Rural editor who railed against Trump retires

Twelve years after the Civil War, a Union Army veteran named James Hayden established a newspaper for Garrett County, and called it The Republican in honor of Abraham Lincoln. One hundred and forty years later, the Lincoln kind of Republican is long gone, and those who live in the Western Maryland county where Hayden’s newspaper is still published each Thursday voted overwhelmingly to make Donald J. Trump the commander in chief.

Donald W. Sincell, the longtime editor of The Republican, who opposed Trump’s election in November, is still shocked by Trump’s 4-1 margin in Garrett County. The Republican, published in Oakland, does not have a history of directly endorsing political candidates. But it was clear from editorials in 2016 that Sincell did not think a Trump presidency would be good for the country. The Republican refrained from endorsing Hillary Clinton, but in words and in cartoons, it railed against Trump.

If you were not a regular reader of The Republican, and just picked up a copy while vacationing at Deep Creek Lake, you might have found that remarkable, even courageous.

“I get criticism all the time because I tend to take a more liberal stance on a lot of issues,” says Sincell. “People will write or they’ll call and say, ‘You need to change the name of that paper to The Democrat.’ And my response has always been that I didn’t name the paper, first of all. And, second of all, as the editor, as an individual human being, I consider things for their fairness, for their logic, for what seems right, and I don’t care if it comes from a Republican or a Democrat.”

When I contacted Sincell to talk about life in Garrett in the time of Trump, I did not expect him to report the following news: The Republican has just been sold to a West Virginia media company, a publisher of rural weeklies. Sincell, 65, retires this Friday after more than 40 years at the editor’s desk, ending a long run for one of Maryland’s last family-owned weeklies.

Don Sincell’s great-grandfather bought The Republican from Hayden in 1890. His grandfather, great-uncle and father ran the paper for many years. Don Sincell became editor in the 1970s. There have only been four editors in the 140-year history of the newspaper.

The decision to sell to NCWV Media was a tough one, Sincell says. But he says the new owner is better positioned to take The Republican across the digital divide.

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Jay Ferguson

Who I Am My name is Jay Ferguson, and I am a lifelong resident of the Deep Creek Lake area. I am also co-owner of the real estate side of Taylor Made. I have been in the real estate business for 21+ years now and I LOVE what I do! I have to say, my career really took off when I co-founded the real estate side of Taylor Made in 2014. Its been an amazing experience, building a real estate company from the ground up and achieving so much so quickly! In August 2016, we purchased Long & Foster Real Estate Deep Creek, where I had started my career in 2000. In 2018, we on-boarded virtually every agent from Coldwell Banker Deep Creek Realty as they closed up shop and the real estate family grew even more! We now have over 40 sales agents and have expanded to West Virginia and Pennsylvania, as well. Taylor Made is the #1 vacation rental company at Deep Creek with over 475 vacation rental homes, and over one hundred thousand yearly visitors. Its amazing what we have accomplished using the principles of honesty, teamwork and customer service! Personally, my wife Jessica and I enjoy traveling and especially spending time in the outdoors, hiking and exploring the many diverse areas that Garrett County is naturally blessed with. We have raised two wonderful children here, Kayleah (22) and Noah (13). In the summer, we love spending time on the water with friends & family and enjoying the lake life! We are both active in our church, our community & local school activities, and we fill our schedule with plenty of volunteer efforts. I currently serve on the board of directors for Habitat for Humanity. I am proud to say that I was named Deep Creek Time’s Favorite ‘Community Champion’ in 2019. I was also named Garrett County Realtor of the Year in 2018-19, as well. I really enjoy promoting my hometown. I am very proud of the resort area that has developed over my lifetime and look forward to growing the area even more! Deep Creek Lake has been described as ‘The Lake Tahoe of the east', and I think that speaks volumes about the potential to own property here! Deep Creek Lake isn't really a town or city by itself; it's comprised of three towns: Oakland, Swanton & McHenry, Maryland. I am very passionate about my hometown and am impressed with how many people know about it as we travel around the country. Deep Creek Lake is an amazing place to visit and even better place to live! During the pandemic in 2020, our market exploded and more and more people left their primary residence in the city to live here permanently. With distance learning in schools and tele-commuting becoming the ‘norm’, many more people were drawn to the area to ‘live where they love to play’. Why You Want Me Working for You: In addition to being an owner, I am consistently one of the top-producing agents in the entire area and the Associate Broker of record for Taylor-Made Deep Creek Vacations & Sales. I have 21+ years of experience and I am a problem solver. There aren’t many situations that I have not encountered and I have a strategy for almost every scenario that you may encounter. I have extensively trained in all areas of real estate & emerging technologies, and also have trained as an appraiser, as well as served as a full-time Broker. I have a strong knowledge of the industry, as well as many trusted local contacts & affiliations that allow me to perform at a very high level and deliver results. I have a great deal of respect for my peers in this industry and have strong working relationships that I would love to put to work for you. Call me to discuss your situation - I know I can be of great service to you & others you care about! Honesty. Integrity. Results. View all posts by Jay Ferguson