Posts
The twopenny The London Saturday Journal ran to four volumes from 1839-1842. The 'conductor' was James Grant, author of "The Great Metropolis," and "The Newspaper Press." "The Newspaper Press" was criticized by many for its supposed innacuracies but Grant was a prolific penny-a-liner who knew the streets, newspaper men, penny-a-liners, and characters of early Victorian London very well.
Grant churned out a tremendous amount of work and is often referred to as a "hack journalist." He wrote of begging-letter writers, crossing sweepers, debtors prisons and penny theatres in the 400 page "Sketches of London." Most of Grants work was non-fiction but he also wrote military tales and fiction. "The London Saturday Journal" shows London as it was in text and picture. Articles were wide-ranging: The origin of Jim Crow, Madame Tussaud's Exhibition, Condition of the Working Classes of Great Britain, London Vehicles, Street Music and Literary Chit Chat. Grant was born in Scotland in 1806, or Elgin, Worayshire in 1805, and was for many years editor of the Morning Advertiser.
