The ''National Intelligencer and Washington Advertiser'' was a

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as p ...

published in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, from October 30, 1800 until 1870. It was the first newspaper published in the District, which was founded in 1790. It was originally a Tri-weekly publication. It covered early debates of the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

. The paper had a strong bias to Republicans and

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

History

National Intelligencer and Washington Advertiser Oct 18, 1800

The publication was founded under the named ''National intelligencer and Washington Advertiser'' on October 31, 1800. Its name was changed to the ''National Intelligencer'' starting with the issue of November 27, 1810. The newspaper was published daily from 1813 to 1867 as the ''Daily National Intelligencer'' and was the dominant newspaper of the capital. During the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

, its offices and printing plant were damaged by British troops as part of the

Burning of Washington The Burning of Washington was a British invasion of Washington City (now Washington, D.C.), the capital of the United States, during the Chesapeake Campaign of the War of 1812. It is the only time since the American Revolutionary War that a ...

on August 24, 1814. The paper suspended publication on June 24, 1869. It was renewed on September 20, 1869 as the ''Daily National Intelligencer and Washington Express''. It continued publication until January 10, 1870.

Owners

Samuel Harrison Smith Samuel Harrison Smith (13 March 1808 – 30 July 1844) was a younger brother of Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Samuel was a leader in his own right and a successful missionary. Smith is commonly regarded as the first Latt ...

, a prominent newspaperman, was an early proprietor. In 1810, Joseph Gales took over as sole proprietor. He and

William Winston Seaton William Winston Seaton (January 11, 1785 – June 16, 1866) was an American journalist and the thirteenth Mayor of Washington, D.C. Life He was born in King William County, Virginia. From 1812 until 1860 he was, with his brother-in-law Joseph ...

were its publishers for more than 50 years. At first, Gales was the Senate's sole reporter, and Seaton reported on the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. The ''Intelligencer'' supported the Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe administrations, and Gales and Seaton were selected as the official printers of Congress from 1819 to 1829. In addition to printing government documents, they began compiling their reports of floor debates and publishing them in the ''Register of Debates'', a forerunner of the '' Congressional Record''. Gales and Seaton flourished during the "

Era of Good Feelings The Era of Good Feelings marked a period in the political history of the United States that reflected a sense of national purpose and a desire for unity among Americans in the aftermath of the War of 1812. The era saw the collapse of the Fed ...

," a period of relative political complacency, but after Congress was split between the Whigs and Democrats, the partners lost their official patronage. From the 1830s to the 1850s, the ''National Intelligencer'' was one of the nation's leading Whig newspapers, and continued to hold conservative, unionist principles down to the Civil War, supporting John Bell and the Constitutional Union Party in the 1860 presidential election. Gales died in 1860 and Seaton retired in 1864. James Clarke Welling, who became President of Columbian University, served on the editorial staff during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. In 1865, the ''National Intelligencer'' was taken over by Snow, Coyle & Co. John F. Coyle had been an employee at the paper's offices, and continued to publish the paper despite a half million dollars' worth of debts. On November 30, 1869, the statistician and economist Alexander del Mar bought the paper for cash and merged it with the ''Washington Express''. The short-lived ''Daily National Intelligencer and Washington Expresss last daily publication in Washington was January 10, 1870. Thereafter it was published weekly in New York until at least April 1871. It later became the New York daily ''City and National Intelligencer'' with del Mar as editor and publisher, and a circulation of about 2,000 in 1872.

History

Owners

See also

References

Further reading