William Wallace Stewart Jr., 85, died Tuesday, June 26, 2001, at his daughter’s home in Ishpeming, Mich.
He was born July 8, 1915, in South Superior to William and Esther (Cronk) Stewart.
In 1933, Stewart was hired by Gordon McQuary as a reporter on the Superior Evening Telegram where he would eventually be city editor and sports editor. He interviewed such celebrities as Gypsy Rose Lee, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Eleanor Roosevelt and Sally Rand, and covered the commissioning and recommissioning of the battleship USS Wisconsin.
His wife, the former Elizabeth “Babe” Turney, joined the Telegram editorial staff, and on Oct. 2, 1937, they were married. In 1950, the Stewarts purchased the Spooner Advocate where he was publisher and editor until 1979, when the paper was purchased by his son, Bill Stewart.
During his years at the Advocate, Stewart interviewed Presidents Kennedy and Nixon, and traveled extensively with study missions to Africa and China with the National Editors Association. He continued writing into the 21st century.
In addition to his newspaper career, Stewart was well known for his longtime promotion of the Spooner Rodeo. Stewart was a founding committee member and public relations chairman of the Spooner Rodeo and a member of the Tuscon Rodeo Committee. His rodeo recognitions include Spooner Committee Man of the Year, the Sam Reed Memorial Award, and a Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association honor for his contributions to rodeo.
