Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – Nov. 1, 2024 – The building once occupied by The Jonesboro Sun is in the process of being demolished.
The Sun sold the building to St. Bernards Healthcare in 2021. The daily newspaper now operates out of 1301 Stone St. in a Foxwood Square office park.
Demolition began this week. Mitchell Nail, media relations manager for St. Bernards, said the building, located at 518 Carson St. in downtown Jonesboro, will be completely demolished. A new parking lot for the hospital will be constructed where the building once stood.
“There’s obviously historical significance with the building and we recognize that,” Nail said. “It was beyond a repairable state and we’re doing whatever we can to make downtown vibrant and healthy.”
W.O. Trout bought the weekly Craighead County Sun in 1901. He converted it to a six-day newspaper two years later, and The Sun added a Sunday edition in 1968. W.O. Troutt died in 1948, but the family tradition was carried on by his two sons, grandson and great-grandsons until the decision was made to sell the newspaper to The Paxton Media Group, headquartered in Paducah in 2000.
The Sun’s self-reported circulation numbers have been dropping for the last two decades. In the most recent U.S. Postal Service PS3526 report, The Sun indicated 1,603 copies of each issue are mailed to paid subscribers within Craighead County. Another 1,535 copies are delivered by carriers to dealers, bringing total Craighead County circulation of 3,138.
Another 1,535 are reportedly mailed outside of Craighead County for a total paid circulation number of 4,496. The 2023 total paid circulation was 5,268 indicating a circulation decrease of 15% in the last year.