The first issue of the St. Louis Post and Dispatch was published on Dec. 12, 1878. That was a mere three days after an agent for Joseph Pulitzer bought the bankrupt St. Louis Dispatch in an auction on the steps of the Old Courthouse. The owner of the Post approached him only hours later to merge the two papers.
That first edition was only four pages. The front page contained international news, Christmas ads, and a crime blog - staples that survive to this day.Â
Here s a look at the first crime report in the Post-Dispatch, published under the title Vagaries of Vice: Police items and general criminal news picked up by our reporters.