Illinois newspaper directory. History of the Illinois press association

Illinois Newspaper Directory and HistoryQeneral SectionBenjaminFranklinBenjamin Franklin (1702-1790), one of the first great colonial editors and the mostcelebrated country journalist in the history of American journalism, was born, educated,apprenticed as a printer, and disciplined in editorial work in Boston. With his olderbrother James he worked on the paper started to supplant the first regular paper in thatcity, Postmaster John Campbell's Boston News Letter. He helped print the BostonGazette of William Brooker. James was the printer and Benjamin his assistant. Thencame the New England Courant started by James Franklin and on that paper Franklincompleted his apprenticeship, began his work as an editorial contributor under the nameof Silas Dogood, and did emergency duty as editor when James was in the bad graces of thegovernment. Franklin left Boston in 1723, at the age of seventeen. His next years werespent in Philadelphia and in London, England, where he engaged in printing and writingfor the newspapers. In 1730 he became owner of the Pennsylvania Gazette in Philadelphia.From that time until 1848 he was sole proprietor of the paper and after that date he wassenior partner in the publishing company writing at such times as he saw fit. Franklin'sname is linked with papers in New York, Newport, Lancaster, Charleston, Kingston,Jamaica, and Antigua, in which places he financed country weeklies staffed largely withmen from his Philadelphia plant. His enterprise in this direction led to his Philadelphiapaper being known as the first "school of journalism" and his papers being consideredas the first newspaper chain. His Philadelphia General Magazine, 1741, was preventedfrom being the first American magazine when his designs became known and a rival, theAmerican, went on sale three days earlier than his own. Both magazines were datedJanuary. Franklin's lasted six months, the rival's but three. Franklin's eminence in literature,science, and politics reflected new dignity on the printer-journalist, and his poweras an editor made him a notable figure in the molding of sentiment before, during, and afterthe Revolution. Honorary degrees were conferred on him by the greatest colleges anduniversities, including Harvard, Yale, William and Mary, Edinburgh, and Oxford. Inmany respects he was the most notable figure of his time. Franklin was elected to theHall, November 21, 1930—Election 1.Horace GreeleyHorace Greeley (1811-1872), greatest of the personal editors and the dominantfigure in the journalism of the United States from 1840 to 1860, was born in Vermont andserved an apprenticeship as a printer on a country newspaper, the Northern Spectatorof East Poultney, Vermont. He later worked as a printer in Jamestown, New York;Lodi, New York; and Erie, Pennsylvania. In 1831, twenty years of age, he made his wavto New York City and secured editorial work after a brief experience as a printer andpartner in a small printing establishment. His big chance came with the founding ofthe New Yorker in 1834. The paper failed, and Greeley accepted the editorship of theJeffersonian, a Whig campaign paper. The offer was made to him by Thurlow Weed andWilliam H. Seward, who liked some writing he had done for the Daily Whig. Thus theSeward- Weed-Greeley ring came into existence. In 1840 Whig leaders started anotherweekly, the Log Cabin, and Greeley became its editor. During the campaign the paper