The Clarendon News The town of Clarendon began with an effort led by the Rev. Lewis H. Carhart as he strived to create a colony based on Christianity, temperance and education. To promote the settlement, he created The Clarendon News, publishing the first issue in June 1878, the same year the first colonists arrived. The News was the first newspaper in the Panhandle. Since its first printing, it has changed owners and names many times but has always provided local news coverage and community interest pieces. As the community grew, printing methods changed from hand-set type to 21st-century computer innovations. The newspaper's long, continuous run is a tribute to Carhart and the many pioneer journalists who followed him.