Moses Yale Beach (January 15, 1800 – July 19, 1868) was an American inventor, entrepreneur, philanthropist and publisher, who founded the Associated Press, and is credited with originating print syndication.Moses Y. Beach Obituary, New York Times, July 21, 1868, p. 2Beach, Stanley, Archives at Yale, Stanley Yale Beach papers, Number: GEN MSS 802, 1911-1948 His fortune, as of 1846, amounted to $300,000, which was about 1/4 of the fortune of Cornelius Vanderbilt at the time, and was featured in a book that he published named the Wealthy citizens of the City of New York.
His newspaper, the Sun, became the most successful newspaper in America, and was a pioneer on crime reporting and human-interest stories for the masses.Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication, Newspapers as a Form of Mass Media; The Penny Press, Libraries PublishingBird, S. Elizabeth. For Enquiring Minds: A Cultural Study of Supermarket Tabloids. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1992: 12-17.
Biography
Moses was born in Wallingford, Connecticut, to Moses Sperry Beach and Lucretia Yale, and was a cousin of Canadian fur trader James Murray Yale and Gov. Elihu Yale of Yale University, members of the Yale family.America's successful men of affairs. An encyclopedia of contemporaneous biography, p. 66-67 Merchant William Yale and Gen. Edwin R. Yale were second cousins, while Linus Yale Sr. and Linus Yale Jr., of the Yale Lock Company, were fourth cousins. His grandfather, Capt. Elihu Yale, son of Capt. Theophilus Yale, was one of the first bayonet manufacturer in Connecticut during the American Revolutionary War, and one of the largest landholders of Wallingford.
His father was a plain farmer, and gave him an ordinary education. As a boy, he was a fifer in the War of 1812 at Fort Nathan Hale. He showed a mechanical aptitude from an early age, and at 14 was apprenticed to a cabinetmaker. Before his term was up, he purchased his freedom and established a cabinet-making business in Northampton, Massachusetts, competing with John Holbrook, father of Gov. Holbrook.Chapin, Charles Wells (1893). Sketches of the Old Inhabitants and Other Citizens of Old Springfield, Historic Mansions of "Ye Olden Tyme", Press of Springfield Printing and Binding Company, p. 38-39 The business failed, and he moved to Springfield. There he endeavoured to manufacture a gunpowder engine for propelling balloons; but this enterprise was also a failure.
He was among the first to invest in paddle steamships to open steam navigation on the Connecticut river between Hartford and Springfield, and would have succeeded if financial difficulties had not obliged him to cease operations before his steamer was completed. This venture was in association with Thomas Blanchard, the inventor of America's first assembly line in 1819, and inventor of the first American automobile in 1826.America's successful men of affairs. An encyclopedia of contemporaneous biography, p. 66-67Thomas Blanchard, Springfield Armory, National Historic Site, National Park Services, MassachusettsMassachusetts. He then invented a rag-cutting machine for paper mills.
The invention was widely used, but Moses derived no pecuniary benefit due to his tardiness in applying for a patent. He then settled in Ulster County, New York, where he invested in an extensive paper mill. At first he was successful, and after six years was wealthy; but after seven years, an imprudent investment dispersed his fortune, and was compelled to abandon his enterprise. In 1829, he became one of the trustees of Saugerties, N.Y., organizing their fire department, and purchased the first fire engine of the city. In the meantime though, he had married the sister of Benjamin Day, founder and proprietor of the New York Sun.
In 1835, he acquired an interest in the paper from George W. Wisner, an early founder who had been in charge of reporting police news and writing police reports, being the first to do so in the industry. His brother was Gov. Moses Wisner, a member of the family of Patriot Henry Wisner, a gunpowder manufacturer for George Washington during the Revolutionary War. After selling his shares, he would go back to Michigan and found his own journal. The Sun was then small, both in the size of its sheet and circulation, and with a $40,000 payment, Moses soon became sole proprietor, acquiring the shares of Benjamin Day and Mr. Wisner.
The Sun
The Sun, as a penny press journal, brought many innovations to the industry, such as being the first U.S. journal to hire a Police reporter. They were also the first newspaper to report crimes and personal events such as suicides, deaths, and divorces, which featured everyday people rather than public figures. As the early developers of the craft of reporting and storytelling, they changed journalism, and brought a new business model focused on mass-production and advertising rather than subscriptions. With the breakthrough of selling their newspaper for a penny, a very low price affordable to most, it got New Yorkers from all walks of life reading the news and stay informed. They also launched hoaxes with the aim of attracting attention, such as the Great Moon Hoax of 1835 or the Balloon-Hoax.America's successful men of affairs. An encyclopedia of contemporaneous biography, p. 66-67 Theses innovations led the journal to eventually become the most successful newspaper in America.
