Alfred Edmund Burr

Alfred E. Burr was the founder of the daily edition of The Hartford Times, the progressive newspaper of Connecticut's capital city. He led the paper, which had begun publishing as a weekly in 1817, from 1939 until his retirement 1890. His role gave him considerable political influence statewide.

Burr's career began in 1827 when, at the age of 12, he was hired to work in the composing room of The Hartford Courant, then the city's conservative newspaper. By age 20 he was foreman of the composing room and at 24 he was offered part ownership of the newspaper, which he declined due to the Courant leadership requiring him to join the Whig Party and become a Congregationalist in order to take the job.

On January 1, 1839, Burr took over leadership of the rival Times as manager and half-owner. The Times maintained a liberal editorial stance under his leadership even though he was strongly tied to the state's then-conservative Democratic Party and opposed populism, the Civil War (in which he sided with the South), and twice served as a Democratic member of the Connecticut General Assembly. He was influential in Democratic Party politics nationally and also was involved in the local politics of Hartford and its suburbs.

He is the namesake of Hartford's Alfred E. Burr Elementary School as well as the Alfred E. Burr Memorial Mall -- home to Alexander Caldwell's Stegosaurus -- between the Wadsworth Atheneum and Hartford City Hall.

Sources

• "Alfred E. Burr." FindAGrave, published 30 August 2012. < link > Accessed 26 October 2023.
• "Alfred E. Burr Dead." The Hartford Courant, published 9 January 1900. < link > Accessed 26 October 2023.
• O'Maxfield, Karen. "City Center." Hartford, Connecticut: Landmarks, History, Neighborhoods. < link > Accessed 26 October 2023.
• Nunes, Joseph F. "The Political Fires that Fueled The Courant." Connecticut Explored, published Fall 2014. < link > Accessed 26 October 2023.
• "The Hartford Times." Wikipedia, revision of 7 June 2023. < link > Accessed 26 October 2023.