Waconia Patriot

The Waconia Patriot has provided local news to the residents of Carver County since 1897. In the twenty-first century, the paper is owned by ECM Publishers, Inc.

In the early 1890s, the citizens of Waconia relied on the Carver County News for reporting on their city. Managed by English immigrant J. H. Glass, the weekly publication also covered news from across the county. When Glass moved the Carver County News to Watertown in August 1897, Waconia was briefly left without a paper of its own. Publisher J. Martin stepped forward to fill the gap, printing the first issue of the Waconia Patriot in September.

The Patriot’s original office was at 124 West Main Street. James D. Burns served as editor and publisher after Martin and was succeeded by Peter Eltis by 1898. Over the next decade, the paper’s management and editorial staff changed often.

In 1906, Charles A. Reil became editor and publisher. His management helped triple the paper’s subscriber base by 1909. In 1910, Montgomery Ward and Company offered to buy a large block of advertising space in the Patriot and asked Reil to name his price. Reil chose to decline the offer in order to preserve the paper’s hometown feel. His decision allowed local businesses to continue to benefit from advertising in the Patriot.

Reil took deliberate steps to modernize the paper’s printing process. In 1912, he brought in machines to boost efficiency, including a press, a paper cutter, a perforator, and a stapling machine. A linotype machine was added in 1914. In 1915, office space became an issue. The basement was excavated to create an area for housing the machines.

In 1919, two brothers, Anthony and William Wessale, bought the Patriot from Reil, who was their cousin. The paper remained in their family for nearly half a century. The brothers are credited with popularizing the phrase, “Waconia, paradise of the Northwest,” which appeared on the paper’s masthead. Many local businesses used the slogan in their advertising to attract customers to the city. In 1924, a third Wessale brother, Art, joined the team. His job duties focused on printing and production.

World War II brought lasting changes to the Carver County newspaper business. When Charles Mayer, editor of the Young America Eagle, joined the Army Air Corps in 1943, the Patriot took over part of the neighboring paper’s subscription list. The merger boosted the Patriot’s circulation to nearly twenty-four thousand—the highest in Carver County. The paper hired a Young America representative and added a section covering news from the village.

In 1970, Anthony Wessale retired and sold half of the Patriot’s rights to Art. In 1974, Elmer Miller, an employee since 1929, became co-publisher and editor. When Art Wessale retired in the same year, the paper’s ties with the Wessale family were severed. Elmer Miller retired in 1982, at which point James Berreth took over as proprietor.

In 1993, the Waconia Patriot moved into a larger space about a block south of Elm Street. This office became the location for the layout not only of the Patriot but also the Carver County News, Mount Laker, Gold Miner, Norwood-Young America Times, and the Long Lake Pioneer. The papers were printed at Crow River Press in Hutchinson.