National Intelligencer
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The ''National Intelligencer and Washington Advertiser'' was a
newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...
published in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, from October 30, 1800 until 1870. It was the first newspaper published in the District, which was founded in 1790. It was originally a Tri-weekly publication. It covered early debates of the
United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
. The paper had a strong bias to Republicans and
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...
.


History

The publication was founded under the named ''National intelligencer and Washington Advertiser'' on October 31, 1800. Its name was changed to the ''National Intelligencer'' starting with the issue of November 27, 1810. The newspaper was published daily from 1813 to 1867 as the ''Daily National Intelligencer'' and was the dominant newspaper of the capital. During the
War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
, its offices and printing plant were damaged by British troops as part of the
Burning of Washington The Burning of Washington was a British invasion of Washington City (now Washington, D.C.), the capital of the United States, during the Chesapeake Campaign of the War of 1812. It is the only time since the American Revolutionary War that a ...
on August 24, 1814. The paper suspended publication on June 24, 1869. It was renewed on September 20, 1869 as the ''Daily National Intelligencer and Washington Express''. It continued publication until January 10, 1870.


Owners

Samuel Harrison Smith Samuel Harrison Smith (13 March 1808 – 30 July 1844) was a younger brother of Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Samuel was a leader in his own right and a successful missionary. Smith is commonly regarded as the first Latt ...
, a prominent newspaperman, was an early proprietor. In 1810,
Joseph Gales Joseph Gales Jr. (June 15, 1786 – July 21, 1860) was an American journalist and the ninth mayor of Washington, D.C., from 1827 to 1830. He was the only Mayor born outside the United States or the American colonies. Early life Joseph Gales Jr ...
took over as sole proprietor. He and
William Winston Seaton William Winston Seaton (January 11, 1785 – June 16, 1866) was an American journalist and the thirteenth Mayor of Washington, D.C. Life He was born in King William County, Virginia. From 1812 until 1860 he was, with his brother-in-law Joseph ...
were its publishers for more than 50 years. At first, Gales was the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
's sole reporter, and Seaton reported on the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
. The ''Intelligencer'' supported the
Jefferson Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foo ...
,
Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...
, and Monroe administrations, and Gales and Seaton were selected as the official printers of Congress from 1819 to 1829. In addition to printing government documents, they began compiling their reports of floor debates and publishing them in the ''Register of Debates'', a forerunner of the '' Congressional Record''. Gales and Seaton flourished during the "
Era of Good Feelings The Era of Good Feelings marked a period in the political history of the United States that reflected a sense of national purpose and a desire for unity among Americans in the aftermath of the War of 1812. The era saw the collapse of the Fed ...
," a period of relative political complacency, but after Congress was split between the Whigs and Democrats, the partners lost their official patronage. From the 1830s to the 1850s, the ''National Intelligencer'' was one of the nation's leading Whig newspapers, and continued to hold conservative, unionist principles down to the Civil War, supporting John Bell and the Constitutional Union Party in the 1860 presidential election. Gales died in 1860 and Seaton retired in 1864. James Clarke Welling, who became President of
Columbian University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presid ...
, served on the editorial staff during the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
. In 1865, the ''National Intelligencer'' was taken over by Snow, Coyle & Co. John F. Coyle had been an employee at the paper's offices, and continued to publish the paper despite a half million dollars' worth of debts. On November 30, 1869, the statistician and economist Alexander del Mar bought the paper for cash and merged it with the ''Washington Express''. The short-lived ''Daily National Intelligencer and Washington Expresss last daily publication in Washington was January 10, 1870. Thereafter it was published weekly in New York until at least April 1871. It later became the New York daily ''City and National Intelligencer'' with del Mar as editor and publisher, and a circulation of about 2,000 in 1872.


See also

*
List of newspapers in Washington, D.C. This is a list of newspapers in Washington, D.C. These newspapers are published or headquartered in Washington, D.C. There have been over 800 newspapers published in the District of Columbia since its founding in 1790. At the beginning of 20 ...


References


Further reading

* Ames, William E. "The National Intelligencer: Washington's Leading Political Newspaper." ''Records of the Columbia Historical Society'' (Washington, DC, 1966): 71-83
in JSTOR
* * Eaton, Clement. "Winifred and Joseph Gales, Liberals in the Old South." ''Journal of Southern History'' 10.4 (1944): 461-474
in JSTOR
Defunct newspapers published in Washington, D.C. Publications disestablished in 1867 {{Authority control