The story
Founded by John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute in 1869.1
The Western Mail was founded in Cardiff in 1869 by John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute as a Conservative penny daily paper designed to promote the Marquess' political aspirations. Henry Lascelles Carr (1841–1902), editor since 1869, bought the paper with Daniel Owen in 1877. Under Carr, and later William Davies, the paper became influential in Wales.
The paper was acquired in 1924 by the Allied Newspapers consortium, headed by the Welsh Berry brothers, William Berry, Lord Camrose, and Gomer Berry. The consortium quickly merged four other regional papers into the Western Mail. The paper later became part of Kemsley Newspapers and then, in 1959, Thomson Regional Newspapers.
In the mid-1950s, journalist David Cole (1928–2003) became editor at the age of only 27, the youngest editor of a UK daily newspaper at the time. He was later awarded a CBE for services to journalism and became chairman of Western Mail and Echo Ltd.
In the 1950s, Donald Woods, who later participated in the South African anti-apartheid movement and who publicised the events surrounding the secret death of activist Steve Biko, was employed as a reporter.
From Wikipedia’s article on Western Mail (Wales), shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3