Culture and Recreation

Printing Methods

What was the first American newspaper?

America’s first regular newspaper was the weekly News-Letter published by Boston postmaster John Campbell (1653–1728). It was published for nearly two decades, between 1704 and 1722, and consisted of a single 7-by-11-inch sheet of paper covered on both sides with news (not all of it substantiated) from post riders, sea captains, and sailors. By 1765 there were more than 20 newspapers in the American colonies.

