[4] The Statesman began its life as the Grafton Sentinel, a publication that was only weeks old when editor and publisher James W. Holt took it over in 1870.
[5] As a staunchly Republican paper in a majority Democratic county, Holt's publication found surprising success.
In 1903 Holt introduced the Daily Sentinel, an eight-page six column evening paper, to serve the growing city of Grafton.
James left the paper in 1948, selling it to Joseph Abey, a Pennsylvania publisher, after deciding to embark on a career in law.
At the time of her death, multiple local sources identified her as the first female editor of a daily newspaper in West Virginia.