Kathrine White

Kathrine White, who was never called by her first name, took over The Emporia Gazette after William Lindsay White’s death in 1973. She did not maintain the high profile that her husband did, preferring to work behind the scenes.

Mrs. White was a stickler for detail in the newsroom. As a former fact-checker for Time magazine, she knew what to watch out for. She knew the value of local news and prodded editors to send their reporters into the streets to interact with townspeople. Mrs. White also emphasized the importance of small towns nearby, such as Olpe and Neosho Rapids.

She also cared about the business side of the Gazette – more than her late husband. Mrs. White cracked down on frivolous spending and tended to catch errors made by the accountants.

In the community, Mrs. White was very active. She cared about Emporia’s beauty and was a prime mover in the tree planting project. Mrs. White once paid to plant 30 crabapple trees around Peter Pan Park Lake and watered them herself. She was also the force behind the restoration of the Gazette building, insisting on quality materials.

Mrs. White died in 1988, whereupon the Gazette was passed on to the third generation of Whites.