James S. Chambers (1853/1854–1923) was a 19th-20th-Century American editor at the '' Public Ledger'' among other Philadelphia newspapers and grandfather of '' Time'' senior editor (and ex-Soviet spy) Whittaker Chambers.

Background

James Slater Chambers was born in Philadelphia in 1853 or 1854 and named after his uncle, publisher James Slater Chambers (1821—1904). He was the son of William Connel Chambers and Mary Stillwell Shaw.

Career

Chambers was an editor for Philadelphia newspapers, including the ''

Philadelphia Bulletin The ''Philadelphia Bulletin'' was a daily evening newspaper published from 1847 to 1982 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was the largest circulation newspaper in Philadelphia for 76 years and was once the largest evening newspaper in the United ...

'' and ''

Philadelphia Record ''The Philadelphia Record'' was a daily newspaper published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1877 until 1947. It became among the most circulated papers in the city and was at some points the circulation leader. History ''The Public Record'' ...

''. From the turn of the century to the time of his death in 1923, he worked at the ''Public Ledger''. ''The New York Times'' called him a "veteran Philadelphia newspaper man," known in both his profession and political circles as "Uncle Jim." ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' noted that he had worked in newspapers for more than forty years. His grandchild Whittaker Chambers was born at his home in Philadelphia. Before she went insane, James S. Chambers' wife shared with her grandson her

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

background, which had a long-term influence on him. Of his paternal grandfather, Whittaker Chambers wrote that he "approached Falstaff in girth, and equalled him in capacity for liquid intake–chiefly beer." He claimed to be a friend of Theodore Roosevelt. Despite shortcoming in the eyes of his grandson, "This old reprobate was the first man who sat down with me and explained to me the world in terms of politics and history. He first made me aware that politics is history in the making. ... For his mind, I respected him deeply."

Personal and death

In the 1870s, Chambers married Elizabeth Mendoza Carpenter of Philadelphia. They lived in Germantown (now a Philadelphia suburb). Two of their five children survived early days, Jay (born 1877) and Helen (born 1884). He was a member of the Masonic St. Alban Lodge No. 529 F&AM. James Slater Chambers died, aged 69 or 70, on February 2, 1923, as he was walking home to Germantown from work in down Philadelphia.

References

19th-century American newspaper publishers (people) 20th-century American newspaper publishers (people) 19th-century American journalists American male journalists 19th-century American male writers 20th-century American male writers Journalists from Pennsylvania Year of birth uncertain 1923 deaths {{US-publish-bio-stub