Texas Newspaper Foundation

Amon G. Carter Sr., longtime publisher of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, was born in a log cabin near Crafton, Texas, in 1879. He died at his home in Fort Worth in 1955.

In 1908, Carter and an associate who owned the Fort Worth Star, purchased its larger competitor, the Fort Worth Telegram, and founded the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Jan. 1, 1909.

Carter saw opportunity to the west of Fort Worth and sent sales people to the far reaches of the state, setting up circulation offices near bus stations and train depots. The newspaper’s circulation and influence grew and grew.

From 1923 until after World War II, the Star-Telegram had the largest circulation of any newspaper in the southern United States, serving Fort Worth, West Texas, New Mexico and western Oklahoma, a land area more than twice the size of New England.

Carter was unequalled as a booster for Fort Worth and all of West Texas, personally touting the region’s attributes in venues as far away as New York, N.Y., Washington, D.C., and Europe.

Carter’s roles as newspaper publisher, civic booster and philanthropist have left a widespread legacy. Just a few examples in Fort Worth alone: Texas Christian University’s Amon G. Carter Stadium, the world-famous Amon Carter Museum, and the Texas Wesleyan University School of Law’s main auditorium.

Carter was instrumental in bringing a four-year college we know today as Texas Tech University to Lubbock.

Also, Amon Carter Peak in Big Bend National Park memorializes Carter’s role in creating the park itself.