 | |
| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Owner(s) | Times of Ceylon Limited |
| Founded | 11 July 1846 (1846-07-11) |
| Language | English |
| Ceased publication | 1985 |
| City | Colombo |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Sister newspapers | |
| OCLC number | 1781454 |
The Times of Ceylon was anEnglish language daily newspaper inSri Lanka published by Times of Ceylon Limited (TOCL). It was founded in 1846 as theCeylon Times and was published fromColombo. It ceased publication in 1985.
TheCeylon Times started on 11 July 1846 using the printing press of the defunctThe Ceylon Herald.[1][2] The newspaper was established to opposeThe Observer and promote themercantile interests of Britishcolonials.[3] Initially it was published on Tuesdays and Fridays.[3][4]
In 1858 the paper's owners Wilson, Ritchie & Co. sold it toJohn Capper, a former sub-editor ofThe Globe.[3][4] Capper sold the paper to Alexander Allardyce in 1874[5] and returned to Britain.[6] The paper's fortunes waned under the new owners and it went intoliquidation. Capper returned to Ceylon and with the help of his son Frank A. Capper, a coffee planter fromHaputale, took control of the paper, which was now calledThe Times of Ceylon, in 1882.[4][6] Capper's eldest son Herbert H. Capper also joined the running of the paper.[4][6] The newspaper flourished and became the leading Ceylonese newspaper read byplantation owners and European residents.[4] The newspaper became an evening daily in 1883.[7] John Capper left Ceylon 1884, leaving the management of the paper in the hands of his two sons.[4] In 1903, Arumugam Sangarapillai became sole proprietor of the newspaper, and later his son became managing director.[8]
TOCL and its rivalAssociated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited (ANCL) dominated the newspaper industry when Ceylon obtained independence from Britain in 1948.[9] ANCL and TOCL werenationalised by theSri Lankan government in July 1973 and August 1977 respectively.[9] The state-run TOCL faced financial and labour problems and on 31 January 1985 it and its various publications closed down.[9] Ranjith Wijewardena, chairman of ANCL before nationalisation, bought the trade names and library of the TOCL publications.[9] Wijewardena's company,Wijeya Newspapers, subsequently started various newspapers using the names of former TOCL publications.[9]
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