About Ashland, MO and the Journal

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The following is taken from the City of Ashland Web site.

Ashland, Missouri is located in Southern Boone County. Its population has doubled in the last 16 years from 1,275 persons in 1990 to approximately 3,000 persons in 2006 while still maintaining a quaint, small-town ambience. This quality, together with Ashland’s convenient location and excellent schools, churches and homes, make the city an attractive place to live.Some of the residents work in Ashland, others commute to Columbia and Jefferson City, both less than 15 minutes away on US 63, a four-lane divided highway.

St. Louis and Kansas City, with all they have to offer, are less than two hours away. The Lake of the Ozarks, a major recreational area, is only an hour away.

The Southern Boone County School District, which educates children from Ashland and surrounding areas, has earned a reputation of educational excellence, boasting high school graduations rates eight percentage points above the state average and higher than average M.A.P. scores in all subjects and grade levels. In 2003, the school district received the “Distinction in Performance” for scoring 100 out of 100 points on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education MAP test scores. The school district offers numerous student activities, clubs, and sports, including band, choir, performing arts, baseball, softball, football, soccer, volleyball, track, cross country and golf.

Ashland has seven institutions of higher learning within 25 minutes including the University of Missouri-Columbia, Stephens College, Columbia College, Lincoln University, William Woods University, Moberly Area Community College, and Westminster College.

Ashland’s population enjoys many outdoor activities. They enjoy hiking and spelunking at Rock Bridge State Park. They can enjoy hunting, hiking, and horseback riding at Three Creeks State Wildlife Area along with camping at Pine Ridge Campground in the Mark Twain National Forest. The University of Missouri holds large tracts of land that are available for research and certain public uses. They can cycle and walk on the Katy Trail State Park along the scenic Missouri River. There are eight 18-hole golf courses within 20 miles including the Eagle Knoll Golf Club in Hartsburg, rated four stars by Golf Digest that is just 5 miles south of town.

The following is from the Boone County Journal Web site.

The Boone County Journal has its roots in the old Ashland Bugle and Hartsburg Truth. The paper, as it did more than a century ago, covers the communities of Ashland and Hartsburg and the surrounding Southern Boone County area.

The Journal was originated as a weekly newspaper by Dan Fishel in 1969. The paper went through three ownership changes before Jane and Dick Flink purchased the Journal in 1986. They enjoyed the longest run of ownership before selling the newspaper in April, 2001 to Bruce and Susan Wallace.

Bruce Wallace was a daily newspaper publisher in Texas and Alabama before purchasing the Boone County Journal. He has gained experience in advertising, news and circulation by working for the Gannett Company and Boone Newspapers. He is a graduate of the University of Arkansas. While not working, Wallace and his family enjoy canoeing, camping and travel. He is also a bicycling enthusiast and enjoys watching Universtiy of Missouri Tigers sports.

The Journal enjoys a solid relationship with the Missouri Press Association and the University of Missouri School of Journalism. The Journal employs one or two students each year, working in the graphics and news departments. The Journal also participates in the Missouri Press Foundation Internship program, employing a student journalist each summer.

OUR MISSION

The Journal strives to report the news of our community honestly, fairly and with integrity; take a leadership role and act as a positive influence in our community; build commerce and promote business through advertising; give our readers useful, interesting and entertaining information in every edition; report local news, without exclusion; strive for excellence in every facet of our operation; provide for the welfare of our employees; and above all, treat our readers, our advertisers and our community as we would want to be treated ourselves.