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MELBOURNE
    Early journalism was born within three years of the founding of Port Phillip Colony.
John Pascoe Fawkner (1792-1869), one of the fathers of the settlement, produced a newspaper
on 1st January 1838. The first nine weekly issues of his Melbourne Advertiser were
handwritten, and it is probable that not more than 30 copies of each issue were made.

    Fawkner then secured an old fount of type, but in his haste to begin the venture he
did not wait to obtain the governmental licence to print necessary in those days,
consequently, after 17 issues of the Advertiser had appeared, the commandant of
Port Phillip (Captain Lonsdale) suppressed the publication.

    Before Fawkner could make a new and legal beginning, a Sydney printer and a young
journalist arrived to setup business in Port Phillip.
The Port Phillip Gazette was commenced on 27 October 1838 by Thomas Strode (1812-1880)
and George Arden (c1820-1854), a four-page weekly selling at 1s. a copy.
Arden became the sole proprietor in 1841 but lost it to his creditors in 1842. It was later
edited and published by Thomas McCombie who became sole proprietor in October 1844.
It became a daily as The Times about March 1851 with William Kerr as editor but closed
on 30 June 1851.

    Fawkner, duly licensed, resumed publication on 6th February 1839, renaming his journal
The Port Phillip Patriot and Melbourne Advertiser; this became the first newspaper to
achieve daily publication in Melbourne.
Later known as The Daily News, it was absorbed in 1852 by The Argus, which had been
launched on 14th June 1846 by William Kerr. Meanwhile, on 3rd January 1840, The
Port Phillip Herald was inaugurated, mainly by George Cavenagh, formerly of Sydney.
Its first editor, William Kerr, left Cavenagh in 1841 and brought out the first
directory to be printed in Melbourne.
The Port Phillip Herald became The Melbourne Morning Herald in 1849.

    The Standard was commenced by George Darley Boursiquot in 1844 and
The Port Phillip Gazetteer was published in 1844 by Thomas Strode. It had become
The Standard and Port Phillip Gazetteer by 26 February 1845 and was
amalgamated with The Port Phillip Patriot on 1 October 1845.

    The Port Phillip Herald was commenced on 3 January 1840 by George Cavenagh (1808-1869).
Edited by William Kerr and then by Thomas Hamilton Osborne.
Edmund "Garryowen" Finn was the reporter.
It became a daily paper on 1 January 1849 as The Melbourne Morning Herald.

    The Port Phillip Magazine was a short lived magazine (newspaper) published monthly
from January 1843 to April 1843.
It was edited by William Wilmot ( -1874) and George Alexander Gilbert and published
by William Kerr.

    The Port Phillip Government Notices commenced on 4 January 1843.
It was printed at The Times Office by a Mr. Brown & Ryland John Howard,
as the designated Government Printers of that time.
It had become the Port Phillip Government Gazette by January 1844 and was being printed at
the Port Phillip Herald Office by William Clarke.
In January 1845 it was being printed by Samuel Goode at The Port Phillip Patriot Office.
William Clarke resumed as Government Printer in January 1846; Samuel Goode in
January 1847 and 1848; Edward Wilson in January 1849; George Darley Boursiquot in
January 1850 and Edward Wilson & James Stewart Johnston from 25 January 1850 to
30 June 1851.

    Ham's Illustrated Australian Magazine commenced in late July/early August 1850.
Published by the Ham Brothers, it was printed by Samuel Goode until Jabez Ham
took over the printing in March 1851.

    The Port Phillip Christian Herald was first published in January 1846 by the
Rev. James Forbes (c1813-1851). It was printed and/or published by Thomas McCombie.
It became The Victorian Christian Herald by 1851.

    The Church of England Messenger commenced on 1 January 1850. It was founded by
Bishop Charles Perry (1807-1891) and the Rev. Daniel Newham (c1816- 1851) and was
printed by Benjamin Lucas.

    The Melbourne Presbyterian Magazine which commenced in October 1850 was edited by the
Rev. Andrew Mitchell Ramsay (1809-1869).
 

GEELONG
    The Geelong Advertiser was commenced on 21 November 1840 by John Pascoe Fawkner.
It has the distinction of being the oldest (true) newspaper in Victoria and third oldest in
Australia.
It was edited by James Harrison (c1816-1893) and printed and published for Fawkner by
William Watkins. Watkins was soon replaced by John H. Scamble. Scamble returned to
Scotland and James Harrison became sole proprietor about 1842.
A country edition was published from 1 January 1850 by Daniel Harrison
(brother of James Harrison) as The Intelligencer. The two papers merged in 1851 as
The Geelong Advertiser and Intelligencer.

PORTLAND
    The Portland Guardian and Normanby General Advertiser commenced on 20 August 1842.
It was printed and published jointly by James Swords and Thomas Wilkinson.
Thomas Wilkinson (1799-1881) later became the sole proprietor.
It continued beyond 30 June 1851.

    The Portland Mercury and Normanby Advertiser was commenced on 31 August 1842.
It was edited by Joseph Thompson and printed and published by Robert Fisher for the
joint benefit of William Kerr, Joseph Thompson and Robert Fisher.
Became The Portland Mercury and Port Fairy Register from 28 July 1843.
Robert Fisher was the sole proprietor when Thomas Hamilton Osborne (c1805-1853)
took over from 10 January 1844.
Apparently became The Portland Gazette and Belfast Advertiser by 1845 and was run
by Thomas Hamilton Osborne.

    The Portland Bay Examiner and Chronicle of Australia Felix commenced on 14 January 1845.
It was printed by David Hargrave at the house of Thomas Wilkinson and published by
David Hargrave. It appears to have finished on 13 May 1845.
 

PORT FAIRY
    The Belfast Gazette and Portland and Warrnambool Advertiser which commenced on
6 April 1849 was edited and published by Thomas Hamilton Osborne.
 

WARRNAMBOOL
    The Warrnambool Examiner was commenced by Richard Osburne (1825-1895) in March 1851.
Osburne had been a compositor who had been apprenticed to Fawkner on the Port Phillip Patriot.