A former weekly newspaper owner who was the last of his family to run the title has died aged 89.

Tributes have been paid to Sam Eccleston, left, who ran the Whitchurch Herald after his father’s death in 1960s.

Sam later sold the Herald to Thomson Regional Newspapers, but stayed on to help the new owners.

He worked in the print industry all his life, joining the Herald firm in 1952 after qualifying as a print master.

According to an obituary in the Shropshire Star, the Eccleston family had been connected with the Herald since its inception in 1869.

Sam’s daughter Jan Wynn told the Herald: “He would always help you and he gave quite sage advice.

“He absolutely loved the Rotary Club and he wasn’t a do-gooder. He just wanted to help people; his interest in people meant he met so many new ones.”

Sam leaves wife Margaret, with whom he had four children, three of whom survive.  His funeral took place in Whitchurch yesterday.

The Herald was later bought by NWN Media and is now part of Newsquest.