Samuel Bowles | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | February 9, 1826  |
| Died | January 16, 1878 (aged 51) |
| Occupation | Journalist and newspaper publisher |
| Employer | Springfield Republican |
| Signature | |
 | |
Samuel Bowles III (February 9, 1826 – January 16, 1878) was an Americanjournalist and newspaper publisher.[1][2] From 1844 to 1878, he was the publisher and editor of theSpringfield Republican, which became a national model for regional newspapers.[3][4] He was "a pioneer in the establishment of independent journalism".[4]
Bowles was born inSpringfield, Massachusetts, to Huldah (née Deming) and Samuel Bowles Jr.[4][5] His father established theSpringfield Weekly Republican newspaper in 1824.[6][2] Growing up, Bowles shared a room with three of his father's apprentices and delivered newspapers to his father's subscribers.[4] One biographer characterizes his childhood household as "frugal".[4]
Bowles was educated in public schools, but was sent to Master George Eaton's private school in Springfield when he was thirteen.[3][4] He wanted to attend college, but his father found college was unnecessary to train as a printer.[4][5] It is also possible that the cost of college was a factor in his decision.[5] At the age of seventeen, Bowles began work in the printing office of theRepublican.[1] For the first year, he was a general helper who did mechanical jobs, ran errands, and wrote articles on local topics.[4]
In 1844, Bowles convinced his father to expand the newspaper to include a daily edition.[1][4] At the time, "daily journalism ... was pioneering work, calling for an exhausting expenditure of personal energy."[6] The first issue of theDaily Evening Republican was published on March 27, 1844.[1][4] Bowles took on general management of the daily newspaper, while his father continued to publish the weekly edition.[1][4] The daily paper started with no advertisers and no subscribers.[4] It lost $200 its first year, and only had 200 subscribers after two years.[6][4] By comparison, theWeekly Republican started with a circulation of 350 copies.[6] Not giving up, Bowles pivoted.[4]
TheRepublican became a morning paper in December 1845.[4] That change required its editors to work through the night.[1] His father devoted more attention to the business office and finances, while Baldwin took on expanded editorial duties for both the daily and weeklyRepublican.[1] He was assisted by writer and poetDr. Josiah Gilbert Holland as editor.[1][4] After two years, Holland purchased a 25% interest in the newspaper for $3,500.[4] In addition to news, theRepublican covered art, charity, farming, literature, local life, religious news, and social affairs, along with poetry, short fiction, political editorials, and sermons.[6][1] By the fourth year, the morning edition of theRepublican had 800 subscribers—giving it the largest circulation of any daily newspaper inNew England, outside ofBoston.[1][6] Bowles reinvested profits into equipment and larger facilities.[1][4]
In 1851 his father died, and the entire management of the newspaper went to the 25-year-old Bowles.[1] He was involved in all aspects of the paper's operations and retained primary editorial control for most of his career.[6] He gained a reputation "as an industrious, bold, and fearless journalist".[1] In 1855, he expanded the paper from a single sheet to a double sheet.[6] The paper gained a national reputation even though it remained mostly regional, focusing on Springfield and surrounding towns. Circulation grew to more than 5,000 for the daily edition and more than 10,000 for the weekly edition.[4] TheNew York Tribune called it "the best and ablest country journal published on the continent".[7]
After receiving offers for various jobs and newspaper partnerships, in early 1857 Bowles entered into a partnership to publish a new daily paper out ofBoston Massachusetts, theBoston Traveller.[8] This project lacked the credibility of other offers, but "was to be Republican, independent, and progressive".[4] He invested $10,000 in the venture and resigned as editor of theRepublican so he could be the editor of theTraveller for a salary of $3,000 a year.[4] Unfortunately, theTraveller's owners were not united on policy, and there was a lack of capital needed for a successful launch.[4] For four months, Bowles struggled, feeling "thwarted and misunderstood".[4] He resigned and took a trip outWest before returning home to his wife and children in Springfield.[4][6]Josiah Holland generously stepped down as editor-in-chief of theRepublican, allowing Bowles to return to his prior role.[1][4]
In 1857, Bowles decided to gain full editorial control by buyingHolland's share of the business.[8][1] However, Holland continued to contribute articles for theRepublican until 1864.[1] In 1872, Bowles used his majority ownership of the newspaper's parent company, Samuel Bowles & Co., to split the organization.[9] He retained the newspaper, giving the other investors, Bryan and Tapley, the binding and miscellaneous printing concerns.[9] However, Bowles' approach alienated minor shareholder and twenty-year business partnerClark W. Bryan.[8] Bryan, along with Tapley, purchased theRepublican's competition—theSpringfield Union and vastly expanded its production.[9] William M. Pomeroy, managing editor of theRepublican, became editor of theUnion.[9] AnotherRepublican staffer, Joseph Shipley, also joined theUnion; he eventually replaced Pomeroy as editor of theUnion in 1881.[9] Bryan would go on to foundGood Housekeeping.[4][9]
