After more than 130 years in operation, the Malden Evening News has shut its doors.

The Evening News and the Medford Daily Mercury both stopped publishing their print and online editions last month, citing financial pressures. The papers published Monday through Friday until about six months ago, when they stopped printing on Wednesdays.

Patrick Horgan, a member of the family that owned the newspapers, told the Associated Press that many of their biggest advertisers were also struggling financially.

"We just didn't know where our revenue would come from," he said.

Horgan said he did not know how many jobs were lost in the closures.

The papers were bought out of bankruptcy in 1996 by Horgan's father, attorney-turned-publisher Daniel J. Horgan. He was publisher until his death in 2011.

The office at 277 Commercial St. in Malden has been cleared out, while the papers' website, maldennews.com, has been shut down. A Twitter account associated with the Evening News remains active but is now labeled "News Malden MA," instead of "Malden Evening News."

Malden Evening News staff had no further comment on the closing.

According to historical accounts, the Evening News was founded in 1880. The public face of the paper from 1947-89 was David Brickman, who became publisher of the Medford arm in 1947, bought the Malden paper in 1953, and acquired a third paper called the Melrose News in 1969.

Brickman's obituary in the Boston Globe states that he was a regular panelist on the "Starring the Editors" television program and helped push for the Commonwealth's Open Meeting Law.

In 1989, Brickman sold his 75 percent interest in the three papers to minority shareholder Warren H. Jackson. A year earlier, reports stated that Brickman was considering selling the papers to a company owned by Rupert Murdoch for a higher price, but that never came to pass.

Daniel J. Horgan bought the papers for $650,000 in 1996.

The most recent editor was Steve Freker. Freker was hired last month as the head baseball coach for Malden High School.

-Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.