The Pittsburgh Press

The Pittsburgh Press, formerly The Pittsburg Press and originally The Evening Penny Press, was a major afternoon daily newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for over a century, from 1884 to 1992. At the height of its popularity, the Press was the second-largest newspaper in Pennsylvania behind The Philadelphia Inquirer. For four years starting in 2011, the brand was revived and applied to an afternoon online edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

The history of the Press traces back to an effort by Thomas J. Keenan Jr. to buy The Pittsburg Times newspaper, at which he was employed as city editor. Joining Keenan in his endeavor were reporter John S. Ritenour of the Pittsburgh Post, Charles W. Houston of the city clerk's office, and U.S. Representative Thomas M. Bayne.

After examining the Times and finding it in a poor state, the group changed course and decided to start a new penny paper in hopes that it would flourish in a local market full of two- and three-cent dailies. The first issue appeared on June 23, 1884.

A corporation was formed, with Bayne as the largest shareholder. Initially called The Evening Penny Press, the newspaper's name changed to The Pittsburg Press on October 19, 1887. The paper referred to the city as "Pittsburg" until August 1921, when the letter 'h' was added.

In 1901, Keenan, who had by then gained financial and editorial control of the paper, sold out to a syndicate led by Oliver S. Hershman. Hershman remained the controlling owner until selling to the Scripps-Howard chain in 1923.

In 1961, the Press entered into a Joint Operating Agreement (JOA) with the competing Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Post-Gazette had previously purchased and merged with the Hearst Corporation's Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph leaving just itself and the much larger Pittsburgh Press. The agreement was to be managed by the owners of the Pittsburgh Press, E. W. Scripps Company, since the Press had the larger circulation and brand identity. Under the agreement, the Post-Gazette became a six-day morning paper, and the Pittsburgh Press became a six-day afternoon paper in addition to publishing the only Sunday newspaper in Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh Press Co. v. Pittsburgh Commission on Human Relations, 413 U.S. 376 (1973), is a 1973 decision of the United States Supreme Court which upheld an ordinance enacted in Pittsburgh that forbids sex-designated classified advertising for job opportunities, against a claim by the parent company of the Press that the ordinance violated its First Amendment rights.

On October 22, 1991, Press management announced significant changes, designed to modernize its distribution system, at the initial bargaining with the Teamsters Local 211 union, as well as eight other unions. The unions' contracts with the Press expired on December 31. Negotiations continued into 1992 with no agreement on a new contract. The Teamsters employees finally walked off the job on May 17, effectively putting a halt to the publication of the Press and the Post-Gazette. The Teamsters refused to drive the small delivery trucks more than half full.