Pittsburgh Saturday Visiter facts for kids
The Pittsburgh Saturday Visiter was a newspaper printed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was special because it supported two important causes: ending slavery and gaining more women's rights. The newspaper started in 1847. Jane Swisshelm was the editor, which means she decided what went into the paper. Robert M. Riddle was the printer, who made the copies. The Visiter was quite popular and was published until 1854.
How the Paper Started
A brave journalist named Jane Swisshelm created the Pittsburgh Saturday Visiter. She used her own money to start the newspaper. Robert M. Riddle helped her by printing it. At that time, the main newspaper in Pittsburgh that fought against slavery had closed down. Jane Swisshelm felt a new paper was needed to share important ideas.
She launched the Saturday Visiter on December 20, 1847. People were so excited that crowds waited in the streets for the very first issue! Jane Swisshelm chose to spell "visitor" as "visiter." She believed her spelling was correct and stuck with it.
What the Paper Talked About
The Saturday Visiter shared many important ideas. It published articles and opinions about women's rights, which means it supported women having more equal chances. It also wrote about the temperance movement, which aimed to reduce alcohol use. Most importantly, it was a strong voice for ending slavery.
Jane Swisshelm also supported the Free Soil Party. This group was against slavery spreading into new parts of the United States. The newspaper was very popular, with about 6,000 people subscribing to it. Many of these subscribers lived outside of Pennsylvania.
The Paper's Later Years
By 1853, Jane Swisshelm began thinking about selling the Visiter. She wanted to find someone who shared her strong beliefs. After she had a child, she found it hard to keep up with all the work of running the newspaper.
Even though the paper had many readers, it ran into financial trouble by 1854. It was then sold to Robert M. Riddle, the printer. Riddle combined the Visiter with his own weekly newspaper, the Commercial Journal. Jane Swisshelm continued to work as the editor for the combined paper.