The long-running success of Bowles's newspaper was attributed not only to its content and local relevancy, but also to its "lively, concise, and professionally written style".[4] BiographerGeorge S. Merriam wrote, "His style was admirable—simple, direct, pure, forcible without being passionate, pungent without being vulgar, often delicately sarcastic and deliciously humorous, never egotistical, never suggesting the writer, always representing the journal, and this as the voice of the people—he was by nature, by culture, by experience the model modern working journalist. He saw the world without, partly through others, but chiefly through its own words, interpreted to him by his own divine instincts."[10]
As his health declined in later years, Bowles turned over the operation of the newspaper to a team of men.[4] During his lifetime, theRepublican served as a school of sorts for young journalists, "especially in the matter of pungency and conciseness of style".[3][6] His trainees, Charles R. Miller and Robert G. Fitch, went on to become editor of theNew York Times andBoston Post, respectively.[6]
Bowles believed in taking a strong moral and political stance through his newspaper, regardless of public sentiment.[1] Once his father died, Bowles had editorial control of theRepublican; his influence was felt immediately, not only through heated discussions aboutPresident James Buchanan's administration, but also during the Civil War itself.[1] He "announced that theSpringfield Republican was still devotedly Whig."[4] When theWhig Party fell apart, he condemned "Know-Nothing" party and exposed its fallacies.[6]
In the early 1850s Bowles's position onslavery was conservative.[4] He wrote against theabolitionists and supported theFugitive Slave Act.[4] However, during the debate over theKansas-Nebraska Act, he had a change of heart.[4] Moving forward, theRepublican had ananti-slavery agenda.[4] He wrote about the need for a "new party of freedom" and headed efforts to create aRepublican Party in Massachusetts in 1855.[6][5] He was one of the first editors to support abolitionistJohn C. Frémont for president of 1856.[1][5] He also denounced the execution ofJohn Brown.[4] In 1860, Bowles was a delegate for the Republican party's convention in Chicago whereAbraham Lincoln was affirmed as a presidential candidate.[5] Bowles told his readers, "Lincoln is a man of the most incorruptible integrity—firm as a rock against duplicity, dishonesty, and all dishonorable conduct, public and private."[5] While he did supportAbraham Lincoln's presidency andemancipation, Bowles also criticized the president's infringement upon civil rights.[4]
After the war, Bowles attackedcarpetbaggers and supported Lincoln's recommendations for a "mild and magnanimous policies of reconstruction".[4] Rather naively, Bowles' "Yankee faith in human behavior convinced him that enlightened self-interest would compel Southerners to renounce the ideas and institutions for which they had fought."[11] In contrast toFrederick Douglas andWilliam Lloyd Garrison, Bowles believed freed slaves needed protection from potential exploitation from their former masters.[11] He strongly supported the efforts of the Freedman's Bureau and other organizations providing education and guidance, with military backing if needed.[11] He also suggested that confiscated plantations should be divided into small farms for sale to former slaves.[11] Although Bowles acknowledged that free land was fair compensation for years of enslavement, he saw greater value in encouraging the emancipated to work for wages, as this would develop a middle class with "bargaining power".[11] However such position was not needed to vote, according to Bowles. On March 8, 1865, theRepublican favored giving anyone who could read and write the right to vote.[11] Clearly, Bowles was also an advocate for women's suffrage.[12] However, he was against universal suffrage, wanting to limit voting to those who were literate.[11]
DuringReconstruction and Grant's presidency, Bowles expressedLiberal Republican opinions.[3] Once he decided on amnesty and equality were the right path, he grew increasingly impatient with Congress failing to implement either.[11] In theRepublican he wrote, "This indifference of public men to their public character and their public duties, and in the interests of the people is a sign of poison at the root."[11] To Bowles there was only one solution—changing the leadership of the Republican party and the nation.[11] Bowles played a major role in shaping what became Liberal Republican policies, along with identifying strategies and gaining support for a third party.[11] With three other newspaper editors—Murat Halstead of theCincinnati Commercial, Horace White of theChicago Tribune, and Henry Watterson of theLouisville Courier-Journal—Bowles was part of the "Quadralateral" that tried unsuccessfully to secure Charles Francis Adams the nomination for president rather than Ulysses Grant.[5] Although cautioned that his anti-Grant position could hurt theRepublican's circulation, Bowles was undeterred, remaining anti-administration once Grant was president.[5][3] In 1872, theRepublican supportedHorace Greeley for president.[1][3] In the disputedelection of 1876, the paper favored the claims ofSamuel J. Tilden, the reform candidate who won the popular vote but lost theElectoral College.[3]
