Long owned and published by the Costello family, the newspaper was purchased by Reade Brower, owner of MaineToday Media, in 2017.

In 1857, former employee Nelson Dingley Jr. became owner and publisher, and the paper entered into full-time daily publication in April 1861.

[3] By 1945, when Wood died, the Sun and Journal were the fourth and fifth most-read dailies in the state with circulations of 27,480 and 14,088, respectively.

[5][6] The Sun Journal began publishing its Monday paper online-only March 2, 2020, along with three other Maine Dailies owned by MaineToday Media.

The Advertiser Democrat, Bethel Citizen, and Rumford Falls Times (weeklies) are published by the Sun Journal as well.