The Chronicle is a newspaper.
It tells news to people. It is from a big city. It helps us know what is happening. It is very old. Do you like to read news?
The Chronicle is a famous newspaper.
Two brothers started it long ago. They used a small gold coin to pay for it.
The paper grew very fast. It became the biggest paper on the West Coast. It even had a very tall building.
This tall building was the first skyscraper in the city.
It was damaged by an earthquake. But workers rebuilt it.
The paper is now owned by a large company. It has a website for people to read.
It is the main paper for San Francisco. People still read it every day.
The San Francisco Chronicle is a major newspaper.
It serves the San Francisco Bay Area. Two brothers started it in 1865. They used a borrowed $20 gold piece to begin.
The paper grew very fast. By 1880, it was the largest paper on the West Coast. The brothers built a new headquarters. This building was San Francisco's first skyscraper.
An earthquake damaged it in 1906. Workers rebuilt it, and it still stands today.
In 1994, the paper launched SFGate. This was the first large newspaper website in the world.
Later, the paper started its own site called SFChronicle.com.
The Hearst Corporation bought the paper in 2000. It is the only major daily paper for San Francisco. The paper has many special parts. The sports section uses green paper. The arts section uses pink paper. They even use a small cartoon icon to rate movies. This icon is called the "Little Man."
It shows if a movie is good or bad.
The San Francisco Chronicle is a major daily newspaper. It serves the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California. This paper is the only major daily covering San Francisco city and county.
It has been a big part of the community for a long time. Today, the Hearst Corporation owns the newspaper. They bought it from the de Young family in the year 2000. The paper is important because it tells people what is happening in their homes and cities.
The newspaper has changed its name and look many times. It started on January 16, 1865, as The Daily Dramatic Chronicle. Two brothers named Charles and Michael de Young started it. They used a borrowed $20 gold piece to begin their work.
In 1868, the name changed to The Daily Morning Chronicle. By August 15, 1869, it took its current name. The paper became a daily publication starting in September 1872. It grew very fast as the city of San Francisco grew too.
Building a home for the news was a big job. The brothers first worked in a building on Bush and Kearney Streets. Later, they built a huge headquarters at 690 Market Street. This building was San Francisco's very first skyscraper.
A large earthquake hit the city in 1906 and damaged the building. A man named William Polk helped rebuild it. That building is now a historic landmark. It is currently used as the Ritz-Carlton Club and Residences. In 1924, the paper moved to a new home on Mission Street.
Technology changed how people read the news. In 1994, the paper launched the SFGate website. This was the first large market newspaper website in the whole world.
It was started by Allen Weiner and John Coate. Later, in 2013, the paper launched its own site called SFChronicle.com. This helped separate the two different brands. In 2009, the paper also became the first in the nation to print on glossy paper. This made the news look much brighter and bolder.
The Chronicle has many fun ways of sharing information. The sports section is called Sporting Green and uses green-tinted paper. The arts section is called Datebook and uses pink-tinted paper.
They even have a special way to rate movies. Instead of stars, they use a cartoon called the "Little Man." This little character sits in a theater seat. He might be jumping and applauding if a movie is great. He might even be asleep if the movie is not good.
The San Francisco Chronicle is a major daily newspaper serving the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California. It is the only major daily newspaper that covers both the city and the county of San Francisco. For over 150 years, the publication has acted as a primary source of information for the region.
The newspaper has evolved from a small local start-up into a significant media entity owned by the Hearst Corporation. Its history reflects the growth and changing technology of the American West.
The newspaper began on January 16, 1865, under the name The Daily Dramatic Chronicle. It was founded by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young using a borrowed $20 gold piece.
The publication underwent several name changes during its early years. In 1868, it became The Daily Morning Chronicle. On August 15, 1869, it adopted its current name. By September 9, 1872, the paper began publishing on a daily schedule. The Chronicle grew alongside the city of San Francisco. By 1880, it had the largest newspaper circulation on the West Coast of the United States.
As the business grew, the Chronicle required larger headquarters. The brothers first operated out of a building at the corner of Bush and Kearney Streets. They later commissioned a new headquarters at 690 Market Street. This building, located at the corner of Third and Kearney Streets, was San Francisco's first skyscraper. It was completed in 1889 and was part of an area known as Newspaper Row. The building was damaged during the 1906 earthquake. However, it was rebuilt under the direction of William Polk. This structure, known as the "Old Chronicle Building," is now a historic landmark used as the Ritz-Carlton Club and Residences.
In 1924, the newspaper moved to a new headquarters at 901 Mission Street. This building was designed by architects Charles Peter Weeks and William Peyton Day. They used the Gothic Revival architectural style for the design. In 1968, much of the Gothic Revival detailing was removed when the building was re-clad in stucco. This Mission Street location remained the headquarters for the Chronicle through at least 2017.
The paper's leadership also saw periods of significant change. Between World War II and 1971, editor Scott Newhall used a provocative approach to news. His era included investigative reporting and famous columnists like "Dear Abby."
Competition between newspapers shaped the Chronicle's business model for decades. In the mid-20th century, the Chronicle and the San Francisco Examiner competed fiercely for readers. This competition led to a Joint Operating Agreement in the summer of 1965. Under this agreement, the two papers were managed by the San Francisco Newspaper Agency. The Chronicle became the city's sole morning daily, while the Examiner became an afternoon paper. The agreement required that revenue be split equally. This meant the Chronicle, which had a circulation four times larger than the Examiner, actually helped subsidize its rival.
The Hearst Corporation eventually took full control of the Chronicle in 2000 after buying it from the de Young family for $660 million.
The rise of the internet brought new ways to deliver news. In 1994, the newspaper launched SFGate.com, which was the first large market newspaper website in the world.
It was co-founded by Allen Weiner and John Coate. The site, originally called "The Gate," included content from the newspaper and other sources. It even won a Pulitzer Prize for the political cartoons of Mark Fiore. In 2013, the company launched SFChronicle.com. This allowed the company to separate the SFGate and Chronicle brands into two different entities. While print circulation has fallen in the 21st century, the paper remains a major digital presence.
The Chronicle is also known for its unique branding and visual styles. The sports section, called Sporting Green, is printed on green-tinted paper. The Sunday arts and entertainment section, known as Datebook, is printed on pink-tinted paper in a tabloid format. The newspaper even uses a unique rating system for movie reviews. Instead of stars, they use a cartoon icon called the "Little Man." This character is shown in different poses to represent a viewer's reaction. He might be jumping and applauding for a great film, or he might be asleep in his seat for a poor one. In 2009, the paper also became the first in the United States to print on high-quality glossy paper.
Where will your curiosity go next?
🖼️ Images & Media (5)
More to explore
✨ What else?
Related topics you might enjoy
🔬 Go deeper
More advanced topics to explore
🪜 Step back
Simpler topics to build understanding
What is Nepedia?
A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.