When "partisan fanaticism" slowed national progress, Bowles declared his paper independent of political parties.[6] He stuck to these policies moving forward, pioneering today's independent journalism.[4] He also advocated for "honest money" in government and public office, and tried to expose corruption.[6][5] He wrote a scathing editorial about robber baron andErie Railroad directorJames Fisk.[5][4] Almost proving Bowles' word, Fisk used his "Tammany Hallhenchmen" to arrest Bowles on trumped-up charges when he was visiting New York City.[5] Bowles spent time in jail, and when he returned home to Springfield, he wrote about Fisk again.[4] Later on, theRepublican accused railroad builder and politician Willis Phelps of being a "public robber and corrupter", as well as the "Boss Tweed of Springfield".[5][13] In 1875, Phelps filed a libel suit against theRepublican, asking for $200,000 in damages.[5][4] Fortunately for Bowles, the juryless trial was adjudicated by Judge Endicott who essentially agreed with Bowles; he assessed damages of just $100.[5] Bowles "became a hero to most of America's newspaper editors as a champion of a free press."[5]
Bowles wrote, "American journalism is not content to be just mere journalism, a mere historian of the day. It intrudes into other spheres; it preaches, it teaches, it legislates, it reforms. It is not content with reporting what the public mind is thinking about; it insists that the public mind shall think about the right things."[14] Thus, Bowles considered the editorial to be as important as the news to theRepublican.[14] However, Bowles also revealed his limitations through his editorials.[4] One modern critic notes, "Profound analysis was beyond him, he was incapable of elaborate or subtle thinking upon abstract topics. and his knowledge showed the deficiencies of a man who had never studied systematically and had read few books. He wrote for the crowd, not for the cultured few."[4]
During the winter of 1844 and 1845, Bowles's health declined, and he went to the warmth of theSouth to recover.[1][6] He extended his stay inNew Orleans where he wrote a series of fifteen letters describing his travel experiences.[1][6] These were published in theRepublican and were very popular.[1]
In 1865, Bowles made a journey fromKansas City to thePacific coast and again sent letters describing his travels to Springfield.[1][15] These were published in theRepublican and were also edited into a nationally bestselling book,Across the Continent: A Summer 's Journey to the Rocky Mountains, the Mormons, and the Pacific States withSpeaker Colfax (1865).[4][5] As the title suggests, Bowles's traveling companion wasSchyler Colfax,Speaker of the House of Representatives.[15] Other members of their party included journalists from theChicago Tribune and theNew York Tribune.[15] Although his series suggests that Bowles was following the popular trend for newspapers to "educate and entertain their readers with scenes of adventure in the West", Bowles had something else in mind. He later explained that this group wanted to use their respective platforms "to generate informed public interest in the West, to encourage economic development and investment, and to address escalating public issues such as national policies toward Mormons, Native Americans, and the transcontinental railroad."[15] To do this, Bowles did not submit the usual articles from a corresponding journalist, but rather used the more personal approach of a letter or an epistolary, addressing his readership with purposeful intent.[15] One reviewer said, the book includes "keen observation and graphic, incisive style".[4] But from another perspective, Bowles also reflected prejudices toward Chinese, Native Americans, and Mormons that were common in his time.[5]
In 1869, Bowles traveled toColorado, resulting in another book,The Switzerland of America: A Summer Vacation in the Parks and Mountains of Colorado (1869).[1] Beginning in 1869, the publisher Harford condensed and serialized the two books intoOur New West: Records of the Travel Between the Mississippi River and the Pacific Ocean, which was sold by subscription.[1] In 1869, Bowles' bookThe Pacific Railroad Open, How to Go, What to See collected his articles that had previously appeared in theAtlantic Monthly.[1] When his health declined in his later years, Bowles traveled toEurope in for seven months in 1862, returning in 1870, 1871, and 1874; the result was more travel articles for theRepublican.[1][6][4]
Bowles had a strong friendship withSusan andAustin Dickinson and frequently visitedThe Evergreens, their home inAmherst, Massachusetts.[16][13] Apparently, Bowles found The Evergreens a refuge during his bouts of illness and when he was attending trustee meetings forAmherst College.[16][12] Of Bowles,Susan Dickinson wrote, "His range of topics was unlimited, now some plot of local politics, rousing his honest rage, now some rare effusion of fine sentiment over an unpublished poem which he would draw from his pocket, having received it in advance from the fascinated editor."[16] PoetEmily Dickinson met Bowles at her brother's home.[16] They shared common interests as reformers, both supporting ending slavery and suffrage for women.[12] Subsequently, Dickinson wrote Bowles at least fifty letters, mostly between 1861 and 1862.[16] Dickinson also sent some forty poems to Bowles, making him one of the most important recipients of her work.[16] Bowles did publish some of Dickinson's poems in theRepublican, but never any that she sent to him through these private correspondences.[16]
