University of Virginia Library

The Richmond Mercury

Young Staff Publishes New Richmond Paper

By LOU GRANT

It's a whole new story. It's a
whole new newspaper. It's a
whole new newspaper in
Richmond, and that's
something that city has been
without for a millenium or so.

The Richmond Mercury is a
new weekly newspaper in
Richmond that has produced
four issues so far and is
planning to produce many
more, unlike some fly-by-night
publications that have cropped
up in the past. Offices have
been rented, the staff has been
fully staffed, and subscriptions
have been bought. It's a real
paper and is here to inform and
interest any one concerned
with Richmond and the state
of Virginia and their problems.

Though only four weeks old
as far as the public is
concerned, the Richmond
Mercury has been alive in the
minds of the staff members for
almost two years. The idea to
start a newspaper in Richmond
began with two members of
the Harvard Crimson. Garrett
Epps, of Richmond, then the
President of the Crimson, and
Frank Rich of Washington
D.C., a former Editorial
Chairman of that paper, began
to work separately on the same
idea. They both selected
Richmond for their ventures.
Finally they spoke to one
another about their plans,
pooled their talents and things
began to roll.

Things began to roll even

faster when another Harvard
student from Richmond,
Edmund Rennolds, joined in.
Mr. Rennolds became the
publisher and helped raise the
$100,000 they needed to get
started. The money came from
various sources including the
editor, the publisher, a
Richmonder named Holt
Massey, a classmate of Mr.
Rennolds and Mr. Epps at St.
Christopher's School in
Richmond, and Sidney Lewis
of Best Products, Inc

But why? Mr. Epps supplied
that answer enthusiastically. "I
grew up here (Richmond), and
since I've been able to read I've
been reading the Richmond
newspapers. I don't think I
need to explain further. We
thought we could provide some
kind of alternative to them."

Mr. Rich and Mr. Epps
convinced their friends to join
them. Things began to build.
Rob Buford, former Editorial
Editor of The Cavalier Daily,
and Chuck Hite, former
Editor-In-Chief of the CD,
both from Richmond, enrolled.
Lynn Darling and Joyce Heard
came from the Crimson. Harry
Stein, former Editor and
Publisher of The Claremong
Spectator, a weekly, arrived
fresh from the Dick Van Dyke
Show and the business staff
fled Richmond Newspapers,
Inc. and offered their services.

They came for a variety of
reasons. Mr. Buford said
Richmond needed an
alternative newspaper. "This
kind of journalism," he said,
"is kind of outside journalism.
You seek to find out things
people wouldn't tell you. It
takes a lot of sense, work, and
initiative." We're close to New
York Magazine and The Village
Voice. We're motivated by the
same things they were."

Mr. Hite called the Mercury
a "tremendous opportunity to
do in-depth writing and to have
the freedom to say what you
want to say and to explore the
story you want to explore." He
said "It's the type of job I
don't think I'll get tired of."

Subscriptions since the first
issue have been rising at a
steady pace. Rennolds said that
advertising, the real financial
heart of any newspaper, has
been increasing predictably.

But nobody is as excited
and enthusiastic as the staff
members. Upon arrival of the
first issue Mr. Epps hugged
Lynn Darling and yelled
ecstatically, "We're
legitimate!" Buford put it
another way. "We all consider
ourselves very, very lucky," he
said, and got back to work.