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     Maureen Ann Costello is the daughter of James Russell Costello Sr. and Janice Callahan. Maureen Ann Costello married David Lincoln Wedge on 3 November 1990 at Maine.

     Russell Hill Costello was born on 22 October 1904 at Lewiston, Androscoggin Co., Maine.¹ He was the son of Louis Bartlett Costello and Sarah May Bracket. Russell Hill Costello married Jane H. Cassidy on 5 May 1928 at Boston, Suffolk Co., Massachusetts. Russell Hill Costello died on 8 June 1993 at Lewiston, Androscoggin Co., Maine, at age 88.¹ He was buried at Riverside Cemetery, Lewiston, Androscoggin Co., Maine.¹


Sun Journal Newspaper - About Us (2018)

Sun Media Group’s origins date back to the May 20, 1847 publication of a weekly newspaper called the Lewiston Falls Journal.Dr. Alonzo Garcelon, later a governor of Maine, was one of the founders, along with William Waldron, a printer by trade. Francis Lane edited what started out as a literary journal, and subscriptions in that first year sold at $1.50.

In February 1857, the Journal published a 27-day run as a daily newspaper to cover the Auburn murder trial of George Knight, who was accused of stabbing his wife Mary while she slept at their home in Poland. It went into full-time daily publication in April 1861 under Nelson Dingley Jr., a former employee who had become owner and publisher in 1857.

The Civil War years gave the new Lewiston Daily Evening Journal added impetus as Lewiston-Auburn readers hungered for news of the turmoil wracking the nation. The community had grown rapidly in the industrial revolution and new textile mills were supplying uniforms to the North’s soldiers.

By the turn of the century, 70 percent of the community’s workforce were mill employees.

The Journal Magazine was added to the Saturday afternoon paper in the late 1890s, a literary venture that enjoyed great popularity almost 100 years later.

In the early days, the magazine circulated throughout New England and even to Washington, D.C. It was also in the 1890s — Feb. 20, 1893 — that a new paper was born in Lewiston-Auburn, The Lewiston Daily Sun, founded by Henry Wing of Lewiston.

Lewiston-Auburn was then a community of 40,000 people. The Sun, in a first-day editorial, had kind words for its competitor, but a few years later the competition for readers brought about an intense rivalry.

Neither paper lacked for news in the turbulent years that followed the Spanish-American War and World War I, but each paper continued to place a high priority on community news, sometimes throwing in dashes of gossip that made good conversation topics. The industrial base and population grew, and workers had a paper when they woke up in the morning and also when they left the mills in the afternoon.

George B. Wood became owner of The Sun in 1898 and, soon after, brought his nephew Louis B. Costello into the business as general manager.

The offices moved that year from Lisbon Street to 104 Park St. where Sun Media Group newspapers are still located.

In 1926, Wood and Costello bought the Journal from the Dingley family and moved the operation from the Dingley Building on Lisbon Street to the Park Street location.

L.B. Costello’s son, Russell H. Costello, joined the company as production manager in 1930. L.B. Costello inherited the paper when Wood died in 1945.

Russell H. Costello succeeded his father as president and publisher in 1959. He died in 1993.

His son, James R. Costello Sr., joined the company in 1952 and was named president and publisher in 1993. He died in 2015.

A fourth generation of Costellos, the children of James Sr., managed the company until 2017. James R. Costello Jr. as vice president, production; Stephen Costello, vice president, advertising and marketing; David Costello, vice president, technology; and Maureen Wedge, vice president, human resources.

Advances in computer technology brought an end to the “hot metal” linotype, or lead process, era beginning in 1971 and the newspapers have experienced constant change since then to improve and quicken writing, editing and production processes. By the end of the 1990s, Sun Journal editors were “paginating,” or composing, entire pages on computer screens and sending them directly to production.

The 1980s saw historic changes in the newspapers’ product. In October 1983, following an extensive study involving many employees, a new Sunday newspaper was born, called “Sunday/Sun Journal.”

The new product concentrated on providing news and features to readers in the Sun Media Group circulation area, putting emphasis on color photography and graphics.

On June 3, 1989, 128 years of rich tradition and history ended when the Journal merged with The Sun into a virtually new morning paper called the Sun Journal. Declining readership of the afternoon paper, brought about mainly by changing lifestyles and reader habits, were among causes for the merger.

The desire, according to Publisher James R. Costello Sr., was to make better use of staff while producing a better newspaper.

Prior to the merger, the Journal went through a redesign process that made greater use of color, becoming a trendsetter and award-winning paper among New England dailies.

The new Sun Journal, and its Sunday edition, stressed community news coverage within their circulation areas of Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties.

