Merced Sun-Star

The Merced Sun-Star was founded in 1869 as the San Joaquin Valley Argus. The paper moved to Merced a year later and, after a series of acquisitions and name changes, became the Merced Sun-Star in 1926. Dean Lesher bought the paper in the 1930s and ushered in the newspaper’s modern era. In 1971, the Sun-Star moved from its downtown location to the current G Street site. The paper was sold to U.S. Media in 1985 and was acquired by The McClatchy Company in January of 2004. Merced is home to the University of California’s 10th and newest campus, which opened in the fall of 2005 and represents the first American research university built in the 21st century.