 Office of theAppeal to Reason newspaper in Girard, Kansas | |
| Type | Weekly newspaper |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Julius Wayland |
| Editor | Fred Warren (early 20th century) |
| Founded | 1895 (1895) |
| Ceased publication | November 1922 (1922-11) |
| Political alignment | Socialist |
| Language | English |
| Headquarters | Girard, Kansas |
| Circulation | 550,000 (as of 1910) |
| OCLC number | 12709512 |
TheAppeal to Reason was a weekly left-wing political newspaper published in theAmerican Midwest from 1895 until 1922. The paper was known for its politics, lending support over the years to theFarmers' Alliance andPeople's Party before becoming a mainstay of theSocialist Party of America, following that organization's establishment in 1901. Making use of a network of highly motivated volunteers known as the "Appeal Army" to spur subscription sales, paid circulation of theAppeal climbed to more than a quarter-million copies by 1906 and half a million by 1910, making it the largest-circulationsocialist newspaper in American history.
The most direct ancestor of theAppeal wasThe Coming Nation, a socialist communalist paper established byJulius Augustus Wayland inGreensburg, Indiana. It was moved to theutopian socialistRuskin Colony inTennessee as part of an effort to form a socialist colony there. When Wayland tired of the colony, he left his newspaper behind with the colonists, moving toKansas City, Missouri, to publish his own independently weekly,Appeal to Reason, established on August 31, 1895.[1] In 1912The Coming Nation listedGirard, Kansas, on its masthead as its place of publication.[2]
Publication of the newspaper was briefly suspended in October 1896 when Wayland left Kansas City, Missouri for the small town of Girard, Kansas, located in the southeastern corner of the state. Girard was the center ofcoal mining in Kansas and included many radical miners who had recently immigrated from Europe.[3] Although originally just a one-week hiatus was planned,[4] publication was actually suspended for more than three months.[5]
Following the collapse of the Ruskin Colony, a secondComing Nation was published by Wayland at Girard, but folded two years later. The run of the first two incarnations, which followed a continuous whole number scheme, was #1 April 29, 1893, to #512 December 26, 1903.[6]
By 1910, the newspaper employed about 60 workers and boasted a "three-deck, straight-line Goss machine that prints four hundred twelve-page papers, in colors, folded, per minute, when desired."[3] TheAppeal was based out of a building with the dimensions "...eighty by one hundred feet, two stories and basement."[3] In 1910, it had a weekly circulation of 550,000 and a subscription base of 450,000.[7]
The paper's popularity was powered by a folksy style of writing and the participation of many leading literary luminaries of the Socialist movement, includingUpton Sinclair,[8]Jack London,Mary "Mother" Jones,Eugene Debs, andHelen Keller.[citation needed]
After founder Wayland died by suicide in 1912, theAppeal slowly lost its vitality. Wayland's sons were not temperamentally suited to the newspaper business. After a series of editorials attackingAmerican militarism andconscription policies during theFirst World War, thefederal government rescinded the paper's second-class mailing rights. This, combined with the post–Russian Revolution “Red Scare” and the restrictions of theEspionage Act (as well as infighting among American socialists), led to a drastic reduction in subscriptions. The paper was sold to Marcet andEmanuel Haldeman-Julius, the latter an editor of the paper. The paper alienated a good part of its antimilitarist socialist readership by endorsing the American war effort. From issue #1151, dated December 22, 1917, to issue #1212 of February 22, 1919, the paper carried the titleNew Appeal to denote its newpatriotic orientation. Building on the subscriber list of theAppeal, from 1919 on, Haldeman-Julius developed a very successful business selling inexpensive paperback booklets known as theLittle Blue Books.
TheAppeal to Reason name was terminated in November 1922, to be replaced by theHaldeman-Julius Weekly.[9] This new incarnation rapidly lost its socialist character and became a "house organ" for Haldeman-Julius's lucrative publishing business.
This publication had its name changed again toThe American Freeman, effective with issue #1741 of April 13, 1929.[10] This publication continued until Haldeman-Julius' death in November 1951.
Upton Sinclair's novelThe Jungle was first published as a serial in theAppeal to Reason,[8] between February 25, 1905, and November 4, 1905.[11] Chapter 30 includes a description of the newspaper, which was read by the novel's protagonist, Jurgis Rudkus.[12]
| Year | Circulation | Notes and references |
|---|---|---|
| 1895 | ||
| 1896 | ||
| 1897 | ||
| 1898 | ||
| 1899 | ||
| 1900 | ||
| 1901 | ||
| 1902 | ||
| 1903 | 250,000 (regular issue) + 789,088 (special Jubilee edition) | Appeal, #406 (Sep. 12, 1903), pg. 1. |
| 1904 | ||
| 1905 | 162,755 | "A Record of Four Years,"Appeal #684 (Jan. 9, 1909), pg. 4. |
| 1906 | 266,512 | "A Record of Four Years,"Appeal #684 (Jan. 9, 1909), pg. 4. |
| 1907 | 312,329 | "A Record of Four Years,"Appeal #684 (Jan. 9, 1909), pg. 4. |
| 1908 | 293,747 | "A Record of Four Years,"Appeal #684 (Jan. 9, 1909), pg. 4. |
| 1909 | ||
| 1910 | ||
| 1911 | ||
| 1912 | 694,065 | Front-page banner of 1912 circulation,Appeal #892 (Jan. 4, 1913). |
| 1913 | ||
| 1914 | ||
| 1915 | ||
| 1916 | ||
| 1917 | ||
| 1918 | ||
| 1919 | ||
| 1920 | ||
| 1921 | ||
| 1922 |