The ''Public Ledger'' was a daily

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, spor ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

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, ...

, published from March 25, 1836, to January 1942. Its motto was "Virtue Liberty and Independence". For a time, it was Philadelphia's most popular newspaper, but circulation declined in the mid-1930s. It also operated a

syndicate A syndicate is a self-organizing group of individuals, companies, corporations or entities formed to transact some specific business, to pursue or promote a shared interest. Etymology The word ''syndicate'' comes from the French word ''syndicat ...

, the

Ledger Syndicate The Public Ledger Syndicate (known simply as the Ledger Syndicate) was a syndication company operated by the Philadelphia '' Public Ledger'' that was in business from 1915 to circa 1950 (outlasting the newspaper itself, which ceased publishing in ...

, from 1915 until 1946.

Early history

Founded by

William Moseley Swain William Moseley Swain (May 12, 1809, in Manlius, New York – February 16, 1868, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a 19th-century American newspaper journalist, publisher, editor and newspaper owner and businessman. He was one of the founders ...

, Arunah S. Abell, and Azariah H. Simmons, and edited by Swain, the ''Public Ledger'' was the first penny paper in Philadelphia. At that time most papers sold for five cents (equal to $ today) or more, a relatively high price which limited their appeal to the reasonably well-off. Swain and Abell drew on the success of the ''New York Herald'', one of the first penny papers and decided to use a one cent cover price to appeal to a broad audience. They mimicked the ''Herald's'' use of bold headlines to draw sales. The formula was a success and the ''Ledger'' posted a circulation of 15,000 in 1840, growing to 40,000 a decade later. To put this into perspective, the entire circulation of all newspapers in Philadelphia was estimated at only 8,000 when the ''Ledger'' was founded. The ''Ledger'' favored the

abolition of slavery Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

, and in 1838 its office was threatened by a pro-slavery mob, two days after the same pro-slavery group burned down the new

Pennsylvania Hall (Philadelphia) Pennsylvania Hall, "one of the most commodious and splendid buildings in the city," was an abolitionist venue in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, built in 1837–38. It was a "Temple of Free Discussion", where antislavery, women's rights, and other ref ...

. The ''Ledger'' was a technological innovator as well. It was the first daily to make use of a

pony express The Pony Express was an American express mail service that used relays of horse-mounted riders. It operated from April 3, 1860, to October 26, 1861, between Missouri and California. It was operated by the Central Overland California and Pike ...

, and among the first papers to use the

electromagnetic telegraph Electrical telegraphs were point-to-point text messaging systems, primarily used from the 1840s until the late 20th century. It was the first electrical telecommunications system and the most widely used of a number of early messaging systems ...

. From 1846, it was printed on the first rotary printing press. Philadelphia Public Ledger Building 1868

By the early 1860s, ''The Ledger'' was a money-losing operation, squeezed by rising paper and printing costs. It had lost circulation by supporting the Copperhead Policy of opposing the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

and advocating an immediate peace settlement with the

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...

. Most readers in Philadelphia at the time supported the Union, although there was a strong contingent of Southern sympathizers and families with ties to the South, as Southerners had long had second homes in Philadelphia and sent their daughters to finishing schools there. In the face of declining circulation, publishers were reluctant to increase the one-cent subscription cost, although it was needed to cover the costs of production.''New York Times, 3 Feb., 1894 In December 1864, the paper was sold to

George William Childs George William Childs (1829–1894) was an American publisher who co-owned the '' Public Ledger'' newspaper in Philadelphia with financier Anthony Joseph Drexel. Early life Childs was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on May 12, 1829, the illegitima ...

and

Anthony J. Drexel Anthony Joseph Drexel Sr. (September 13, 1826 – June 30, 1893) was an American banker who played a major role in the rise of modern global finance after the American Civil War. As the dominant partner of Drexel & Co. of Philadelphia, he found ...

for a reported $20,000 (equal to $ today).

