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Chronicling America
National Endowment for the Humanities

Newspaper True American (Steubenville [Ohio]) 1855-1861

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About True American (Steubenville [Ohio]) 1855-1861

Reverend Zachariah Ragan established the True American at Steubenville, the seat of Jefferson County, Ohio, on January 4, 1855. The motto read “A Weekly Journal, Devoted to American Interests, Literature, Science, and General Intelligence.” From 1855 to 1858, the paper supported the Know-Nothing or American Party, which sought to limit the influence of immigrants, Roman Catholics in particular, on American politics. Ragan stated his political views clearly in the first issue: “Roman Catholicism is diametrically opposed to American Republicanism and dangerous to civil as well as religious liberty…. The influence of foreigners in our government, a thing to be dreaded by every American, has been fearfully on the increase. ….Americans should rule America.”  In addition to supporting the Know-Nothing Party, Ragan was also opposed to slavery.

Political editorials and news were supplemented by items of general interest, as Ragan also sought to “devote a large portion of our paper to that kind of reading matter which is calculated to enlighten and instruct; and at the same time to gratify and amuse, making it at once a welcome visitor to the domestic circle…[and] avoid whatever is contrary to sound morals and good taste.” The True American printed works of poetry and literature; local news and business advertisements; international and national news provided via telegraphic reports; and information about train schedules, community meetings and markets. The paper also featured domestic and agricultural sections that appealed to a wider audience.

In 1858, the True American began to support Republican interests. The Know-Nothing Party had started to decline after 1855 because it was divided on the issue of slavery. After the Dred Scott v. Sandford case in 1857, in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that African Americans were not citizens and lacked the right to sue in federal court, most antislavery members of the Know-Nothing Party joined the Republican Party. Just three years later, in 1861, the paper ceased publication after Ragan enlisted as a chaplain in the 25th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

Provided By: Ohio History Connection, Columbus, OH

About this Newspaper

Title

  • True American (Steubenville [Ohio]) 1855-1861

Dates of Publication

  • 1855-1861

Created / Published

  • Steubenville [Ohio] : Z. Ragan, 1855-

Headings

  • -  Steubenville (Ohio)--Newspapers
  • -  Ohio--Steubenville
  • -  United States--Ohio--Jefferson--Steubenville

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Weekly
  • -  Vol. 1, no. 1 (Jan. 4, 1855)-
  • -  Ceased in 1861.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format from the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.

Medium

  • volumes

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn84028817

OCLC Number

  • 11504767

ISSN Number

  • 2372-6970

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

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.

The NEH awardee responsible for producing each digital object is presented in the Chronicling America page display, below the page image – e.g. Image produced by the Library of Congress. For more information on current NDNP awardees, see https://aj.sunback.homes/ndnp/listawardees.html.

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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:

True American Steubenville Ohio -1861. (Steubenville, OH), Jan. 1 1855. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn84028817/.

APA citation style:

(1855, January 1) True American Steubenville Ohio -1861. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn84028817/.

MLA citation style:

True American Steubenville Ohio -1861. (Steubenville, OH) 1 Jan. 1855. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, aj.sunback.homes/item/sn84028817/.