The Sun Journal has continued to be a leader in local news and, over the years, has received numerous awards for writing, investigative reporting, editorials, photography, graphic design and advertising as well as Maine and New England Newspaper of the Year awards.

The Sun Journal was also named one of the “World’s Best-Designed” newspapers and listed as one of the top ten in the United States by the Society of News Design in 2000.

The Sun Journal is one of Lewiston-Auburn’s largest employers and is committed to the economic and cultural improvement of the region it serves. Many of the company’s employees play an active role in service to their communities.

The company has focused on diversification efforts over the years. Several weekly newspapers, commercial printing and other print and web-based products were added to its portfolio to offer customers various options for receiving local news and information, as well as marketing their businesses.

A new name — Sun Media Group — was announced in 2007 to serve as an umbrella to unify the Sun Journal with all of the individual companies owned by the Costellos, including Sun Press, The Bethel Citizen, The Forecaster publications, Rumford Falls Times, Advertiser Democrat, The Franklin Journal, Livermore Falls Advertiser, The Rangley Highlander, The Penobscot Times, American Journal, Lakes Region Weekly, Maine Women Magazine, 95 North and My Gen.

On Aug. 1, 2017, Sun Media Group was sold to Reade Brower, a mid-coast media executive and entrepreneur who also owns MaineToday Media, which includes the Portland Press Herald, Waterville Sentinel and the Kennebec Journal. He is also the owner of Alliance Press, a commercial printing company in Brunswick, and publishes four weeklies in midcoast Maine: The Free Press in Rockland, The Courier-Gazette in Rockland, The Camden Herald and The Republican Journal in Belfast.

In 2016, Brower and Chris Harris, former president of Upper Valley Press in New Hampshire, purchased The Rutland Herald and Barre-Montpelier Times Argus in Vermont.

When the Sun Media Group sale was announced, Brower said “these are landmark Maine institution newspapers. We’re really all excited about creating a family of newspapers in Maine that the community can rely on for news they can trust.”

https://www.sunjournal.com/aboutus/.²

     Stephen Costello is the son of James Russell Costello Sr. and Janice Callahan. Stephen Costello married Mary Ellen Ciak on 7 June 1986 at St. Joseph 's Roman Catholic Church, Endicott, Broome Co., New York.

     James Franklin Cotter married Lorretta Marie Ziegenbalg, daughter of Ernest Hans Ziegenbalg and Estrella Harn Booher, in 1955 at Texas.

     Carol Ann Cotterill was born on 25 April 1947 at Ithaca, Tompkins Co., New York.¹ She was the daughter of Leslie Vernon Cotterill and Virginia Marie Reyna. Carol Ann Cotterill died on 3 August 2016 at Buffalo, Erie Co., New York, at age 69.

     Glenn Edward Cotterill was born on 25 April 1895 at New York. He married Hazel Marie Nickerson circa 1924. Glenn Edward Cotterill died on 5 November 1962 at age 67.

     Karen Marie Cotterill is the daughter of Leslie Vernon Cotterill and Virginia Marie Reyna.

     Leslie Vernon Cotterill was born on 31 December 1925 at Dryden, Tompkins Co., New York.¹ He was the son of Glenn Edward Cotterill and Hazel Marie Nickerson. Leslie Vernon Cotterill married Virginia Marie Reyna, daughter of Albert Edward Reyna and Martha Aileen Brewer, on 28 September 1946 at Ithaca, Tompkins Co., New York.² Leslie Vernon Cotterill died on 31 January 1996 at Spring Hill, Hernando Co., Florida, at age 70. He was buried at Willow Glen Cemetery, Dryden, Tompkins Co., New York, Plot: Lot 22 Section 97.

     Nancy Lee Cotterill is the daughter of Leslie Vernon Cotterill and Virginia Marie Reyna.

     Jeffrey A. Cottrell married Laurie Lynn Squires, daughter of Robert Gordon Squires and Anita Rae Nicely, on 21 June 1980 at Hennepin Co., Minnesota.¹ Jeffrey A. Cottrell and Laurie Lynn Squires were divorced on 27 May 1981 at Hennepin Co., Minnesota.²

     Thresa Counsil married Steven J. Nichols, son of Arthur S. Nichols and Eva J. Maddox, between 1977 and 1978 at Oklahoma.

     Nancy Ann Counts was born in 1858 at Reynolds, Reynolds Co., Missouri. She married William Thomas Christopher in 1874.¹ Nancy Ann Counts died in 1887 at Jeff, Perry Co., Kentucky.

