Searles Valley News: The Trona Argonaut, a Historic Newspaper of the Desert

SEARLES VALLEY NEWS | LOCAL HISTORY — Long before community updates appeared on social media, residents of Trona could find local reporting in a newspaper called the Trona Argonaut. Historic publishing directories, library catalogs and a California governor’s 1973 press release preserve parts of its story. Together, these sources offer a starting point for reconstructing the newspaper’s history — and identifying what remains to be found.

A newspaper rooted in Trona

The story did not begin with a modern website. Library and historical newspaper directories identify an earlier local paper called The Trona Pot-Ash. A 1952 newspaper directory listed the Argonaut as an independent Friday publication, with George H. Sturtevant as editor and publisher. That contemporary directory gives 1923 as its founding year. Because historical records distinguish multiple titles and publishing periods, the exact sequence of name changes and continuations deserves further archival verification.

Source: N. W. Ayer & Son’s Directory of Newspapers, 1952.

The Argonaut in the historical record

WorldCat holds separate bibliographic records for Trona Argonaut editions dated 1942 and 1967. The record for 1967 names Doris Bray and Mary Landis as publishers. The catalog entries establish that the newspaper existed during those periods; they do not establish that it still publishes in 2026 or that a new operation has rights to present itself as its legal successor.

Library catalog records: Trona Argonaut (1942) and Trona Argonaut (1967).

A remarkable document from April 1973

One especially useful primary source is a press release dated April 5, 1973, preserved by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. In announcing state advisory-board appointments, the governor’s office identified Doris Bray of Trona as the publisher of the weekly Trona Argonaut and a correspondent for the San Bernardino Sun. The document confirms that the newspaper was a recognized part of the local media landscape at that time and that its publisher also participated in public life.

Primary source: Governor’s press release No. 194, April 5, 1973 (page 14 of PDF).

Why the newspaper matters today

Local newspapers can help future generations reconstruct decisions that otherwise survive only in scattered notices and memories: changes to roads and public services, community events, local businesses, schools, environmental concerns and the people who kept a remote desert town running. The Trona Argonaut is therefore more than an interesting historic title — it may be an important record of everyday life in Trona and the wider Searles Valley.

Finding complete runs, confirming which libraries retain copies, and identifying any living successor or rights holder are still open research questions. A library catalog’s “current” or open-ended date range is not evidence of a verified 2026 publication schedule.

Help reconstruct the archive

Do you have an original issue, photograph, clipping, subscription notice, editor’s name or family recollection connected to the Trona Argonaut or The Trona Pot-Ash? Contact the Searles Valley News newsroom to share a lead, suggest a correction or discuss a possible archive contribution. Please retain original documents; publication or reproduction of scanned pages requires appropriate permissions.

This historical research is presented by Searles Valley News, the California58 Local edition serving Trona, Argus, Pioneer Point, South Trona and neighboring communities. It is not a claim of affiliation with or succession to the historical Trona Argonaut.

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