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Newspaper The Portland Daily Press (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921

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About The Portland Daily Press (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921

Before the state of Maine split from Massachusetts in 1820, Portland was the home of Maine’s first newspaper, the Falmouth Gazette and Weekly Advertiser. Over 40 newspapers, many political, were printed in Portland in the years between statehood and the Civil War. The Portland Daily Press was founded on June 26, 1862, 14 months after the Civil War began. It was started by experienced newspapermen, John T. Gilman, formerly of the Bath Daily Morning Times; Joseph B. Hall of the Aroostook Herald; and Newell A. Foster, formerly of the Portland Transcript. The Portland Daily Press was a simple four-page sheet. By 1870, it was owned by the Portland Publishing Company. In its inaugural issue, the paper threw its support behind the Republican Party and its principles, heartily endorsing its candidates. It vigorously endorsed abolitionism as well.

Upon the exciting question of Domestic Slavery…[the Press] will neither apologize for an evil which constitutes the foulest blot upon our national character, nor attempt to resist the tide of events that seems destined to sweep from existence an institution which is the greatest anomaly in a free government.

Along with the Portland Daily Advertiser (1848-66) and the Daily Eastern Argus (1863-1921), the Press was one of three dailies published in Portland in the 1860s. It stood out among them for its gave its “earnest, cordial and generous support to the administration of Abraham Lincoln, who in little more than one year, has indelibly impressed himself upon the nation’s heart as an incorruptible patriot, and inflexible Chief Magistrate, and an honest man.”

The Portland Daily Press kept its readers abreast of Civil War news and specifically how the Maine Regiments were faring. It served as the local paper of record, carrying marriages, deaths, public notices, court news, letters to the editor, as well as market and commercial news, all for $5.00 per annum. The Press also gave extra attention to maritime news and printed lists of ships in port. It claimed a large share of the advertising revenue thanks to advertisements with intricate graphics and its promise to publish ads in both its daily and its weekly edition, the Maine State Press (1863- 191x).

The Portland Daily Press employed correspondents to report news from towns and cities across Maine, and even received daily telegraphs from around the country covering national and world news. With the end of the Civil War, the Press supported war hero, Joshua Chamberlain for Governor. On July 4, 1866 the city of Portland suffered what was called “The Great Fire.” The Press was unable to publish the paper on July 5, but on the following day it printed an abbreviated two-page version which continued until July 18 when it resumed a four-page spread.

Its weekly edition, the Maine State Press, circulated throughout the state and competed with the Weekly Eastern Argus (1863-1921) and the Portland Weekly Advertiser (1869-1903). The Maine State Press cost $1.50 per annum and included political, agricultural, literary and miscellaneous other materials appropriate for the family. In 1892, the Portland Daily Press was enlarged from four to eight sheets. It also carried supplements of the Maine Law and special editions such as a 28-page supplement on June 6, 1896 called The Pine-Tree State Edition which featured portraits of important political figures, architecture, and news of Maine’s industries. In 1904, Maine Republicans Henry B. Cleaves and gubernatorial candidate Joseph Homan Manley, whom the paper had previously opposed,bought the Portland Daily Press. Later in 1921, U.S. Senator Frederick Hale, who came to own the paper, merged the Portland Daily Press with the Portland Herald to form the Portland Press Herald. The latter was sold to the young Guy P. Gannett. The Gannett family retained the paper until it was sold in 2009.

Provided By: Maine State Library

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Portland Daily Press (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921

Names

  • Gilman, John T., editor
  • Hall, Joseph B. (Joseph Blake), 1825-1889, editor

Dates of Publication

  • 1862-1921

Created / Published

  • Portland, Me. : N.A. Foster & Co., 1862-1921.

Headings

  • -  Portland (Me.)--Newspapers
  • -  Maine--Portland
  • -  United States--Maine--Cumberland--Portland

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Daily, <1921>
  • -  Vol. 1, no. 1 (June 23, 1862)-v. 46, no. 16 (Nov. 20, 1921).
  • -  Editors: J.T. Gilman, J.B. Hall, 1862-1863; J.T. Gilman, 1863-1866.
  • -  Publishers: N.A. Foster, 1866; Portland Publishing Co., 1869-<1876>.
  • -  Republican.
  • -  Also issued on microfilm from the Library of Congress Photoduplication Service.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format from the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  Weekly ed.: Maine state press, 1862-<1907> Maine state press and turf, farm and home, <1912-1920>
  • -  Merged with: Portland herald, to form: Portland press herald.
  • -  Portland herald (DLC)sn 83016027 (OCoLC)9338876
  • -  Portland press herald (DLC)sn 83016029 (OCoLC)9341113

Medium

  • volumes

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn83016025

OCLC Number

  • 9338674

ISSN Number

  • 2643-7597

Preceding Titles

Succeeding Titles

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Rights & Access

The Library of Congress believes that the newspapers in Chronicling America are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions. Newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety. Any newspapers in Chronicling America that were published less than 95 years ago are also believed to be in the public domain, but may contain some copyrighted third party materials. Researchers using newspapers published less than 95 years ago should be alert for modern content (for example, registered and renewed for copyright and published with notice) that may be copyrighted. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

The Portland Daily Press Portland, Me. -1921. (Portland, ME), Jan. 1 1862. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn83016025/.

APA citation style:

(1862, January 1) The Portland Daily Press Portland, Me. -1921. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/sn83016025/.

MLA citation style:

The Portland Daily Press Portland, Me. -1921. (Portland, ME) 1 Jan. 1862. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/sn83016025/.