When co-founder J.W. Walsh made a trip to Portland, Ore., he was asked
why he named his newspaper Vidette. His reply was, “Because the name is a French term for the forward point, or outer perimeter guard, of
the main body of troops.”
It has also been said that the word “vidette” belongs to the military and means sentinel, a mounted sentinel on the frontier.
When The Vidette was founded on Feb. 1, 1883, it was claimed to be the westernmost newspaper in the continental United States.
“We are here. We mean business. And we mean to stay.” Those words were what founders J.E. Calder and J.W. Walsh wrote in their very first edition of the Vidette on February 1, 1883, and The Vidette has not missed an issue since.
Today, The Vidette is owned and published by Sound Publishing. The Vidette is housed in the oldest commercial building in Montesano in 1911 built to house the newspaper.
In 2000, The Vidette was named Business of the Century by the Montesano Chamber of Commerce.
For more information, email editor@thevidette.com or call (360) 249-3311.