John Walter (1 January 1738 – 17 November 1812) was an English newspaper publisher and founder of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' newspaper, which he launched on 1 January 1785 as ''The Daily Universal Register''. He was born in London and educated at Merchant Taylors' School, then located in London.

Biography

Walter was engaged in a prosperous business as a coal merchant from the death of his father Richard Walter (about 1755/6) until 1781. Walter played a leading part in establishing the

Coal Exchange The Coal Exchange (also known as the Exchange Building) is an historic building in Cardiff, Wales. It is designed in Renaissance Revival style. Built in 1888 as the Coal and Shipping Exchange to be used as a market floor and office building for ...

in London; but shortly after 1781, when he began to occupy himself solely as an underwriter and became a member of

Lloyd's Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gov ...

, he over-speculated and failed. In 1782, he bought from one Henry Johnson a patent for a new method of printing from logotypes (i.e. founts of words or portions of words, instead of letters), and made some improvements to it. In 1784 he acquired an old printing office in

Blackfriars Blackfriars, derived from Black Friars, a common name for the Dominican Order of friars, may refer to: England * Blackfriars, Bristol, a former priory in Bristol * Blackfriars, Canterbury, a former monastery in Kent * Blackfriars, Gloucester, a f ...

, which formed the nucleus of the Printing-house Square of a later date, and established there his Logographic Office. At first Walter only undertook the printing of books, but on 1 January 1785 he started a small newspaper called ''The Daily Universal Register'', which on reaching its 940th number on 1 January 1788 was renamed ''The Times''. The printing business developed and prospered, but the newspaper at first had a somewhat chequered career. On 11 July 1789 Walter was convicted of

libel Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

on the Duke of York and was sentenced to a fine of £50, a year's imprisonment in

Newgate Newgate was one of the historic seven gates of the London Wall around the City of London and one of the six which date back to Roman times. Newgate lay on the west side of the wall and the road issuing from it headed over the River Fleet to Mid ...

, to stand in the

pillory The pillory is a device made of a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, formerly used for punishment by public humiliation and often further physical abuse. The pillory is related to the stocks ...

for an hour and to give surety for good behaviour for seven years; for further libels the fine was increased by £100 and the imprisonment by a second year. On 9 March 1791, however, he was freed and pardoned on the request of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

. In 1799 Walter was again convicted for a technical

, this time on Lord Cowper. He had then given up the management of the business to his eldest son, William, and had (1795) retired to

Teddington Teddington is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. In 2021, Teddington was named as the best place to live in London by ''The Sunday Times''. Historically in Middlesex, Teddington is situated on a long m ...

, where he lived till his death. In 1759 he had married Frances Landen (died 1798), by whom he had six children. William Walter very soon gave up the duties he undertook in 1795, and in 1803 transferred the sole management of the business to his son,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Walter, John 1738 births 1812 deaths 18th-century British newspaper founders 18th-century British newspaper publishers (people) 19th-century British newspaper publishers (people) Burials at Teddington Cemetery People educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood Walter family