The Childs era

Upon buying the paper, Childs completely changed its policy and methods. He changed the editorial policy to the Loyalist (Union) line, raised advertising rates, and doubled the cover price to two cents. After an initial drop, circulation rebounded and the paper resumed profitability. Childs was closely involved in all operations of the paper, from the press room to the composing room. He intentionally upgraded the quality of advertisements appearing in the publication to suit a higher-end readership. Childs's efforts bore fruit and the ''Ledger'' became one of the most influential journals in the country. Circulation growth led the firm to outgrow its facilities; in 1866 Childs bought property at Sixth and Chestnut Streets in Philadelphia, where the Public Ledger Building was constructed. Designed by architect John McArthur, Jr., the building had at its corner a larger-than-life-sized statue of

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading int ...

by Joseph A. Bailly (1825–1883), which Childs had commissioned. The quality and profitability of the ''Ledger'' improved dramatically. By 1894, ''The New York Times'' described it as "...the finest newspaper office in the country." Toward the end of Child's leadership, the ''Ledger'' was estimated to generate profits of approximately $500,000 per year. In 1870,

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has pr ...

mocked the ''Ledger'' for its rhyming obituaries, in a piece entitled "Post-Mortem Poetry", in his column for '' The Galaxy'':

The Ochs era

In 1902,

Adolph Ochs Adolph Simon Ochs (March 12, 1858 – April 8, 1935) was an American newspaper publisher and former owner of ''The New York Times'' and ''The Chattanooga Times'' (now the '' Chattanooga Times Free Press''). Early life and career Ochs was born ...

, owner of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

,'' bought the paper from Drexel's estate for a reported $2.25 million. He merged it with the ''

Philadelphia Times ''The Times'' was a daily newspaper published from March 13, 1875, to August 11, 1902, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The paper was founded by Alexander McClure and Frank McLaughlin as an independent voice against party machine politics and corru ...

'' (which he had bought the previous year), and installed his brother George Oakes as editor. Oakes served as editor until 1914, two years after Curtis bought the publication.

The Curtis era

In 1913,

Cyrus H. K. Curtis Cyrus Hermann Kotzschmar Curtis (June 18, 1850June 7, 1933) was an American publisher of magazines and newspapers, including the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' and ''The Saturday Evening Post''.Ingham, John N. Biographical Dictionary of American Business ...

purchased the paper from Ochs for $2 million and hired his step son-in-law John Charles Martin as editor. Curtis was owner of the magazines, ''

Ladies' Home Journal ''Ladies' Home Journal'' was an American magazine last published by the Meredith Corporation. It was first published on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States. In ...

'' and ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely ...

''. His intention was to establish the ''Ledger'' as Philadelphia's premier newspaper, which he achieved by buying and closing several competing papers: the '' Philadelphia Evening Telegraph'', the '' Philadelphia North American'', and '' The Philadelphia Press'' among them. Philadelphia went from a peak of 13 papers in 1900 to seven in 1920, a time when the newspaper industry in the United States was consolidating in general. Under Curtis' ownership, the conservative appearance of the ''Ledger'' was increased: it avoided bold headlines and seldom printed photographs on the front page. Its conservative format has been compared by scholars to the ''Wall Street Journal'' or ''New York Times'' of the twentieth century. Curtis built the ''Ledger's'' foreign news service and syndicated it to other papers via his

. From 1918 to 1921, former President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

was on staff as an editorial contributor. To broaden the market, and compete against '' The Evening Bulletin'', in 1914 Curtis began publishing the ''Evening Public Ledger'', a bolder paper designed to appeal to a broader public. Public Ledger Building from northeast at twilight

Public Ledger Building from northeast at twilight

The Ledger suffered by competition from an ascendant ''The Evening Bulletin'', which under publisher William L. McLean grew in size from 12 pages in 1900 to 28 pages in 1920, and from circulation of 6,000 to a leadership position of over 500,000 readers in the same time. The ''Bulletin's'' bolder and more commercial approach attracted additional advertising, which in turn drew more readers. Advertising, which comprised only 1/3 of the ''Bulletin'' in 1900, grew to nearly 3/4 of its pages in 1920. At the same time, the circulation at the ''Ledger'' stagnated. Curtis built a new Public Ledger Building in 1924 on the same site as the old, designed in the

Georgian Revival Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover— George I, George II, Ge ...

style by

Horace Trumbauer Horace Trumbauer (December 28, 1868 – September 18, 1938) was a prominent American architect of the Gilded Age, known for designing residential manors for the wealthy. Later in his career he also designed hotels, office buildings, and much of t ...

