered the financial deficit by using the printing press for other projects, including the first directory of Singapore, The Straits Times Almanack, Calendar and Directory, published in 1846.
The Straits Times
The Straits Times is an English language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is the most widely-circulated and oldest surviving newspaper in Singapore. The paper was established on 15 July 1845 by Armenian businessman Catchick Moses and was originally known as The Straits Times and Singapore Journal of Commerce. The Straits Times is currently owned by Singapore Press Holdings. This particular edition of the Straits Times is significant as it is the first Straits Times edition of the 21st century.
Reflections on turning 170 today 15 Jul 2015
The paper was first published on 15 July 1845
There are no words to express my astonishment at receiving yesterday's copy of The Straits Times.
My immediate response on browsing through the bumper issue was to message my friends to get a copy before they ran out.
The 60-page special on the 170 years of The Straits Times ("Living History") was certainly a gift to all Singaporeans, and a timely one for the nation's 50th birthday.