The first newspaper in the county was a four page, letter-size, weekly called Rip’s Pop Gun. It was named after the nickname of its publisher, Frank “Rip Van Winkle” Harley. Its circulation began in 1854, but it is unknown how long it ran. In the same year, The Carolina Intelligencer began circulating. Edited and printed by A. J. Cansler, it was a Baptist denominational paper.
Over the next several decades, newspapers came and went. Dozens of Cleveland County newspapers have been digitized and can be accessed at DigitalNC. Lincoln County newspapers can be accessed here. Rutherford County newspapers can be accessed here. Other North Carolina newspapers are also at DigitalNC as well as at Chronicling America.
Below is a summary of historical newspapers, along with their publication periods, and first publishers and/or editors.
Newspapers Published in the County Seat of Shelby
| dates published | title | first publisher/editor |
| 1854-18xx | Rip’s Pop Gun | Frank “Rip Van Winkle” Harley |
| 1854-18xx | Carolina Intelligencer | A. J. Cansler |
| 1861-1865 | Mountain Eagle | Thomas Eckles, Thomas S. Moss; Sam Ross; changed to the New Regime |
| 1865-186x | New Regime | Joe Babington |
| 1871-1876 | Cleaveland Banner | Plato Durham |
| 1876-18xx | Shelby Banner | W. C. Durham; sold to James L. Webb |
| 1875-1911 | Shelby Aurora | Joe Babington and W. H. Miller; sold to J. Y. Hamrick, J. H. Quinn, and Fred D. Hamrick. Acquired by The Highlander in 1911. |
| 1879-188x | Southern Methodist Herald | A. J. Craven |
| 1885-1889 | New Era | W. H. Osborne; sold to Clarence and George Frick |
| 189x-189x | Carolina Banner | |
| 1890-1894 | Shelby Review | John C. Tipton; sold to Clyde R. Hoey who changed the name to the Cleveland Star |
| 1894-1936 | Cleveland Star | Clyde R. Hoey; Lee B. Weathers was editor/publisher 1911-1958; name changed to The Shelby Daily Star in 1936. |
| 1910-1920 | Highlander | Broadus H. DePriest; consolidated with the Shelby News in 1920. |
| 1916-1920 | Shelby Daily News | J. F. Babington and J. P. Wiggins |
| 1920-1923 | The Highlander and Shelby News | Broadus H. DePriest |
| 1928-1929 | Cleveland Press | C. J. Mabry and Wilbur J. “Jack” Cash |
| 1936-1984 | Shelby Daily Star | Henry Lee Weathers, editor 1958-1983. The paper was sold to Clay Communications. |
| 1940-197x | Cleveland Times | Will Arey, Jr. and Rush Hamrick, Jr. |
| 1983-present | Shelby Shopper & Info | Boyce Hanna |
| 1984-1988 | The Shelby Star | Previously named the Shelby Daily Star, The Shelby Star became The Star in 1988, its current name. |
| 1988-present | The Star | Currently owned by USA Today; its editor is Diane Turbyfill. It became digital-only April 1, 2023. |
William H. Miller established the Shelby Aurora in 1875. It was in publication until 1911. It was acquired by The Highlander, which had been established during the previous year in 1910.
Clyde R. Hoey bought the Shelby Review newspaper in 1894. He was just 16 years old, but had already been working at the paper as a “printer’s devil.” He changed the paper’s name to the Cleveland Star. Over the years the paper would change names three more times– The Shelby Daily Star (1936-1984), The Shelby Star, (1984-1988), and The Star (1988-present.)
Born in Lawndale, Lee Beam Weathers owned and edited the Cleveland Star/ Shelby Daily Star from 1911 until his death in 1958. In 1956, he wrote the first book on Cleveland County history, The Living Past of Cleveland County: A History.
