Braden Lee Ball (1911-2006) was publisher of the Pensacola News Journal from 1942 until 1976.
| Braden Lee Ball | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 1, 1911 Newport News, VA |
| Died | January 21, 2006 Pensacola |
| Occupation | Newspaper publisher |
| Spouse | Theda Sims Ball |
| Children | Suzanne, Kirk, Roger |
Born October 1, 1911 in Newport News, VA, Ball moved to Pensacola as a boy. He filed his first news story at age ten, about a ship wreck, and at 18 joined the News-Journal (then operated by John H. Perry as both the Pensacola Daily News and the Pensacola Journal) as an advertising salesman.
On April 10, 1940 he married Theda Sims, with whom he had three children: Suzanne, Kirk and Roger.
He became business manager and eventually manager of the Panama City News-Herald, and in 1942 became publisher of the News-Journal. During this time he founded the Fort Walton Beach Playground News (now the Northwest Florida Daily News) in Fort Walton Beach. He was also president and board chairman of the Florida National Bank in Pensacola and director of both the St. Joe Paper Company and the Edward Ball Wildlife Foundation.
Ball was interested in the promotion and growth of Florida and the Pensacola area. His efforts helped bring the first four-lane highway to the Panhandle, and he helped select the site for the University of West Florida.
He died at age 94 on January 21, 2006.