Communication In the Revolutionary Period

Printing Press

The printing press was first introduced in the colonies as a way to create and distribute religious materials in the 17th century. By 1775, there were over 50 printing presses across the colonies. Most were located in towns or cities where they produced newspapers, pamphlets, and broadsides. Presses allowed materials published in Europe to be printed and distributed in the colonies with more ease.

Printers

The printers who maintained the press were responsible for not just working the printing machines but also sourcing content and editing it. Some printers such as Benjamin Franklin were trained in London, but by the mid 18th-century many printers would be trained as apprentices in the colonies. Other laborers in the presses were indentured or enslaved.

Women also worked as printers, especially during the war as their husbands and brothers traveled. Such was the case for Mary K. Goddard who served as the first postmaster in Baltimore until she lost the position on account of it being “too much travel for a woman.” Goddard pleaded her case to George Washington himself who replied that he could not override government appointments. Watch the video to the left as historians from Colonial Williamsburg as delve into the responsibilities of printers of the time.

Newspapers

By 1775, there were roughly 35 newspapers in the colonies. These papers served as a centralized form of communication for people to exchange announcements, poems, and essays. Newspapers were also produced in German given the size of their immigrant communities, one example includes the Pennsylvanischer Staatsbote. Included new frequently feature local and wider colonial developments. As such, newspapers were a way for the colonies to stay connected, especially once the war began.

Unlike modern-day newspapers, most papers published on a weekly or fortnightly basis. The process of making a newspaper was time-consuming and, on average, would take laborers up to 25 hours to typeset a four-page issue. As seen below, papers had tightly-placed columns and headings between sections that were smaller than modern-day newspapers. Prior to the Revolutionary War, newspapers had an average circulation of 600-700 copies per issue. However, during the events of the Revolutionary War, many newspapers increased their circulation to an average 2500 copies per issue.

The price of newspapers also increased at the start of the war but ranged from 8-12 shillings. Given the difference in currencies across the colonies it’s hard to convert directly to the present-day dollar, but for comparison, as noted in Washington’s account book, two bottles of salad oil would be worth around 7 shillings. Printers often relied on money from advertisements as well. In the Southern colonies, advertisements for enslaved people such as the one on the right have allowed historians to track the growth of the slave trade throughout the colonies.

Impact on the revolution

Newspapers played an indispensable role in the organization of the Revolution. Printers had always faced the possibility of being charged with libel or treason, particularly if they spoke against Governors or royal officials. However, following the Stamp Act of 1765 newspapers had become increasingly political and by 1776 newspapers were forced to choose a side of the conflict.

Depending on who was in power, papers would halt production and move to other colonies. Such was the case for Revolutionary newspapers in New York after the British took occupation of the city in 1776. Fleeing publishers would often settle in smaller towns outside of major cities to continue their publications throughout the war.

Many newspapers were also created or renamed during the Revolutionary Era as a way to centralize information on boycotts, legislation, and news from the front lines. Given the stark allegiances newspapers were forced to take, they became tools for sharing propaganda and gathering support. Prints and engravings allowed battle scenes and symbols to circulate among the colonies.

Explore the newspaper clippings in this section by clicking on the images.

Broadsides & Pamphlets

Broadsides

Broadsides were one-sided, single-page prints that were distributed to the public at taverns, squares, and churches. Official announcements from the government or proceedings were typically published in broadsides, as were ballads and sermons. During the Revolutionary Era, they were used to announce legislation from both the British Parliament & the Continental Congress. They were also used to post militia enlistments and news on prisoners of war, as shown to the left. Since newspapers at the time were not daily, broadsides also allowed for distribution of breaking news.

Pamphlets

Pamphlets were published throughout the 18th century and provided an outlet for writers to express their opinions in a format that was more affordable and accessible than books. These papers could be as long as 80 pages and were sold unbound to the public. Pamphlet production increased significantly during times of political tension and division, such as the Seven Years’ War and during the taxation acts that preceded the Revolution. Between 1750-1776, over 400 pamphlets on the tensions between Britain and the colonies had been published. Of these some included essays, letters, and even sermons.

