The Columbian Centinel (1790–1840) was a Boston, Massachusetts, newspaper established by Benjamin Russell. It continued its predecessor, the Massachusetts Centinel and the Republican Journal, which Russell and partner William Warden had first issued on March 24, 1784.[1] The paper was "the most influential and enterprising paper in Massachusetts after the Revolution."[2] In the Federalist Era, the newspaper was aligned with Federalist sentiment. Until c. 1800 its circulation was the largest in Boston, and its closest competitor was the anti-Federalist Independent Chronicle ("the compliments that were frequently exchanged by these journalistic adversaries were more forcible than polite").[3]
Type | Semi-weekly newspaper |
---|---|
Founded | June 16, 1790 |
Language | English |
Ceased publication | May 23, 1840 |
Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
Russell "can be justly characterized as the Horace Greeley of his time."[4] In 1828 Russell sold the Centinel to Joseph T. Adams and Thomas Hudson, who continued publishing it.[5] In 1840, the Centinel merged with a number of other Boston papers—the Independent Chronicle & Boston Patriot, the Boston Commercial Gazette, and the New-England Palladium—to form the Boston Semi-weekly Advertiser,[6] which eventually became the Boston Herald.
Titles
edit- The Massachusetts Centinel: and the Republican Journal. Mar. 24 – Oct. 13, 1784.
- The Massachusetts Centinel. Oct. 16, 1784 – June 12, 1790.
- Columbian Centinel. June 16, 1790 – Oct. 2, 1799.
- Columbian Centinel & Massachusetts Federalist. Oct. 5, 1799 – July 2, 1800.
- Columbian Centinel. Massachusetts Federalist. July 5 – Dec. 31, 1800.
- Columbian Centinel. Sept. 5, 1804 – May 23, 1840.
References
edit- ^ Library of Congress. "Eighteenth-Century American Newspapers". Library of Congress.
- ^ Frederic Hudson. Journalism in the United States from 1690 to 1872. 1873; p.147.
- ^ "Boston newspapers 100 years ago." Boston Daily Globe, Dec 27, 1903; p.27.
- ^ "American press founded at Boston in April, 1704; spans 200 years." Boston Daily Globe, Apr 18, 1904; p.5.
- ^ Joseph Tinker Buckingham. Specimens of Newspaper Literature. 1852; p.99.
- ^ Library of Congress. "Chronicling America".
Further reading
edit- A free, uninfluenced news-paper. Printing-office, Marlborough-Street, Boston, March 11, 1784. To the publick. ... Proposals for publishing, every Wednesday and Saturday, a free, uninfluenced news-paper, to be entitled, the Massachusetts centinel... [Boston : Printed by Warden and Russell, 1784].
- Justin Winsor. Memorial History of Boston, vol.3. Boston: Ticknor & Co., 1881. p. 617+ (includes portrait of Benjamin Russell on p. 619).
External links
edit- Library of Congress. Massachusetts Centinel. Boston: Published by Warden & Russell, 1785.
- Villanova University. Digital Library: Selected Issues Columbian Centinel.