Richard Butler (publisher)
| Richard Butler | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
11 November 1924 Coteau du Lac, Lower Canada |
| Died | 16 March 1925 (aged 0) |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | Publisher |
Richard Butler (born 11 November 1834 at Coteau du Lac, Lower Canada - 16 March 1925). Buried in Hamilton Cemetery. Editor, publisher, journalist and U.S. vice-consul in Hamilton, Ontario.[1]
Life
His parents had been born in Ireland and arrived in Canada a few months before his birth. He worked from childhood, so he had little formal education. At first he worked as a confectioner and baker in Montreal. He then managed to secure a job with the Montreal Herald when he was just twelve years of age to help his mother raise family that included 3 siblings after his father died suddenly from serving military time for the British 24th Foot Regiment stationed in Canada. His experience working for newspapers continued after the family moved to London, Ontario where he found work there for the London Free Press. Also gained experience in Hamilton working at the Journal and Express office, all this before the age of 16. Then he moved to the United States in 1852 at the age of seventeen working in Rochester, New York for the Rochester Union. 1854 returned to Hamilton where he helped out with the formation of a Union for the printers. By 1859 he had worked his way up to an assistant foreman at The Christian Advocate.
He returned to the United States in time to be listed in the 1860 census as a resident of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he worked as a printer.
In 1862 he became editor of the Oxford Citizen, a newspaper in Oxford, Ohio, which he sold in 1870. He also operated a printing business there. During his Oxford years, Butler was active in a fraternal temperance society called the Good Templars and spent a few months in the Union Army. In 1915 he published a short history of early Oxford called Ancient Oxford. First appearing in a newspaper, it later was published as a short book or booklet.
In 1870 bought a newspaper in Oberlin, Ohio which proved to be a mistake. Oberlin College wanted a religious paper. After two years Butler sold the newspaper. Shortly after became city editor of the Burlington Hawkeye, in Burlington, Iowa. Eventually moved to Illinois where he bought the Clinton Public, where he was editor and publisher for twenty-five years.
In 1897, after he sold the Public he returned to Canada once again where (as an ardent Republican) he was appointed the position of U.S. vice-consul in the Ontario city of Hamilton, a position he held there for eighteen years. At the same time was employed by the newspaper in town, the Hamilton Spectator, and wrote a column on the history of Hamilton for the Saturday edition of the paper called, 'Saturday Musings.' The column appeared under the pen name of 'The Muser.'
Tribute
The Butler neighbourhood on the Hamilton Mountain named after him. It is bounded by Stone Church Road East (north), Rymal Road East (south), Upper Wentworth Street (west), Upper Sherman Street (east). Landmarks in this neighbourhood include St. Jean de Brebeuf High School and Billy Sherring Park.
References
- ↑ Bailey, Thomas Melville (1991). Dictionary of Hamilton Biography (Vol II, 1876-1924). W.L. Griffin Ltd.
- MapArt Golden Horseshoe Atlas - Page 657 - Grids N14
History of DeWitt County, Illinois (1882), available on the Internet