Monday, January 21, 2008

Adair publisher Sidey, 82, dies | DesMoinesRegister.com | The Des Moines Register

Adair publisher Sidey, 82, dies

By JACQUELINE LEE • REGISTER STAFF WRITER • January 18, 2008

The longtime editor and publisher of the Adair County Free Press died Thursday of kidney failure. Edwin Sidey was 82.

For 55 years, Sidey was publisher and editor of the paper, where he wrote a weekly column, "Thoughts at Random," and editorials about community issues. The newspaper has been in Sidey's family for four generations.
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"He always had an old manual typewriter," said Denna Mitchell, 42, circulation manager for the Free Press. "We always tried to convert him, but to this day, it's sitting in his office and a piece of paper is in it like he's ready to type again."

Sidey was a World War II veteran and an alumnus of Iowa State University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in journalism. He returned to his native Greenfield when his father needed help with the Free Press.

"He was very happy to come home," said Ed's wife, Linda Sidey, 59. "He loved the area and he loved the people and he was a community leader."

Even with health problems in recent years, Sidey maintained his work at the paper and never failed to have a cup of coffee - and the necessary Tums tablet - at Bon's Bakehouse every Thursday, Linda Sidey said.

In his free time, Ed Sidey made model airplanes and was a member of the yacht club.

His wife said he was close to his brother, Hugh, a Time magazine correspondent who wrote about U.S. politics for nearly a half-century. Hugh Sidey died in November 2005 at age 78.

Ed Sidey is survived by his wife and two sons, Kenneth and David, from a previous marriage. Linda Sidey is the current editor and publisher of the Free Press.