One of the most infamous pamphlets published in 1776 was Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense: Rights of Man.” In the 47-page essay, Paine discussed not just the need for independence from the British Empire but from the monarchy as a whole. He also argued that the monarchy went against Christian scripture and concluded by describing a new democracy that was possible if the colonies separated from Britain, whether it be “by the legal voice of the people in Congress; by a military power; or by a mob.”

Despite only having lived in the colonies for three years, his connection with other radical thinkers in Philadelphia led him to printer Robert Bell who printed the pamphlet on January 10th, 1776. The pamphlet sold 120,000 copies in its first three months, making it the best-selling printed work by a single author in the colonies at the time. The pamphlet would be translated to German and Danish, and would be printed in Great Britain. Paine donated all royalties to the Continental Army and would eventually permit open reprints, further increasing its circulation. The pamphlet received its share of criticism from Loyalists and Patriots alike, who saw the idea of complete independence to be extreme. Nonetheless. historians agree that the anonymous pamphlet served as an irreplaceable catalyst that inspired thousands of ordinary citizens to envision and fight for independence. To read a full copy of Common Sense click on Thomas Paine’s portrait to the right.

Postal Service

The postal service allowed people to communicate from vast distances both across colonies and the Atlantic. Starting in 1756, the colonies had access to a Trans-Atlantic packet boat service organized by the British government which ensured monthly deliveries from Britain. These packet boats were designed with a lighter hull to decrease travel time, though the journey could still take up to 6 weeks. By 1776, these packet boats serviced all the colonies. This fixed schedule of packet boats was important for colonists to receive letters from their families across the sea but also to receive announcements from the British government. In the years leading up to 1776, this service would become a necessity for the communication of legislation and acts passed by the British government, as well as to communicate news from the colonies back to the British.

Within the colonies, the British Parliamentary Post was responsible for delivering letters and newspapers between cities. However, post riders often traveled dangerous routes and were underpaid. When Benjamin Franklin was appointed Deputy Postmaster over the entire colonial post system in 1753 he made significant improvements to mail delivery. Along with his partner Deputy Postmaster William Hunter, they set out for a year to travel the entire postal route and map better avenues. Their problem-solving turned a slow and disorganized network into a profitable communication web. Previously, newspapers had been sent based on unfair prices, frequently fueled by competition between postmasters who were also printers. As such, the two men enabled the distribution of all newspapers by the postal service under fixed rates, which eased the distribution of news. Franklin’s invention of “Penny Mail” charged an extra penny for direct delivery to an address instead of a postal office. These innovations brought in added revenue and allowed for nightly post riders by 1761. This shortened delivery times so that a round-trip communication from Philadelphia to New York took 24 hours.

However by the start of the 1770s, the increasing divide between the colonists and the Crown created cracks in the system. Deputy Postmaster of British Canada, Hugh Finlay, records his observations of the state of the postal system in 1774 during his year-long trip across the American colonies. In his journal he mentions the ever-growing presence of private postal systems. One of the largest was William Goddard’s “Constitutional Post” which had 30 post offices by 1775. These had become more common as the trust in the British government broke down in the years leading up to the Declaration of Independence. As an ally to the Crown, Finley was met with much disdain from townspeople who no longer wanted the royal postal system running through their towns.

By 1774, Benjamin Franklin had been dismissed as Deputy Postmaster due to his involvement in the independence efforts. A year later, the Continental Congress hired Benjamin Franklin as the Postmaster General and tasked him with establishing a postal system that connected all of the colonies. By December of that year the American Constitutional Post had run the British Parliamentary Post out of business and they were forced to close. Yet despite the rapid growth of Franklin’s new postal system, mistrust and unstable conditions present throughout the war made it difficult to ensure speedy or private mail delivery. Forces on both sides would try to intercept mail or stop post riders on their routes.

Module by Maria Reyes Pacheco, with contributions from Sophia Suh and Samhita Dulam. Click here for bibliography.