What are the opening hours?

Monday 8am - 5pm Tuesday 8am - 5pm Wednesday 8am - 5pm Thursday 8am - 5pm Friday 8am - 5pm

The Grand Island Independent

Home
United States
Grand Island, NE
The Grand Island Independent

Get the latest news, events and information on Nebraska sports, weather, entertainment and lifestyles.

11/03/2025

Here are the latest Nebraska football bowl projections after the Huskers' loss to USC.

11/03/2025

Diane Ladd, the three-time Academy Award nominee known for roles in “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” and “Wild at Heart,” has died at 89.

11/03/2025

Angie Mock was a sports reporter and photographer for KLKN-TV in 2002 before leaving for Minnesota in 2004.

11/03/2025

Dylan Raiola was "begging" to play after breaking his leg vs. USC, says Matt Rhule, who also ruled a starting lineman out for the season.

11/03/2025

Brayden Hulquist, 18, was killed when he and another person were struck by another vehicle while trying to push a stalled Ford pickup.

11/03/2025

The earnest superhero team-up tale "The Fantastic Four: First Steps" and Tracy Morgan returning to TV with a new comedy called "Crutch" are some of the new television, films, music

11/03/2025

Trump administration says SNAP will be partially funded after judges' rulings

It's not clear how much beneficiaries will receive, nor how quickly beneficiaries will see value show up on the debit cards they use to buy groceries.

11/03/2025

🎧 Get the latest national, international, sports and entertainment news on our daily podcast.

11/03/2025

One of the monkeys that escaped last week after a truck overturned in Mississippi was shot Sunday. "I did what any other mother would do to protect her children."

11/03/2025

Police in a Chicago suburb are gathering evidence after a U.S. Border Patrol vehicle crash led to a violent arrest caught on video.

11/03/2025

The government shutdown is poised to become the longest ever this week as the impasse between Democrats and Republicans has dragged into a new month.

11/03/2025

Susan Alleman is concerned that she wouldn't be able to afford her health coverage under the federal marketplace if enhanced tax credits expire.

Address

422 West 1st Street
Grand Island, NE
68801

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 5pm
Tuesday	8am - 5pm
Wednesday	8am - 5pm
Thursday	8am - 5pm
Friday	8am - 5pm

Telephone

+13083821000

Website

http://theindependent.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when The Grand Island Independent posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to The Grand Island Independent:

Shortcuts

Address
Telephone
Opening Hours
Alerts
Contact The Business
Claim ownership or report listing

Want your business to be the top-listed Media Company in Grand Island?

Central Nebraska’s News Source

One of Grand Island's oldest businesses didn't actually get its start in Grand Island.

What is now The Grand Island Independent began as The Platte Valley Independent in 1869.

Publisher Seth P. Mobley moved the paper to Grand Island after an angry mob gathered in front of the newspaper's North Platte office. The group was upset over columns that had been written about the Union Pacific Railroad.

As part of a peace agreement between the railroaders and Mobley, he and his editor, Maggie Eberhart, had to leave town. Around the same time, a group of Grand Island businessmen were looking for a newspaper proprietor and welcomed The Independent to town.

The first edition of the weekly Independent in Grand Island was printed on July 2, 1870. Mobley and Eberhart were married the next year. By the end of the decade, the Mobleys were feuding with just about everyone in town. They faced financial difficulties but did have one major advertiser, Fred Hedde.

In 1881, Maggie Mobley, who was the first female newspaper editor in Nebraska, directed criticism at Hedde's wife, and the Mobleys' relations with their last major supporter were damaged. The paper was put up for sale.

"Since (The Independent's beginning), other papers sprouted to serve various political leanings or ethnic customers," the late editor, Bill Dunn said. "There have been papers that served Republicans, Democrats and other parties as well as several German-language newspapers. Free enterprise being what it is, the financial pressure of the publishing business eventually caused most of them to fold after a year or two."

The Independent was saved from being a mere history-book description when J.A. McMurphy bought it in 1883. He only owned the paper for a week before selling it to Hedde, who renamed the paper The Grand Island Daily Independent.

Hedde converted the paper to a daily in 1884. During the late 1800s, there were as many as eight newspapers in Grand Island, but a severe depression, drought and grasshopper infestations destroyed the city's economy in the early 1890s and nearly wiped the newspaper out of business. In 1894, The Independent's circulation dwindled to just 360 households.

Prior to the depression, The Independent had already become much more than just a newspaper to Grand Island.

"Many do not realize the importance of The Platte Valley Independent to the initial growth and eventual success of Grand Island," Dunn said. "At one point, The Independent and the Union Pacific Railroad went together to Germany to recruit settlers to the Platte Valley. That resulted in the large German population that moved into the area to farm and establish businesses."

By 1900, Hedde's health was failing, and he turned ownership of the paper over to several Grand Island businessmen, including August Buechler, J.R. Fullerton, Fred G. Baldwin, Gus E. Neumann and Charles E. Fralick.

Oscar Stauffer purchased The Independent in 1930 and owned it until the newspaper was purchased by Morris Communications, a family-owned corporation, in 1995.

The newspaper has seen a number of changes over the last several decades, including computerization in the 1970s, adding a Sunday publication in 1979, switching from afternoons to mornings in 1992 and launching a Web site in 1996.

The word "daily" was dropped from the name of the paper on Nov. 13, 1989.

The Independent has also called a number of buildings home. In its beginning, the newspaper was housed in a small frame building behind a hardware store owned by Hedde. It was then moved to the Hedde Building on the corner of Third and Locust streets, where it remained until 1910. That year, the business moved to 113 N. Locust St., where Equitable Bank is today.

In 1957, it moved to its present location, 422 W. First St., a building that was constructed specifically for the newspaper. The building covers 23,370 square feet on the first floor and has a partial basement.

The Independent bought other buildings on the block in 1989 and, by the time the main building was remodeled in 1993, the newspaper owned the entire block.

Dunn said the paper's mission hasn't changed much in its history.

"The role of The Independent in the Central Nebraska community is to be the primary information center for our readers," he said. "In addition, as the largest news-gathering operation between Lincoln and Denver, we are committed to a role as the watchdog over government and the seeker of truth in our coverage area. With the introduction of the Internet, The Independent's role is increasingly becoming a center for community conversation, where people can share opinions about their community.

"With one of the largest reader pe*******on rates in America, we appreciate the trust that readers place in The Independent, and we work hard every day to validate that trust," Dunn said. "As the media evolves and technology allows us to present the news in faster and more complete ways to our readers/viewers, The Independent has become even more vital in the lives of our customers. The transformation of electronic and print media that The Independent has undertaken means that readers/viewers will look to The Independent even more than ever.

The Grand Island Independent

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

Address

Opening Hours

Telephone

Website

Alerts

Contact The Business

Shortcuts

Share

Category

Central Nebraska’s News Source