., p.101, p.31 The paper made money in the 1920s, but saw circulation fall in half and profits disappear in the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Some observers criticized the paper for an indistinct editorial policy which may have alienated readers. On the one hand, it endorsed reform politicians, while on the other hand, the paper was decidedly anti-labor. The paper ran anti-union advertisements during the 1919

Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America (ACWA) was a United States labor union known for its support for "social unionism" and progressive political causes. Led by Sidney Hillman for its first thirty years, it helped found the Congress of Indus ...

strike, but ran no pro-strike ads. Despite the circulation slump caused by the Depression, Curtis expanded by buying ''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pen ...

'' in 1930 for $18 million, but he did not consolidate the two franchises. When Curtis died in 1933, he was estimated to have lost $30 million on his newspaper ventures, with little to show for the investment. In 1934, the ''Ledger'' was absorbed into the ''Inquirer,'' and management was assumed by John C. Martin, the son-in-law of the second Mrs. Curtis. He became General Manager of Curtis-Martin Newspapers.

The final years

On April 16, 1934, the morning and Sunday editions were merged into ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' (also held by the heirs of Curtis). The ''Evening Public Ledger'' continued to be published independently. In 1939 John Martin was forced out of the management of the ''Evening Ledger'', and control was assumed by Cary W. Bok, Curtis's younger grandson. Bok spent two years trying to make the paper pay, without success. In 1941, the ''Evening Public Ledger'' was sold to Robert Cresswell, formerly of the ''

New York Herald Tribune The ''New York Herald Tribune'' was a newspaper published between 1924 and 1966. It was created in 1924 when Ogden Mills Reid of the ''New-York Tribune'' acquired the '' New York Herald''. It was regarded as a "writer's newspaper" and competed ...

''. Mounting debts brought on a court-ordered liquidation, and the paper ceased publication in January 1942.

Controversy

"The Protocols of the Elders of Zion" and Bolshevism

On October 27 and October 28, 1919, the ''Public Ledger'' published excerpts from the first English-language translation of ''

The Protocols of the Elders of Zion ''The Protocols of the Elders of Zion'' () or ''The Protocols of the Meetings of the Learned Elders of Zion'' is a fabricated antisemitic text purporting to describe a Jewish plan for global domination. The hoax was plagiarized from several ...

.'' The article was headlined "Red Bible". The paper published the excerpts from ''The Protocols'', a text proposing the existence of a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

plot to take over the world, after removing all references to the purported Jewish authorship; it recast ''The Protocols'' as a Bolshevist manifesto.

Carl W. Ackerman Carl William Ackerman (January 16, 1890 in Richmond, Indiana – October 9, 1970 in New York City) was an American journalist, author and educational administrator, the first dean of the Columbia School of Journalism. In 1919, as a correspondent of ...

, who wrote the articles, was later appointed head of the

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the " news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (p ...

department at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Awards

In 1931 ''Ledger'' reporter

Hubert Renfro Knickerbocker Hubert Renfro Knickerbocker (January 31, 1898 – July 12, 1949) was an American journalist and author. He was nicknamed "Red" from the color of his hair. Early life Knickerbocker was born in Yoakum, Texas. Knickerbocker's father was Rev. Hube ...

received a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...

for correspondents for a series of articles on the Five Year Plan in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

Editors

Joel Cook Joel Cook (March 20, 1842December 15, 1910) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 2nd congressional distri ...

*William M. Swain * William Henry Fry (1844–1846) * George Oakes *Randolph Marshall (1918) *Charles Munro Morrison (1930–1939, 1941) *John McLaughlin *

Tiny Maxwell Robert Wallace "Tiny" Maxwell (September 7, 1884 – June 30, 1922) was a professional football player and referee. He was also a sports editor with the ''Philadelphia Public Ledger''. Biography Early life Maxwell was born in Chicago on Septemb ...

*John Dwyer * James S. Chambers (editor)

References

External links

University of Villanova
Falvey Library: Philadelphia's ''Public Ledger''
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Document: Excerpts from the ''Public Ledger'' * Muckle was business manager of the ''Public Ledger'' about 50 years. {{Cyrus Curtis Defunct newspapers of Philadelphia Publications established in 1836 Publications disestablished in 1942 Protocols of the Elders of Zion Pulitzer Prize-winning newspapers 1836 establishments in Pennsylvania 1942 disestablishments in Pennsylvania