Some scholars believe Bowles was Dickinson's infamous secret love interest; others consider him a confidant and publisher of her poetry.[16][12] Richard Sewall, a Dickinson biographer wrote, "She was in deeply in love with him for several years and never ceased loving him at a distance for the rest of her life."[12] However, John McDermott says Dickinson's letters to Bowles "do not suggest intimacy at all. Instead, they reveal a pattern that might be expected between friends (equals), but also a more formal, advisory nature".[12] Regardless, the relationship between Bowles and Dickinson was complex; the two had a falling out in 1863 that lasted eleven years, despite the fact that he still visited her brother next door.[13] Their conflict finally ended when her father, Edward, died in 1874.[16] Other than family members, Bowles was the only person Dickinson spoke to at her father's funeral.[16] She then broke the gap in their correspondence, sending a letter to thank Bowles for his kindness at the time of her father's death.[13]
In 1875, Dickinson wrote Bowles again, saying, "We miss your vivid Face and the besetting Accents, you bring from Numidian Haunts."[13] With her reference to Africa (Numidia), Dickinson is referencing Bowles' recent trip to the South—Washington, D.C. to be exact—where Bowles had gone to follow contentious Congressional discussions about theForce Bill which allowed the government to use force to protect African American politicians and voters from violence and intimidation.[13] Bowles also liked to visit the warmer climate of Washington during the winters of Massachusetts.[13] Therefore, this comment is an inside joke and also an indication that the two enjoyed political discourse.[13]
Annually, Bowles sent flowers to the Dickinson family on the anniversary of Edward Dickinson's death.[16]
On September 6, 1848, Bowles married Mary Sandford Dwight Schermerhorn ofGeneva, New York.[4][5] Her grandfather, James S. Dwight, was a leading merchant in Springfield in the early 19th century.[5] They had seven children.[5] Bowles always regretted not attending college and, therefore, educated his children.[2][4] His son Samuel Bowles IV attendedYale University and the University of Berlin, after traveling abroad for two years.[2] Bowles' daughter Ruth Standish Bowles marriedWilliam Henry Baldwin Jr., president of theLong Island Rail Road.
Bowles was driven but was described as intense, combative, and erratic.[4] He was a perfectionist who could alienate people with his tactlessness and "unreserved criticism;" yet he "rarely admitted error" and was considered thin-skinned when it came to criticism about theRepublican or himself.[5][4] However, he could also be charming—Henry L Dawes wrote, "I never knew a man who knew him, who wouldn't rather have him at his table than any other man in the world."[4]Susan Dickinson noted that Bowles' presence at her home "seemed to enrich and widen all life for us, a creator of endless perspectives".[16]
Although he typically worked twelve to sixteen hours a day, Bowles also demonstrated a "nervousness" and was prone to periods of illness.[4][5] He had a "nervous breakdown" in 1844 after putting too much energy into his daily newspaper start-up.[5][6] Going on what he called a "tour for health", was a pattern throughout his adult life.[1][5] In addition to his 1844–45 trip to the South, he took a six-month tour in 1862 to "restore his nervous system".[5][1] One-time co-owner and editor of theSpringfield Republication,Josiah Holland wrote, "The sparkle, the vivacity, the drive, the power of theRepublican, cost life."[4] Bowles was in poor health for the last twenty years of his life, suffering fromdyspepsia,headaches,insomnia,neuralgia; he continued to seek the curative benefits of travel.[1][4][5] He had a major stroke in December 1877, resulting in some paralysis.[5][4]
Late in life, Bowles' commitment to being independent of outside influences impacted his family relationships.[4] In 1874, he opposed his brother-in-law Henry Alexander Jr.'s run for theUnited States Congress because he did not think Alexander's health could take the stress.[4][17] This resulted in "permanent family estrangement".[4] In 1875, he wrote a letter firing his younger brother, Benjamin Franklin Bowles who managed the newspaper's counting room well but not to Bowles exacting standard.[4] Benjamin was deeply hurt and moved toParis where he died the next year.[4] In 1878, Bowles died from a stroke in Springfield without reconciling with either sibling.[1][5]Emily Dickinson was one of the numerous mourners at his funeral.[5]
After his death, Bowles' son, Samuel IV became publisher and editor-in-chief of theRepublican.[3] In 1884, Bowles IV married Elizabeth Hoar.[2] They had two sons: Samuel Bowles V, who became a journalist in Boston, and Sherman Bowles, who joined a newspaper in Philadelphia and took over theRepublican when his father died.[2]
Homans, James E., ed. (1918)."Bowles, Samuel (4th)" .The Cyclopædia of American Biography. New York: The Press Association Compilers, Inc.| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |