Salado Village Voice has served village for more than 3 decades

While the Salado Village Voice is not the first newspaper in Salado, it has had the longest life-span, since being founded in 1979. The Fleischer family bought the newspaper in 1988, marking 25 years in Salado next spring.

When historian Dayton Kelley published the first edition of the Salado Village Voice on February 17, 1979, it was the first time in more than 100 years that the village had a newspaper.

The first newspaper known to be published in the village was the Salado Newsletter. Published by E.W. Billings, the first edition came out on August 25, 1874. Only one copy of the newspaper exists at the newspaper collection of the University of Texas at Austin.

The Grange published another newspaper, The Texas Farmer in Salado, but it was later moved to Dallas.

Reference to a third Salado newspaper has been found on a letterhead in the Rose Papers at the University of Texas at Austin. The Salado Sentinel was published by A.S. Hornbeck. No copies of the Salado Sentinel are known to exist today.

Salado Village Voice founder Dayton Kelley was a native of Bell County, a journalist and a historian. He taught journalism at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor for 12 years before accepting a position as Director of the Texas Collection at Baylor University in Waco. When plans were being made to erect the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame in Waco, Kelley was employed as director.

During his years at the helm of the Salado Village Voice, the newspaper emphasized the history of the village and the area. Kelley later founded the Morgan’s Point Mariner and the Bell County Independent.

After Dayton passed away, his sons Dennis and Bill ran the Salado Village Voice, selling it to the Fleischer family in 1988.

In the mid-80s, Salado had two newspapers. But, just like Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, Salado proved to be too small to support two competing newspapers. Ken Clapp, executive director to Gov. Dolph Briscoe, opened the Salado Post-Dispatch in the Vickrey-Berry house. The Post-Dispatch, though short-lived, is well-remembered by many in Salado.

Since the Fleischer family purchased the newspaper, a week has not passed that the newspaper has not published. Tim and Marilyn Fleischer purchased the newspaper outright in the early 1990s. 

The newspaper added full color pages to its weekly editions in both its news section and its Marketplace section.

Salado Village Voice also publishes the seasonal Salado: A Jewel in the Crown of Texas magazine. 

Be sure to click on saladovillagevoice.com.

On the website, you will find breaking news, the latest Calendar of Events and information on many of the events in Salado.