History of The Boston Globe in Timeline

The Boston Globe is a prominent American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in Boston, it holds the distinction of being the city's oldest and largest daily newspaper. As of 2023, it ranks as the tenth-largest newspaper in the United States based on print circulation, making it a significant player in the national news landscape.

1912: Formation of Associated Newspapers syndicate

In 1912, The Boston Globe was one of a cooperative of four newspapers that formed the Associated Newspapers syndicate.

1913: "Uncle Dudley" Signatures expanded

In 1913, the practice of signing each lead editorial in the Globe with "Uncle Dudley" was expanded to weekday editions.

1921: Charles H. Taylor's Death

Charles H. Taylor, the first publisher of The Boston Globe, died in 1921.

1940: Correct gubernatorial election projection

In the 1940 Massachusetts gubernatorial election, The Boston Globe correctly projected the re-election of Leverett Saltonstall.

1955: Laurence L. Winship named editor

In 1955, Laurence L. Winship was named editor of The Boston Globe.

1958: Move to Morrissey Boulevard

In 1958, The Boston Globe relocated from its original location on Washington Street to Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester.

1960: Nameplate Change

In 1960, the word "Daily" was dropped from the nameplate of The Boston Daily Globe, becoming The Boston Globe.

1965: Thomas Winship becomes editor

In 1965, Thomas Winship succeeded his father as editor of The Boston Globe.

1966: End of "Uncle Dudley" Signatures

In 1966, editor Thomas Winship ended the practice of signing editorials with "Uncle Dudley".

1967: Opposing the Vietnam War

In 1967, The Boston Globe became the first major paper in the U.S. to oppose the Vietnam War.

1967: First political endorsement

In 1967, The Boston Globe made its first political endorsement, supporting Kevin White in that year's Boston mayoral election.

1973: Sale of The Boston Globe

In 1973, The Boston Globe was sold to The New York Times after being privately held.

1973: The Boston Globe goes public

In 1973, The Boston Globe went public under the name Affiliated Publications.

1974: Time Magazine Recognition

In 1974, Time magazine listed The Boston Globe as one of the ten best US daily newspapers.

1979: Cessation of The Boston Evening Globe

In 1979, The Boston Evening Globe, the afternoon edition, ceased publication.

March 1980: "Mush from the Wimp" headline

In March 1980, the Globe published an editorial about President Jimmy Carter with the accidental headline "Mush from the Wimp".

1981: Separation of editorial pages from news

Since 1981, the editorial pages of the Globe have been separate from the news operation.

1984: Time Magazine Recognition

In 1984, Time magazine listed The Boston Globe as one of the ten best US daily newspapers.

1984: Thomas Winship's departure

Thomas Winship served as editor of The Boston Globe until 1984.

1993: Purchase by The New York Times Company

In 1993, The New York Times Company purchased Affiliated Publications, making The Boston Globe a wholly-owned subsidiary.

1995: Boston.com Launched

In 1995, Boston.com, the online edition of The Boston Globe, was launched on the World Wide Web.

1998: Patricia Smith and Mike Barnicle resign amid fabrication and plagiarism controversies

In 1998, Patricia Smith was forced to resign after fabricating people and quotations in her columns. Mike Barnicle was also forced to resign after being discovered to have copied material from George Carlin's book, Brain Droppings and fabricating a story.

1999: Taylor Family Leaves Management

By 1999, the last Taylor family members had left management of The Boston Globe.

1999: Columbia Journalism Review Survey

In 1999, The Boston Globe tied for sixth in a national survey of top editors who chose "America's Best Newspapers" in the Columbia Journalism Review.

2000: Jeff Jacoby suspended for failing to credit non-original content

In 2000, columnist Jeff Jacoby was suspended by the Globe for failing to credit non-original content used in his column.

2001: Description of the political position of The Boston Globe editorial page

In 2001, former editorial page editor Renée Loth described the political position of The Boston Globe editorial page in the Boston University alumni magazine.

2002: Coverage of Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal

In 2002, The Boston Globe's coverage of the Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal received international media attention.

2003: Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal

Globe reporters uncovered the Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal from 2001-2003.

2004: Peter Gammons Started Notes Section

In 2004, Peter Gammons started his Notes section on baseball at The Boston Globe.

2004: Theo Epstein named Bostonian of the Year

In 2004, Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2004: Globe apologizes for printing unverified graphic photographs

In 2004, The Boston Globe apologized for printing graphic photographs that were represented as showing U.S. soldiers raping Iraqi women during the Iraq War before they were verified to be real.

