Noah Webster set up New York’s first newspaper
The fact that Webster was a talented writer is another interesting piece of information. American Minerva, a daily newspaper published in New York, in 1793. To come to New York City and take over the largest Federalist Party newspaper, Alexander Hamilton gave him a loan of $1,500 in 1793. He established the American Minerva, the first daily newspaper in New York, in December. At the time, it was the first pro-federalist newspaper. Despite being the newspaper's editor, Webster produced a ton of articles. Later, the name of the American Minerva newspaper was changed to Commercial Advertiser. During his four years as an editor, he wrote enough stories and editorials to fill 20 volumes. He also produced The Herald, A Gazette for the Nation, a semi-weekly journal (later known as The New York Spectator). The Minerva, Patroness of Peace, Commerce, and the Liberal Arts (New York) (1793–1794) is the name of Webster's newspaper as it appears in the library of congress.
Webster spoke for the Federalist party and praised the administrations of George Washington and John Adams, particularly their policy of neutrality towards both Britain and France. He also strongly denounced the excesses of the French Revolution and its Reign of Terror. He denounced them when the pro-Jacobin "Democratic-Republican Societies" put up by the French envoy Citizen Genêt joined American politics and attacked President Washington. Later, he backed the Jay Treaty between the US and UK. He was regularly called "a pusillanimous, half-begotten, self-dubbed patriot," "an incurable madman," and "a deceptive newsmonger... Pedagogue and Quack" by the Jeffersonian Republicans as a consequence.
Webster published textbooks, political essays, a report on infectious illnesses, and newspaper pieces for his Federalist party throughout the decades he was one of the most prolific writers in the young country. His output was so prolific that a contemporary bibliography of his published works would fill 655 pages. He relocated and returned to New Haven in 1798, and from 1802 to 1807, he served as a Federalist representative in the Connecticut House of Representatives. In 1799, Webster received the honor of becoming a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 1812, he relocated to Amherst, Massachusetts, and assisted in the establishment of Amherst College. The family returned to New Haven in 1822, and the following year Webster received an honorary degree from Yale. Webster was chosen for membership in the American Philosophical Society in 1827.
