1953 Ownership Change - Culver Citizen  

1953 – June 17 Robert Rust Transfers Ownership of the Citizen to Chester W. Cleveland

New Editor and Publisher Has Notable Record In Journalism

Chester W. Cleveland yesterday purchased The Culver Citizen and The Culver Citizen Press from Robert Rust and immediately assumed his duties as editor and publisher

. Mr. Cleveland a native of Plymouth, brings to the Citizen a colorful background of 31 years in the newspaper, magazine and public relations fields.. His entire business life has been spent in Chicago with the exception of the past two years in Bartletsville, Okla., where he served the Phillips Petroleum Company as director of public relations.

The Citizens new editor and publisher was graduated in 1016 from the Plymouth High School. After his four years in the school of journalism at the University of Illinois where he was managing editor of the Daily Illinois in 1920, he majored in advertising at Babson Institute of Business Administration at Wellesley Hills, Mass. He is a former editor and business manager of the national magazine of both Sigma Chi, social faternity, and Sigma Delta Chi, professional journalistic fraternity. He regards as his most interesting editorial assignments exclusive interviews at the White House with the late Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936 and Harry S. Truman in 1946.

“Chet” as he is known to his friends, is a member of the American Legion, a 32 degree Mason, a Knight Templar, and a Shriner. He also belongs to the University Tavern Press, Headlines, Rotary and Caxton Clubs of Chicago, the National Press Club of Washington D.C. and at the time of his recent departure from Oklahoma was made an honorary life member of the Tulsa Press Club. In 1938 the Atlanta Law School awarded him a honorary doctor of law degree. The Governors of Kentucky and Louisiana in 1948 and 1949 respectively made him an honorary Colonel of their staffs. Recently he completed a term on the board of directors of the Public Relations Society of America and of Lawrence Hall, and Episcopal home for boys from broken homes in Chicago. Since 1928 he has been listed in “Who’s Who in America.”.

Mr Cleveland is often referred to as a “professional Hoosier” because in 1937 he received the famed Indiana Society of Chicago, founded in 1905 by George Ade, Edward M. Holloway, and John T McCutcheon. Since that year he has been largely responsible for the brillant annual gridiron dinner of the Indiana Society in Chicago at which the cadets of the Culver Military Academy have always played a prominent roles. He is particularly interested in the work of the Hoosier Salon Patrons Association of Indianapolis and serves that organization as a vice president.

Mrs. Cleveland is also a native of Plymouth, was reared and educated in Fort Wayne where her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Charles E. Glass, reside. Birth were born in the Twin Lakes area of Marshall county. Ruth Glass Cleveland attended the University of Illinois where she became a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. She is also an initiate of the Fort Wayne chapter of Tri Kappa.

The Cleveland’s are Episcopalians, holding membership in Christ Church, Winnetka, Ill.

Mrs. Cleveland twice was president of its women’s guild and auxiliary.

Editor and Mrs. Cleveland have two sons, John and David. John a membe of the 1950 class at the University of New Mexico, is the publisher of the North Shore Trading Post, a newspaper whose circulation covers Winnetka and seven adjoining Chicago suburbs. David, after graduating from the Fessenden School at West Newton, Mass., and New Tier High School in Winnetka, has just completed his freshman year ay the University of Kansas. He will assist his father at the Citizen office during he summer months .

Mr. and Mrs. Cleveland, John and David spent nearly four months touring 14 countries of Europe during 1949.

Until fall Mr. and Mrs. Cleveland and David will live with Mr. Cleveland’s mother, Mrs. Arnott M. Cleveland at Pretty Lake near Plymouth. Mr. Cleveland’s father was a leading Plymouth manufacturer util his death in 1925 and represented Marshall and St. Joseph Counties in the State Senate from 1920 to 1924. His brother Arthur, lives in Plymouth as does his sister, Mrs. Mary Jane Cleveland Melangton. - - June 17, 1953 Culver Citizen