Each year on March 16, we recognize Black Press Day, honoring the powerful legacy of Black-owned newspapers across the country — publications that have informed, advocated for and uplifted our communities for generations.
In 1928 when The St. Louis American was founded, scores of Black newspapers were being published. This included several in the St. Louis area. A decade after the American was first published, the number of Black newspapers was nearing 250.
From 1881 to 1909 According to its archives, the National Colored Press Association (American Press Association) operated as a trade association from 1881 to 1909. The National Negro Business League-affiliated National Negro Press Association filled operated from 1909 to 1939, and the Encyclopedia of Chicago reports that the Chicago-based Associated Negro Press (1919–1964) was a subscription news agency “with correspondents and stringers in all major centers of Black population.”
In 1940, Chicago Defender Publisher John Sengstacke led Black newspaper publishers in forming the trade association known as the National Newspaper Publishers Association.[15] In August 1928, William Alexander Scott II founded the Atlanta World. In 1932, Scott renamed the publication the Atlanta Daily World, making it the first Black daily newspaper in the United States.
For nearly a century, The St. Louis American has proudly carried the tradition of the Black press forward.
When St. Louis’ Black population called for another “colored paper” to serve St. Louis 98 years ago, the city’s most prominent lawyers, teachers and businessmen stepped up to offer their support and pocket-books.
Until then, the St. Louis Argus, founded in 1912, was the main media eyes and ears of the Black community.
In 1928, Black St. Louis residents lived and conducted business in a “separate, but equal” city, where access to everything from neighborhood lunch counters was dictated by skin color. Jim Crow laws reigned and Black St. Louisans were calling for a second paper to challenge the status quo and represent Black interests. John Levy Procope, a local businessman, took charge of gathering the needed share-holders for the new paper.
Procope coaxed his father-in-law, veteran newsman A.N. Johnson, to move from Baltimore to St. Louis to help facilitate the creation of an alternative Black voice in the city.
But the would-be share-holders of the St. Louis American, who held their first meeting at the Peoples’ Finance Company in 1928, could not have predicted the economic fallout after the start of the Great Depression the following year. The newspaper’s original investors, many of St. Louis’ most successful Black professionals, boldly put their money and credentials behind the paper’s vision.
A young lawyer and St. Louis newcomer, Nathan B. Young Jr., used his legal experience to officially incorporate the fledgling newspaper, then signed on as editor.
Arguably one of the most renowned St. Louis citizens, Homer G. Phillips, a popular lawyer and civic activist, bought stake in the paper. Phillips was best known for his work with the city alderman in the early 1920’s to pass a bond issue to improve the city’s public works system and build a hospital to serve the Black community. The hospital, which opened several years later after Phillips’ untimely murder, bore his name. Other investors included the
Rev. Douchette R. Clarke, rector of All Saints’ Episcopal Church; Richard Kent, owner of the St. Louis Stars, world champion Negro baseball team; and Sumner High School teacher Robert P. Watts. Ruth Miriam Harris, former president of Stowe College, later Harris-Stowe State University, lent her support to the venture, as did Dr. Thomas A. Curtis, a Black dentist and the first Black president of the St. Louis branch of the NAACP.
Many of the American’s original investors have later been included in editions of Who’s Who in Colored America. In St. Louis, they represented the cornerstones of the Black community and provided the foundation of what would become the city’s top Black newspaper.
Through independent journalism and community storytelling, The St. Louis American has amplified voices that too often go unheard, celebrated excellence across the region and served as a trusted source of information for our readers.
As the media landscape continues to evolve, we are also committed to ensuring that this legacy continues through digital innovation and transformation, expanding how we share stories, connect with readers and reach the next generation of audiences.
The strength and independence of the Black press has always depended on the support of the community it serves.
In recognition of Black Press Day, we invite you to stand with us and support the continued work of The St. Louis American.
Your contribution helps sustain the journalism, storytelling and community impact that have defined this publication for nearly 100 years while helping us grow and evolve for the future.
Make a contribution today in honor of Black Press Day.
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