The Madras Pioneer was first published on August 25, 1904.[5] A year later Max Lueddemann purchased the paper,[6] and he sold it to Howard W. Turner in 1909.[7] William E. Johnson became the owner in 1924,[8] but died a year later of pneumonia.[9] May B. Johnson owned the paper from 1925 until 1946 when she sold it to W. H. Hall.[10]
Hall briefly operated the paper for about two years until selling out in 1948 to Bill Robinson and Elmo Smith,[11] who went on to found Eagle Newspapers.[12] A few months later Oscar W. Lange Jr. bought in as a third owner.[13]
In January 2013, the paper was sold to the Pamplin Media Group along with five other papers owned by Eagle Newspapers.[14][15]Robert B. Pamplin Jr. sold his newspaper company in June 2024 to Carpenter Media Group.[16]