April 12, 2005: Globe retracts fabricated story about seal hunt

In the spring of 2005, the Globe retracted a story describing a seal hunt near Halifax, Nova Scotia, that was supposed to have taken place on April 12, 2005, but was fabricated.

July 31, 2005: Peter Gammons honored at Baseball Hall of Fame

On July 31, 2005, Peter Gammons was honored at the Baseball Hall of Fame after winning the J. G. Taylor Spink Award for outstanding baseball writing.

2005: Edward Ginsburg named Bostonian of the Year

In 2005, retired judge and Big Dig whistleblower Edward Ginsburg was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

October 23, 2006: Boston Globe Media announces publication of Design New England

On October 23, 2006, Boston Globe Media announced the publication of Design New England: The Magazine of Splendid Homes and Gardens. The glossy oversized magazine was published six times per year.

2006: Deval Patrick named Bostonian of the Year

In 2006, Governor Deval Patrick was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2007: Pulitzer Prize for Charlie Savage

In 2007, Charlie Savage won the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for his reports on President Bush's use of signing statements.

2007: Bruce Marks named Bostonian of the Year

In 2007, Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America founder and CEO Bruce Marks was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2008: Paul Pierce named Bostonian of the Year

In 2008, NBA champion Paul Pierce was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

April 2, 2009: NYT Threat to Close The Globe

On April 2, 2009, The New York Times Company threatened to close The Boston Globe if unions did not agree to $20 million of cost savings.

May 3, 2009: Union Concessions

On May 3, 2009, The Boston Globe's other three major unions agreed to concessions after The New York Times Company threatened to close the paper.

May 5, 2009: Tentative deal with Boston Newspaper Guild

Early on the morning of May 5, 2009, The New York Times Company announced it had reached a tentative deal with the Boston Newspaper Guild regarding cost concessions.

2009: Emmy Awards

In 2009, Boston.com took two regional Emmy Awards for its video work.

2009: Elizabeth Warren named Bostonian of the Year

In 2009, professor Elizabeth Warren was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2010: Blogs hosted by The Globe

As of 2010, The Boston Globe hosted 28 blogs covering various topics.

2010: Scott Brown named Bostonian of the Year

In 2010, Republican politician Scott Brown was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

September 2011: Globe begins withdrawing stories from Boston.com

In September 2011, The Boston Globe gradually began withdrawing stories written by Globe journalists from Boston.com, leading to more separation between the two sites.

September 2011: Launch of bostonglobe.com

In September 2011, The Boston Globe launched a dedicated, subscription-based website at bostonglobe.com.

2011: Carmen Ortiz and Robert Orchard named Bostonians of the Year

In 2011, U.S. attorney Carmen Ortiz and ArtsEmerson executive director Robert Orchard were named Bostonians of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2012: Aly Raisman and Kayla Harrison named Bostonians of the Year

In 2012, Olympic gold medalists Aly Raisman and Kayla Harrison were named Bostonians of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2012: Printing service for Boston Herald

In 2012, The Boston Globe began providing printing and circulating services for the Boston Herald.

2012: BostonGlobe.com selected as world's best-designed news website

In 2012, the Society for News Design selected BostonGlobe.com as the world's best-designed news website.

February 2013: Sale announcement by The New York Times Company

In February 2013, The New York Times Company announced it would sell its New England Media Group, including The Boston Globe.

July 2013: John W. Henry bid for the Globe

In July 2013, John W. Henry made a separate bid to purchase The Boston Globe.

October 24, 2013: Ownership taken by John W. Henry

On October 24, 2013, John W. Henry took ownership of The Boston Globe and renamed the venture Boston Globe Media.

2013: Handling rival's press run

By 2013, The Boston Globe was handling the entire press run for its rival, the Boston Herald.

2013: Dan Marshall, Natalie Stavas, and Larry Hittinger named Bostonians of the Year

In 2013, Dan Marshall, Natalie Stavas, and Larry Hittinger, three people who were near the Boston Marathon bombing, were named Bostonians of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2013: Purchase by John W. Henry

In 2013, John W. Henry, owner of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool F.C., purchased The Boston Globe from The New York Times Company for $70 million.

2013: Prestigious Paper

In 2013, The New York Times called The Boston Globe "one of the nation's most prestigious papers".