     Gary Duane Couse was born on 6 February 1930 at Nebraska.^2,3 He was the son of Phillip Andrew Couse and Garnet Fellows.¹ Gary Duane Couse married Ruth Anna Couse Couse on 10 October 1952. Gary Duane Couse died on 25 May 1994 at age 64.³ He was buried at Fairview Cemetery, Scottsbluff, Scotts Bluff Co., Nebraska.³

     Phillip Andrew Couse was born in 1900 at Nebraska. He married Garnet Fellows, daughter of George Elbert Fellows and Minnie Inez Lilly, circa 1925.¹ Phillip Andrew Couse died in 1952.² He was buried at Riverview Cemetery, McCook, Red Willow Co., Nebraska.²

     Richard Couse was born on 5 November 1927 at Nebraska.² He was the son of Phillip Andrew Couse and Garnet Fellows.¹ Richard Couse died on 2 May 1935 at age 7.² He was buried at Fairview Cemetery, Scottsbluff, Scotts Bluff Co, Nebraska.²

     Ruth Anna Couse Couse was born on 29 October 1932 at Scotts Bluff Co, Nebraska. She married Gary Duane Couse, son of Phillip Andrew Couse and Garnet Fellows, on 10 October 1952. Ruth Anna Couse Couse died on 4 October 2009 at Corpus Christi, Nueces Co., Texas, at age 76. She was cremated.¹

     Ada Grace Cousland was born in May 1890 at Kansas info from 1900 Kansas Census. She was born on 17 May 1890 at Miltonvale, Cloud Co., Kansas.¹ She was the daughter of Henry Roger Cousland and Nellie (?) Ada Grace Cousland married Owen Lancaster.¹ Ada Grace Cousland married Otis Starkey.¹

     Archibald Cousland was born on 15 January 1852 at Ottawa, Carleton Co., Ontario, Canada.¹ He was the son of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹

     Cornelius W. Cousland was born on 24 December 1856 at Ottawa, La Salle Co., Illinois.¹ He was the son of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹

     Craig Roger Cousland is the son of Leon Roger Cousland and Helen Marie Purdy. Craig Roger Cousland married Nancy J. (?)

     Eveline Leone Cousland was born on 14 August 1909 at El Dorado, Butler Co., Kansas. She was the daughter of Leon Lyman Cousland and Edith Louise Tharp. Eveline Leone Cousland was also known as Evelyn. She died on 12 January 1997 at Salina, Saline Co., Kansas, at age 87. She was buried at Sunset Lawns Cemetery, El Dorado, Butler Co., Kansas.¹

     Everett Randolph Cousland was born on 3 December 1906 at El Dorado, Butler Co., Kansas.¹ He was the son of George Walter Cousland and Serena M. Parker.¹ Everett Randolph Cousland married Anna (?)¹ Everett Randolph Cousland married Kathyrn Rybick.¹ Enlisted in the U.S. Army in 14 Apr 1941, listed as a widower.² Everett Randolph Cousland married Elizabeth Mae McKenzie on 19 September 1951 at Cook Co., Illinois.¹ His Social Security Number was 514-07-8056, issued in Kansas before 1951, lists born 03 Dec 1906 and died Nov 1972. Everett Randolph Cousland died on 6 November 1972 at Chicago, Cook Co., Illinois, at age 65; info from Social Security Death Index.³ He was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery, Chicago, Cook Co., Illinois.³ The cause of death was carcinoma of the bladder that had spread.

     Francona Cousland was born on 12 October 1849.¹ He was the son of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹

     Frank F. Cousland was born on 27 December 1853 at Philadelphia, Philadelphia Co., Pennsylvania.¹ He was the son of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹

     George Everett Cousland is the son of Everett Randolph Cousland.¹

     George Walter Cousland was born on 15 September 1862 at Canada.¹ He was the son of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹ George Walter Cousland married Serena M. Parker.¹

     Grace Cousland was born on 15 September 1845 at Scotland.¹ She was the daughter of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹

     Henry Joseph Cousland was born in January 1893 at Kansas info from 1900 Kansas Census. He was born on 22 January 1893 at Ottawa, La Salle Co., Illinois.¹ He was the son of Henry Roger Cousland and Nellie (?) Henry Joseph Cousland married Berdine Elizabeth Barton.¹

     Henry Roger Cousland was born on 26 August 1860 at Canada.¹ He was the son of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹ Henry Roger Cousland was born in August 1861 at Canada info from 1900 Kansas Census. He married Ellen A. (?)¹ Henry Roger Cousland married Nellie (?) in 1887. Henry Roger Cousland died on 4 September 1957 at California at age 97.

     James Cousland was born on 28 February 1855.¹ He was the son of Joseph Cousland and Jeannette White.¹