Missouri Republican

The Missouri Republican was a newspaper founded in 1808 and headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Its predecessor was the Morning Gazette. It later changed its name to St. Louis Republic.

After supporting the Whig Party, the paper became aligned with the Democratic Party.

In the late 19th century, the Republic had the second-largest circulation in St. Louis, surpassing papers that would survive it, such as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the St. Louis Star-Times. Its final owner was David R. Francis, a prominent political figure. In 1919, after years of losses, Francis sold the Republic to the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, a longtime rival paper supportive of the Republican Party, which closed it.

The Republican was founded by Joseph Charless in 1808 as the Missouri Gazette and Louisiana Advertiser, using the first printing press to be set up west of the Mississippi River. The name was changed to Louisiana Gazette in 1809. It was changed back to Missouri Gazette in 1818 after a change in owners.

Charless's prospectus for the weekly newspaper said, in part:

. . . we conceive it unnecessary to offer anything like professions to the public, but rather let the columns of the GAZETTE speak for themselves, and the print live or die by the character it may acquire, but its intended Patrons have a right to be acquainted with the grounds upon which their approbation is solicited.

Three columns of the paper were to be reserved for news in French, as many of the residents of the city were ethnic French who spoke that language.

The printing press came from Philadelphia, and the type from Louisville, Kentucky. The only paper available in St. Louis measured 8x12 inches, so that was the size used for the first issue, on July 12, 1808. There were 170 subscribers.