George Hooker Colton (October 15, 1818 – December 1, 1847) was an American newspaper editor who founded '' The American Review: A Whig Journal'' in 1844. Colton served as the ''American Whig Review''s editor from 1844 until his death in 1847, publishing from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. After Colton's death,

James Davenport Whelpley James Davenport Whelpley (1817–1872) was an American physician, author, editor, inventor, and metallurgist. Early life and education James Whelpley was born in New York City on January 23, 1817, the son of Rev. Philip Melanchthon Whelpley (De ...

took over as chief editor.

Early life

George Hooker Colton was born in

Westford, New York Westford is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Otsego County, New York, Otsego County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 868 at the 2010 census. It is southeast of Cooperstown, New York, Cooperstown. ...

on October 15, 1818. Colton attended

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

and graduated in 1840. After graduating, Colton was briefly a teacher in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

before publishing his poem "Tecumseh".

''American Whig Review''

George Colton founded '' The American Review: A Whig Journal'' in 1844 as a monthly periodical published by

Wiley and Putnam G. P. Putnam's Sons is an American book publisher based in New York City, New York. Since 1996, it has been an imprint of the Penguin Group. History The company began as Wiley & Putnam with the 1838 partnership between George Palmer Putnam and ...

. Colton was a Whig and founded the review to further the Whig Party's political objectives. ''The American Review'' first published in Autumn 1844 but was serialized starting in January 1845.

Relationship with Edgar Allan Poe

In February 1845,

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

sold his famous poem " The Raven" to Colton's journal after Poe's friend

George Rex Graham George Rex Graham (January 18, 1813 – July 13, 1894) was an American magazine editor and publisher from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He founded the journal ''Graham's Magazine'' at the age of 27 after buying ''Burton's Gentleman's Magazine'' and ...

declined to publish it. Poe continued to publish his poems through Colton, including " Some Words with a Mummy" and " The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar". The literary relationship between Poe and Colton continued when, in May 1846, Poe harshly critiqued Colton's poem "Tecumseh". Poe called "Tecumseh" "insufferably tedious", however, Poe offered a shining review of Colton's ''American Review'' in the same breadth.

Mexican-American War

In the January 1847 edition of ''The American Review'', one of his last, Colton sharply criticized President

James K. Polk James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. He previously was the 13th speaker of the House of Representatives (1835–1839) and ninth governor of Tennessee (183 ...

over the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

. Colton, previously supportive of President Polk, turned against his administration, declaring " are sick of following the president through the sort of defence he has ventured to set up for invading Mexico."

Death

George Hooker Colton died December 1, 1847, remaining ''The American Review''s "able editor" until death. Colton's death was announced in the subsequent edition of ''The American Review,'' where longtime colleague

pledged to succeed Colton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colton, George H. 1818 births 1847 deaths 19th-century American newspaper editors Editors of New York City newspapers People from Westford, New York Yale University alumni Whig Party (United States)