The Kitchener-Waterloo Record began with the publication of the Daily News of Berlin on Feb. 9, 1878, and was the first daily paper in the area. It was published by Peter Moyer. Over the years it had several names and publishers: in Jan. 1897 it was purchased by the German Printing and Publishing Co. and was amalgamated with that company's Berlin Daily Record to become the Berlin News Record, and later still the News Record, all published by W.V. Uttley. In 1918 the publishers of the German-language paper the Berliner Journal, W.D. Euler and William J. Motz, purchased the News Record and changed the name to the Kitchener Daily Record. On July 17, 1922 the Record absorbed the other daily, the Daily Telegraph. Thus the original three daily papers (the News Record, the Berlin Daily Record, and the Daily Telegraph) became one.

The Berliner Journal began in Dec. 29, 1859 by Frederick Rittinger and John Motz, and was located on Queen St. S in Kitchener. Motz remained editor until his death in 1899, at which time his some William acquired his father's interest. When Rittinger died in 1915 his share was acquired by W.D. Euler. The weekly Journal ended on May 10, 1924. The Record’s first staff photographer was Harry Huehnergard, who worked for the paper for 49 years before retiring in 1986 as Manager of the Photographic Department.

In 1948 the Kitchener Daily Record was re-named the Kitchener-Waterloo Record, which name it retained until 1994, when it became simply The Record. In 1928 the paper moved from its home at 49 King St. W. to a new building at Queen and Duke St., 30 Queen St. N., where it was to stay for 44 years until moving in May 1973 to 225 Fairway Road. When William J. Motz died in 1946 his son John E. Motz took over as publisher. The by-then Senator Euler sold his interest to Southam Press in 1953. John E. Motz died in 1975 and the Motz Family continued to own a controlling interest in the paper until 1990, when it was sold to Southam. (Source: Kitchener-Waterloo Record Centennial Souvenir, Feb. 8, 1978. For the later history of this paper, see this Wikipedia article.)