Mobtown Massacre: Alexander Hanson and the Baltimore Newspaper War of 1812
By Josh S. Cutler
Wednesday, March 11, 2020—Noon to 1:00pm
State Library of Massachusetts—Room 341, Massachusetts State House
Mobtown Massacre tells the story of one of the earliest and most violent attacks on the free press in the United States. This little-known episode in American history centers around Alexander Hanson, a fiery young Federalist newspaper editor from Baltimore and the namesake of the town of Hanson, Massachusetts. Just days after the beginning of the War of 1812, Hanson published a sharply-worded anti-war editorial that led to a violent standoff in Baltimore that left Hanson beaten within an inch of his life. These brutal events helped shape both the course of the war and the notion of a free press in a bitterly divided nation.
Author Josh S. Cutler is an attorney and has served for the past seven years as the Massachusetts State Representative for the 6th Plymouth District, representing the towns of Hanson, Pembroke, and Duxbury. Prior to his role in the House of Representatives, Rep. Cutler served for more than a decade as a local newspaper editor. Rep. Cutler is a graduate of Skidmore College, Suffolk Law, and the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.
Following his talk, Rep. Cutler will sell and sign copies of Mobtown Massacre, with 100% of proceeds being donated to the Friends of the State Library of Massachusetts.
To register for Rep. Cutler’s talk, please visit: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SLM-Cutler
Laura Schaub
Cataloging Librarian
Upcoming Author Talks at the State Library: https://www.mass.gov/service-details/upcoming-author-talks-at-the-state-library