January 30, 2014: Henry named himself publisher

On January 30, 2014, John W. Henry named himself publisher of The Boston Globe and appointed Mike Sheehan as CEO.

March 2014: Globe continues withdrawing stories from Boston.com

In March 2014, the Globe continued withdrawing stories written by Globe journalists from Boston.com, further separating the sites. Boston.com followed suit in 2014 by adopting responsive design.

September 2014: Crux launched by the Globe

In September 2014, Crux was launched by The Boston Globe to focus on news related to the Catholic Church.

2014: Market Basket employees named Bostonians of the Year

In 2014, Market Basket employees were named Bostonians of the Year by The Boston Globe.

2015: Stat launched

In 2015, Stat was launched to cover health, medicine, and life sciences.

2015: Spotlight Film Release

In 2015, the Academy Award-winning film Spotlight, named after the paper's investigative division, dramatized the Globe's work on the Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal.

Loading Video...

March 2016: Globe ends association with Crux

At the end of March 2016, The Boston Globe ended its association with Crux, transferring ownership of the website to the Crux staff.

July 2016: Headquarters in Dorchester sold

In July 2016, The Boston Globe's 815,000-square-foot headquarters in Dorchester was sold.

January 2017: Doug Franklin replaced Mike Sheehan as CEO

In January 2017, Doug Franklin replaced Mike Sheehan as CEO of The Boston Globe.

June 2017: Move to Taunton and Boston's Financial District

In June 2017, The Boston Globe moved its printing operations to Myles Standish Industrial Park in Taunton, Massachusetts, and its headquarters to Exchange Place in Boston's Financial District.

July 2017: Franklin resigned as CEO

In July 2017, Doug Franklin resigned as CEO of The Boston Globe due to strategic conflicts with owner John W. Henry.

2017: Ann McKee named Bostonian of the Year

In 2017, neuropathologist Ann McKee was named Bostonian of the Year by The Boston Globe.

August 2018: Coordinated campaign against attacks on the media

In August 2018, The Boston Globe launched a campaign for newspapers nationwide to respond to President Donald Trump's attacks on the media.

2018: Design New England ceases publication

In 2018, Design New England: The Magazine of Splendid Homes and Gardens ceased publication.

2018: End of printing agreement with Boston Herald

In 2018, The Boston Globe's printing and circulating service agreement with the Boston Herald ended after the acquisition of the Herald by Digital First Media.

2018: Kevin Cullen suspended for embellishing claims about Boston Marathon bombing

In 2018, columnist Kevin Cullen was suspended by the Globe for embellishing claims he made on radio and in public appearances related to the Boston Marathon bombing.

May 2019: Robert Chain pleads guilty to threatening communications

In May 2019, Robert Chain pleaded guilty in a US federal court to seven counts of making threatening communications in interstate commerce.

2020: Endorsement of Joe Biden

In the 2020 presidential election, The Boston Globe endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.

December 2021: Globe has 226,000 digital subscribers

As of December 2021, The Boston Globe had 226,000 digital subscribers.

February 2022: Increase in digital-only subscriptions

As of February 2022, there were more than 245,000 digital-only subscriptions to The Boston Globe, an increase of about 10,000.

July 2022: James Dao named editorial page editor

In July 2022, James Dao was named the editorial page editor of The Boston Globe.

September 1, 2022: Circulation Increase

From September 1, 2022, to August 31, 2023, the Globe's combined print and digital circulation for weekdays increased by 2.7%.

November 2022: Nancy Barnes to Replace Brian McGrory as Editor

In November 2022, it was announced that Nancy Barnes would replace Brian McGrory as editor of The Boston Globe.

2022: James Dao became the editorial page editor

In 2022, James Dao became the editorial page editor of the Boston Globe.

2022: The Emancipator launched

In 2022, The Emancipator was launched in partnership with Boston University to cover racial justice.

March 2023: Globe's involvement with The Emancipator ends

In March 2023, The Boston Globe's involvement with The Emancipator ended.

August 31, 2023: Combined print and digital circulation for Sundays

From September 1, 2022, to August 31, 2023, the Globe's combined print and digital circulation for Sundays rose by 1.3%, to 408,974.

2023: Oldest and largest daily newspaper in Boston

As of 2023, The Boston Globe is the oldest and largest daily newspaper in Boston, and the tenth-largest newspaper by print circulation in the United States.