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Title:
Piney Woods planter. : (Liberty, Mi. [i.e. Miss.]) 1838-1840
Alternative Titles:
  • Planter
Place of publication:
Liberty, Mi. [i.e. Miss.]
Geographic coverage:
  • Liberty, Amite, Mississippi  |  View more titles from this: City County, State
Publisher:
J. Tothill & A.H. Hall
Dates of publication:
1838-1840
Description:
  • Ceased in 1840.
  • Vol. 1, no. 40 (Nov. 24, 1838)-
Frequency:
Weekly
Language:
  • English
Subjects:
  • Liberty (Miss.)--Newspapers.
  • Mississippi--Liberty.--fast--(OCoLC)fst01287519
Notes:
  • Also issued on microfilm from UMI.
  • Archived issues are available in digital format from the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • Issues for Feb. 23, 1839-<Feb. 22, 1840> also have whole numbering: no. 53-<104>
  • Latest issue consulted: Vol. 2, no. 52 (Feb. 22, 1840).
LCCN:
sn 87065654
OCLC:
15582508
ISSN:
2470-0088
Preceding Titles:
Related Links:
Holdings:
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Piney Woods planter. November 24, 1838 , Image 1

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Piney Woods Planter and Amite Union Literary Reflector

Located on the Louisiana border in the southwest corner of Mississippi, Amite County was created in 1809 in the Mississippi Territory, before statehood in 1817. With flat to hilly terrain and sandy and silt loam soil, the area was a rich agricultural and timber-growing region, forested with longleaf yellow pine. Cotton reigned supreme as the antebellum cash crop. The establishment of a seat of government to be known as Liberty was also authorized in 1809, and the town, located near a branch of the Amite River, was incorporated in 1828.

Begun in 1838, the Piney Woods Planter and Amite Union Literary Reflector was "Devoted to Literature, Politics, Science, Agriculture, Education, and General Intelligence &c.;" After eleven months, the title was shortened to the Piney Woods Planter; both titles were also known as the Planter. The papers were four pages long and published weekly on Saturdays. John Tothill was the publisher throughout the run; with a change of partners in February 1839, Tothill simplified the title font and became editor as well, holding this position until 1840.

Quite partisan, in an article on the Mississippi press in the May 12, 1838 issue, the Planter declared itself a Democratic newspaper. Its motto, "There are only two sorts of government, one of, and the other over, the people;--we have sworn to support the former and oppose the latter" intimated Democratic sentiments against a strong central government. The papers included many editorials critical of Mississippi banks, as seen in a May 19, 1838 article. A second-page header in the February 11, 1840 issue read: "For an independent treasury against a broken down United States bank," reflecting the Democratic Party's opposition to a national bank. A supporter of President Martin Van Buren, the Planter printed rebuttals against its rival Whig newspaper, the Liberty Advocate (1835-66). Along with the editorials, congressional news, state legislative and court news, and other political items, the Planter frequently included general interest articles, poetry, and newspaper prospectuses. Foreign, national, and local news received less attention. Local information included advertisements, such as notices of runaway slaves; descriptions of social events, such as a Fourth of July celebration in the July 14, 1838 issue; and legal notices. The June 16, 1838 issue of the Planter printed a detailed description of Amite County.

Provided by: Mississippi Department of Archives and History