James Gordon Bennett Sr., intrigued by the success of The Sun, would go on and copy the paper and found his own journal in 1835, naming it the New York Herald. Through his 10 years of proprietorship, Moses would expand the four-page paper from three to eight columns. He would also develop horse, rail, and pigeon services to accelerate the speed of news-gathering into his New York offices. He established a ship news service in association with other organizations to obtain news from Europe, acquiring the steamboat "Naushon".C. Tucker, Spencer (2013.) American Civil War: The Definitive Encyclopedia and Document Collection, ABC-CLIO, Library of Congress, p. 98–99AP at 175: A Photographic History, Part 1: Beginnings, 1846-60, Harbor News Association contract, June 1, 1848. APCA., Valerie Komor, Director, AP Corporate Archives.Benson John Lossing (1884).History of New York City: Embracing an Outline Sketch of Events, Volume 1., The Perine Engraving And Publishing Co., New York, p. 362
The "Pony Express" horses brought important news from Albany, and he ran special trains that ran from Baltimore to speed up their arrival. His pigeon house was built on the roof of his New York office at Nassau Street to bring news from nearby ports.Benson John Lossing (1884).History of New York City: Embracing an Outline Sketch of Events, Volume 1., The Perine Engraving And Publishing Co., New York, p. 362–363 An important competitor was Horace Greeley of the New-York Tribune. The "Commodore Vanderbilt" used the newspaper to advertise his steamship sailings from New York to Hartford, charging one dollar a passenger to get aboard his steamboat the "Water Witch".
According to historian Elmo Scott Watson, Moses invented print syndication in 1841 when he produced a two-page supplement and sold it to a score of newspapers in the U.S. northeast.Watson, Elmo Scott. "CHAPTER VIII: Recent Developments in Syndicate History 1921-1935," History of Newspaper Syndicates. Archived at Stripper's Guide. He became the major shareholder in four banks and started being a banker himself, establishing banks in the states of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Florida. He also later acquired the American book publishing company Harper Brothers and established the American Sun in Europe, the Weekly Sun for farmers, and the Illustrated Sun and Monthly Literary Journal.Ross Eaman (2021). Historical Dictionary of Journalism, Second Edition, Rowman & Littlefield, p. 24Linda Sybert Hudson (1999). JANE MCMANUS STORM CAZNEAU (1807-1878): A BIOGRAPHY, University of North Texas, p. 105-106
In 1842, he published the first directory of wealthy Americans called the Wealth and Pedigree of Wealthy Citizens of New York City. In the 1846 edition, Moses Yale Beach was featured with a fortune of US$300,000, which translates to 3.3 billion dollars in 2022 money in relation to GDP, and was featured along with Cornelius Vanderbilt at 1.2 million, and John Jacob Astor at 25 millions, the richest man in the world at the time. In 1846, only fourteen individuals were millionaires in New York, with a population of about 500,000 people, making Moses Yale Beach among the richest men in the city.
From 1843 to 1847, Moses grew the newspaper, employing 8 editors and reporters, 16 pressmen, 12 female folders, and 100 newsboys.Linda Sybert Hudson (1999). JANE MCMANUS STORM CAZNEAU (1807-1878): A BIOGRAPHY, University of North Texas, p. 105–106 In the same year, he was appointed United States Ambassador to Mexico, and named Special Diplomatic Agent by U.S. President John Tyler. He was also a representative of New York's bankers for the war mission, and a director of several New York banks, carrying with him $50,000 to establish a National Bank in Mexico.Linda Sybert Hudson (1999). JANE MCMANUS STORM CAZNEAU (1807-1878): A BIOGRAPHY, University of North Texas, p. 125
He cofounded the Harbor News Association in association with other newspapers and Samuel Morse, inventor of the telegraph, and the New York Associated Press, implicating robber baron Jay Gould. In May 1846, Moses founded the Associated PressBeach, Stanley, Archives at Yale, Stanley Yale Beach papers, Number: GEN MSS 802, 1911-1948 (at that time publisher of The Sun), and was joined by the New York Herald, the New York Courier, The Journal of Commerce, and the New York Evening Express. The AP had been formed by the five New York daily papers to share the cost of transmitting news of the Mexican–American War. It became the oldest and largest news agency in the United States, and the largest in the world.Associated Press, News Agency, Britannica, History & Society, The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, July 22, 2023. Their offices would later be at 50 Rockefeller Plaza, formerly known as the Associated Press Building, and be part of Rockefeller Center.
Mexican–American War
During the Mexican–American War, Moses went on a trip to Washington where he met with Secretary of State James Buchanan and U.S. President James K. Polk for talks.Letter from James Buchanan to Moses Beach, November 21, 1846 His mission, as the President personal spy, would be to try to persuade the Mexican government to settle its ongoing war with the United States.The works of James Buchanan, comprising his speeches, state papers, and private correspondence, Vol. VII, 1846-1848 At the time, newspapers had better news gathering techniques than the government, having President Polk and government officials receiving the war news through their daily newspapers.Linda Sybert Hudson (1999). JANE MCMANUS STORM CAZNEAU (1807-1878): A BIOGRAPHY, University of North Texas, p. 127
As he already had a personal relationship with the former foreign minister of Mexico, Juan Almonte, President Polk sent him to Mexico to arrange a treaty of peace, bringing with him his daughter and a journalist named Jane Cazneau. Arrived on Mexican grounds, Moses received informations from General Mirabeau Lamar, the former president of the Republic of Texas, about the disenchantment of the Mexican bishops and clergy, as they were penalized by the war.