The Royal Gazette and Newfoundland Advertiser, Newfoundland, John Ryan, 1810

Front page of an 1810 edition of the Royal Gazette and Newfoundland Advertiser. The masthead bore the royal coat of arms and the motto ‘Fear God: Honor the King”. Source: https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=e5wmG9Sq2KIC&dat=18100419&printsec=frontpage&hl=en Retrieved November 8, 2021.

Notes

In Newfoundland, no newspaper could publish without the consent of the governor. After being pressured by local merchants, Governor John Holloway finally agreed to the establishment of a newspaper. Permission was conditional on the paper not publishing anything against Great Britain.

Following his relocation from New Brunswick, John Ryan was authorized to set up Newfoundland’s first press in 1807. He printed Newfoundland’s first newspaper, The Royal Gazette and Newfoundland Advertiser.

While Ryan had permission to publish, all the content still had to be approved by the governor. Holloway and his successors were apparently well pleased with Ryan, as they refused to give consent to the founding of any rival publication. Even John Ryan’s son, Michael, failed to obtain permission to establish a second newspaper there.

The Royal Gazette remained Newfoundland’s only newspaper until 1815 when Alexander Haire and Robert Lee set up the Newfoundland Mercantile Journal.

John Ryan died in 1847 and is buried in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

References:

Patrick O’Flaherty, “RYAN, JOHN,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 7, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed July 27, 2024, https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/ryan_john_7E.html.

  • Category
    Early Printing and Type

    Title
    The Royal Gazette and Newfoundland Advertiser

    Date
    1810

    Credits
    Printer: John Ryan (1761–1847)

    Principal Typefaces
    unknown

    Description
    Newspaper
    Size: unknown

    Region
    Newfoundland

    Language
    English

    Images
    1

    Holding
    Unknown

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