The ''Pittsburgh Mercury'' was a weekly newspaper published in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

from 1811 to the early 1840s. Originally almost unpartisan, it became a mouthpiece of the

Democratic-Republicans The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early ...

, and later of the

Jacksonians Jacksonian democracy was a 19th-century political philosophy in the United States that expanded suffrage to most white men over the age of 21, and restructured a number of federal institutions. Originating with the seventh U.S. president, And ...

and Democrats. It was a progenitor of the ''

Pittsburgh Post The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the All ...

'', which in turn was succeeded by the ''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the All ...

''.

Publishers

The ''Mercury'' began publication on 26 September 1811, with James C. Gilleland as editor and proprietor. Within a year it was purchased by John M. Snowden, who while at the helm of the paper attained prominent local political posts, including

Mayor of Pittsburgh The mayor of Pittsburgh is the chief executive of the government of the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Pittsburgh. This article is a listing of past (and present) mayors of Pittsburgh. ...

in 1825–1828. In early 1830, Snowden was succeeded by his son Joseph in the conduct of the ''Mercury''. The son retired in 1835, passing the paper to Robert Morrow and William H. Smith. Smith assumed sole control in 1840.

Mergers and name changes

The ''Mercury'' in 1832 absorbed a startup paper called the ''Allegheny Republican'', and for about the next two years was published under the title ''Pittsburgh Mercury and Allegheny Republican''. In 1841, the ''Weekly Pittsburgher and Allegheny Democrat'' joined with the ''Mercury'' to form the ''Pittsburgh Mercury and Allegheny Democrat'', with the ''Mercurys Smith as publisher. Seeing a need for a daily Democratic newspaper in Pittsburgh, Smith in 1842 arranged with Thomas Phillips, owner-editor of the ''American Manufacturer'', to unite their establishments and launch the ''Daily Morning Post''. Begun in tandem with the ''Post'' was an edition called the ''Weekly Mercury and Manufacturer'', consisting of matter from the past week's daily issues. The ''Post'' continued as a Democratic organ until its 1927 merger with the ''Gazette Times'' to create the ''Post-Gazette''.

References

{{reflist Defunct newspapers published in Pittsburgh Defunct weekly newspapers Democratic newspapers (United States) Publications established in 1811 Publications disestablished in 1842 1811 establishments in Pennsylvania 1842 disestablishments in Pennsylvania