The Philanthropist (Cincinnati, Ohio) facts for kids

The Philanthropist was an important newspaper that fought against slavery in the United States. It was called an "abolitionist" paper because it wanted to end slavery completely. The newspaper started in 1836 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was edited by James G. Birney and printed by Achilles Pugh for the Ohio Anti-Slavery Society.

The paper's main goal was to share ideas and news that supported the end of slavery. It often showed different viewpoints. For example, it would print news from the Southern states that supported slavery, and then it would explain why those ideas were wrong.

The Start of The Philanthropist

The newspaper first began printing in New Richmond, Ohio. This was because of some problems with the mayor of Cincinnati, Samuel W. Davies. The people behind The Philanthropist always planned to move the paper to Cincinnati. But James G. Birney wanted to print a few issues outside of Mayor Davies's control first. The paper moved to Cincinnati in April 1836 to continue its work.

Facing Challenges: Mob Attacks

The Philanthropist faced many challenges because of its strong anti-slavery message. People who supported slavery or did not like the idea of free speech sometimes caused trouble. The newspaper's office was attacked by angry crowds more than once.

The Cincinnati Riot of 1836

One big attack happened on July 30, 1836. A large crowd broke into the newspaper's printing office. They smashed things inside and threw the metal letters used for printing all over the streets. The crowd then went to the homes of the printer, Achilles Pugh, and the editor, James G. Birney. Luckily, they left both homes alone.

The mob went back to the newspaper office. They thought about burning everything, but they decided not to. They were worried that nearby homes might also catch fire.

After the Attack on the Office

After destroying the newspaper office, the crowd moved towards the office of Charles Hammond. He was the editor of another newspaper called the Cincinnati Daily Gazette. Hammond was a friend to Birney because he believed in free speech. However, Hammond himself was not against slavery. The crowd decided not to attack the Gazette office.

Instead, the mob went into the parts of town where Black people lived. They started damaging homes and property. Then, some gunfire broke out. The crowd scattered for a short time. When they came back, they found many homes empty. They went inside these homes and damaged them. At this point, Mayor Samuel W. Davies, who had seen the destruction at The Philanthropist office earlier, told the crowd to go home.

Another Attack in 1841

Another attack happened in September 1841. During this incident, the printing press and the office of The Philanthropist were completely destroyed. After this attack, an anti-slavery group from Indiana, the Neel's Creek Anti-Slavery Society, spoke out against it. They said the attack was a serious threat to the freedom of the press and the liberty of the country.

See also

• Abolitionist publications