The Caucasian was founded in 1884 as a weekly newspaper in Clinton, North Carolina which promoted the local Democratic Party.
In 1888, schoolteacher Marion Butler became editor of the publication and used it to promote the views of the Farmers' Alliance.
[4][3] Butler then moved the paper's offices to the state capital, Raleigh,[3] and it printed weekly editions for there as well as Clinton and Goldsboro.
[5] With a competitive market for advertising in Raleigh, Butler bolstered the newspaper's operations with his own money and by incorporating the Caucasian Publishing Company and selling its stock to investors.
Due to the lack of money, the board of directors to temporarily suspend operations at the end of the session, with the last daily edition being issued on March 13.