Boiling Springs Newspapers
| dates published | title | first publisher/editor |
| 18xx-18xx | Rural Reformer | J. Y. Hamrick |
| 1942-2010 | The Pilot | Gardner-Webb College/University |
| 1981-1985 | Foothills View: A Community Newsletter |
Lawndale Newspaper
| dates published | title | first publisher/editor |
| 1942-1945 | Hot Off the Hoover Rail | Cleveland Mill and Power Company |
Kings Mountain Newspapers
| dates published | title | first publisher/editor |
| 1889-1892 | Kings Mountain News | William A. Mauney and A. R. Rudisill; sold to J. C. Tipton |
| 1894-1896 | Progressive Reformer | |
| 1894-1900 | Kings Mountain Reformer | H. P. Allison; sold to Charles Gould, changed to the Oracle |
| 1900-1900 | Oracle | Charles Gould |
| 1xxx-1903 | Kings Mountain Democrat | Rufus Plonk and ______ Booker; merged with the KM Herald |
| 1903-present | Kings Mountain Herald | J. Ed McLaughen and L. A. Bickie |
| 1971-1974 | Kings Mountain Mirror | Lem R. Lynch |
Waco Newspaper
| dates published | title | first publisher/editor |
| 1884 | Rural Chronicle | H. S. Blair; moved to Lenoir, NC |
Articles and Special Editions on Cleveland County History
Over the years Cleveland County newspapers have published special recounting the county’s history and progress. Below is a listing of these as well as a link where available.
| newspaper issue | date published |
| Cleveland Star (Cabaniss article) | July 1, 1903 |
| Cleveland Star (Roberts article) | May 20, 1924 |
| Cleveland Star (CC Fair} | September 27, 1935 |
| The Star: “Cleveland County – A Sesquicentennial Celebration” | May 30, 1991 |
| The Kings Mountain Herald | February 20, 1992 |
| The Star: Our First Century | May 15, 1994 |
A Sampling of Local News and Opinion
Some of these articles have been automatically clipped from the online images, then organized into two or three columns for optimal display on your computer screen. As a result, they may not look exactly as they did on the original page. The articles can be seen in their original form by visiting the cited online source.
Antebellum Years, 1836-1861
The Civil War and Reconstruction, 1861-1875
The Rise of Industry, 1876-1890
The Progressive Era, 1890-1929
1876 
1879 
1888 
1890 
1891 
1892 
1893 
1894 
1896 
1897 
1902 
1904 
1904, slide 1 of 3 
1904, slide 2 of 3 
1907 
1904, slide 3 of 3 
1905 
1906 
1906. Nathaniel Abernathy had built the first mill in Cleveland County–the Double Shoals Mill in 1871. 
1906 
1910 
1910 
1911 
1911 
1911 
1912 
1912 
1912 
1916 
1917 
1918 
1918 
1919 
1920 
1920 
1921 
1921 
1921 
1922 
1923 
1923 
1916 – the slogan goes back a long way. 
1923 
1922 
1924 – the 1st CC Fair 
1925 
1927 
1928 
1929
The Great Depression and World War II, 1929-1945
1929 
Long Branch School; 1930s. 
1930 
Clipping from the collection of Greg Payseur. 
1933 
1933 article about the history of Casar School 
1932 
1935 
Minette Mills Baseball Team; 1930s. From the collection of Greg Payseur. 
1935 
1935 
1936 
1936 
Shelby High School, 1937. 
1938 
1945 – Train carrying FDR’s body travels through Grover and Kings Mountain. 
1945 
1945
Post-War, Civil Rights, and Cold War Era, 1945-1991
There were also earlier articles about people and events in the Charlotte and Raleigh newspapers of the day. Those may be found at Newspapers.com, although a paid subscription is required.
Radio
WOHS. The first radio station in Cleveland County started in 1946 as WOHS, 730 AM. Robert Wallace was the manager and soon turned over the programming to Hugh Dover. Dover had a popular morning show called “Carolina in the Morning.” One segment of his show was wishing happy birthday to those having a birthday, and so became known as the “Happy Birthday Man.”
The history of radio in Cleveland County continues here.
Cleveland County History 