John Hunt (1775 – 7 September 1848) was an American-born English printer, publisher, and occasional political writer.

Early life, family and education

Hunt was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

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, ...

,Roe, Nicholas. ''Fiery Heart: The First Life of Leigh Hunt''. London: Pimlico, 2005. the fourth of eight children (five of whom survived to adulthood) born to Isaac Hunt and Mary Hunt. He was taken to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in or about 1777. He was an elder brother of the poet and essayist

Leigh Hunt James Henry Leigh Hunt (19 October 178428 August 1859), best known as Leigh Hunt, was an English critic, essayist and poet. Hunt co-founded '' The Examiner'', a leading intellectual journal expounding radical principles. He was the centre ...

and a brother of the critic Robert Hunt.

Career

On 1 February 1791 he was apprenticed to the printer Henry Reynell. Known as a staunch, outspoken, and uncompromising radical, Hunt was more than once imprisoned for his publication of items that were considered libelous, even seditious. John Hunt was responsible for various periodicals over the years, all of them politically left-leaning. His first publishing venture, in 1805 (after a failed beginning the year before), was the eight-page weekly newspaper ''The News''.Holden, Anthony. ''The Wit in the Dungeon: The Remarkable Life of Leigh Hunt—Poet, Revolutionary, and the Last of the Romantics''. New York and Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2005. This was followed by ''The Reflector'', the ''Yellow Dwarf'', ''The Liberal'', and, the most famous and influential, '' The Examiner'', edited by his brother Leigh Hunt. He was also known for publishing radical or controversial works no one else would touch. Among the miscellany, including one book by

Jeremy Bentham Jeremy Bentham (; 15 February 1748 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_February_1747.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 4 February 1747">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.htm ...

, there were others more obviously incendiary or scandalous, such as some of

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

's later works, including '' The Vision of Judgment'', Hazlitt's ''Liber Amoris'', and writings of both

Percy The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use ...

and

Mary Shelley Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (; ; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818), which is considered an early example of science fiction. She also ...

Personal life and demise

Hunt and his wife Sarah Hoole "Sally" (''née'' Hammond), whom he had married in 1797, had at least two sons, one of whom, Henry Leigh Hunt, eventually took over many publishing and editing responsibilities from his father. Hunt was closely attached to, and a frequent collaborator with, his younger brother Leigh. However, between 1825 and 1840,Wu, Duncan. ''William Hazlitt: The First Modern Man''. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. the brothers were not on speaking terms because of, as they later agreed, a misunderstanding over financial matters. John Hunt spent his last decades retired to Upper Chaddon near

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

. After many years in poor health, he died in Brompton,

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

, on 7 September 1848.

References

1775 births 1848 deaths English printers Publishers (people) from London People from Philadelphia {{Publish-bio-stub