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Ralph Reynolds Cronise (1886-1962) was a prominent business owner and civic leader in Albany, Oregon, from the early 1900s until his death in 1962. He purchased (with William L. Jackson) the Albany Democrat in 1919, and in 1925 bought its competitor, the Albany Herald. The new newspaper was named the Democrat-Herald. Cronise was also involved with KWIL radio station, the Albany Holding Company, and the Lebanon T-V Distributing Corporation. His civic interests ranged widely and he appeared untiring in his efforts to effect constructive change in Albany.
The correspondence is the largest part of the collection, with approximately 1700 letters.
Cronise's newspaper career is reflected in letters concerning his activities as President of the State Editorial Association, his business arrangements with advertising agencies, the paper shortage and concurrent problems of paper importation (late 1940s), a special 91st edition of the Democrat-Herald, and the sale of the Democrat-Herald in the late 1950s.
A large portion of the correspondence reflects Cronise's civic interests such as the sale and management of KWIL radio station, senate and congressional campaigns of the 1950s, a new Linn County Courthouse, Albany College, and the Naval hospital. The correspondence is separated into incoming, which is organized alphabetically by name or title, and outgoing, which is organized by date (1925-1961).
The collection also contains business and civic organization files organized by title, photographs and five business ledgers.