Rivington, James

Rivington, James (1724–1803) publisher; born in London, England. A prosperous English publisher, he emigrated in 1760, ran a bookselling business in Philadelphia with branches in Boston and New York, and in 1773 founded Rivington's New York Gazette. Initially, the Gazette generally sought to present both sides of issues. But in 1775 the plant was destroyed by Patriots and Rivington returned to England for two years; in 1777 the Gazette resumed as a strongly pro-Tory paper, sharply ridiculing the Patriots and their cause, often with inaccuracy. After the American Revolution, his paper failed and he died in poverty.