The Item

Osteen Publishing Company and The Sumter Item were founded by Hubert Graham Osteen on October 15, 1894, in Sumter, S.C. Today, six generations of the Osteen family have been involved in community newspapering for 159 years, one of the longest continuous family involvements in the United States. In 2011, the Osteens purchased three publications serving the Jacksonville, Fla., area. Clay Today and the Ponte Vedra Recorder are weekly newspapers, and Car Connection is a weekly magazine serving Jacksonville area automobile dealers. In 2012, the company purchased the weekly Las Cruces (New Mexico) Bulletin and its associated publications. In 2014, the company purchased Gulf Coast Newspapers LLC in Baldwin County, Alabama. Gulf Coast Newspapers consists of five separate newspapers serving the communities across Baldwin County, tourism related publications, a website dedicated to the Alabama Gulf Coast and a strong Facebook and Twitter presence. The newspapers are published under five different names: The (Fairhope) Courier, The Independent, The Baldwin Times, The Foley Onlooker and The (Gulf Shores) Islander.