Ebenezer Watson - Ancient Burying Ground - Hartford, CT
Posted by: 
neoc1
N 41° 45.908 W 072° 40.450
18T E 693332 N 4626314
The grave of Ebenezer Watson is located in the Ancient Burying Ground in Hartford, CT.. He was the owner of the the Connecticut Courant, the most influential newspaper in the colonies in support of the American Revolution.
Waymark Code: WMPEH8
Location: Connecticut, United States
Date Posted: 08/18/2015
Views: 5
The Connecticut Courant, now the Hartford Courant, the country's oldest newspaper in continuous publication. It was started as a weekly paper in 1764 by a printer named Thomas Green. He sold the newspaper to his assistant, Ebenezer Watson, who ran the business successfully until he died of smallpox in 1777 and his widow, Hannah, took over the paper.
During the the years leading up to and during the Revolutionary War, the Connecticut Courant was an influential backer of the colonist cause. The Courant was never under British control and had the largest circulation of any newspaper in the colonies. The Courant was so important to the war effort that when its paper mill was burned down, probably by Tories, the Connecticut legislature authorized a lottery to raise money to build a new mill. The Courant continued printing on wrapping paper.
The brownstone grave marker is locate adjacent to the east fence and is best view from outside the Burying Ground. Thus, is may be view even when the Burying Ground is closed.