This study deals with the origins of The Daily Telegraph & Courier, during a period of social change, under the direction of two successive proprietors from 1855 to 1865. Extensive research was undertaken to examine the proprietors’ control of the newspaper - with particularly significant findings on the founders, their policy and how this changed following the handover. As a result it has been possible to rectify repeated inaccuracies concerning the newspaper’s ownership and editorial development. Further original findings have contributed to a fuller awareness of Lt Col B.W.A. Sleigh, the founder of The Daily Telegraph & Courier, the progenitor of the current Daily Telegraph.