From covering some of the defining events of Mississippi’s civil rights era to building a successful career as a newspaper publisher, printer and businessman, W.C. “Dub” Shoemaker spent more than four decades making his mark on Mississippi journalism.
William Clinton Shoemaker was born Nov. 19, 1931, in the Martinville community of rural Simpson County. Educated at Magee High School, he began his newspaper career in 1949 at age 17 as an office boy for The Jackson Daily News under legendary editor Fred Sullens.
Shoemaker quickly advanced through the ranks to become a reporter. During his 16 years with the Daily News, interrupted by two years of Army service during the Korean War, he emerged as one of Mississippi’s leading reporters covering the civil rights movement.
Among the historic events Shoemaker covered were the 1955 murder of Emmett Till and the trial of the two men accused of killing him. He also reported extensively on the assassination of Medgar Evers in 1963. Shoemaker had spoken with Evers following a civil rights rally only hours before the NAACP leader was murdered and was with police when the rifle believed to have been used in the assassination was discovered. Shoemaker published the weapon’s serial number, information that helped investigators identify the man charged with Evers’ murder.
He also covered the investigation into the 1964 murders of civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner near Philadelphia, Mississippi.
In 1965, Shoemaker left the Daily News and moved with his wife, Nell, to Kosciusko, where he and George Keith purchased The Star-Herald. Shoemaker later acquired Keith’s interest and became sole owner of the newspaper.
Over the following years, his newspaper holdings expanded to communities across Mississippi, including Pontotoc, Forest, Morton, and Mendenhall. He also became a partner in a Jackson typography business and developed Shoemaker Offset, a Kosciusko commercial printing operation that produced newspapers and advertising inserts distributed across much of the nation.
Shoemaker’s influence extended well beyond the newspaper business. He served as president of the Mississippi Press Association and held leadership positions with the Mississippi Economic Council, Mississippi Job Training Council, Kosciusko-Attala Chamber of Commerce and numerous civic and business organizations. He served for 28 years on the board of Merchants and Farmers Bank and also served on the boards of the Mississippi State University Foundation and Holmes Community College Foundation.
His contributions to journalism were recognized by several of Mississippi’s universities. He received the University of Mississippi’s Silver Em Award, Mississippi University for Women’s Silver Inky Award and the University of Southern Mississippi’s Mississippi Medalist Award. In 2007, he was inducted into the Southern Miss School of Mass Communication and Journalism Hall of Fame.
Known for his devotion to Kosciusko, Attala County and the state of Mississippi, Shoemaker combined the instincts of a reporter with the vision of an entrepreneur and the commitment of a community leader.
W.C. “Dub” Shoemaker died Oct. 27, 2019, at age 87. His career spanned one of the most consequential periods in Mississippi journalism and reflected a lifetime of service to newspapers, his profession and his community.
