The Hillsboro Recorder was a newspaper started by Dennis Heartt in February 1820. During the Civil War, the paper remained somewhat neutral. While editors acknowledged that their allegiances were with the United States, they sympathized with some Southerners' grievances. The Hillsboro Recorder was bought and sold twice from 1869 to 1872. In 1879 the final owner of the Hillsboro Recorder, John Donald, changed its name to the Durham Recorder.