The List System

Rowell was not the first agent to build such a list, all of the competing advertising agencies at the time owned one. However, his list was the only one to contain information about 100 country newspapers. Since most of the population at the time lived in rural areas, that type of innovation was welcome by advertisers, which began to patronize his agency in Boston.

Rowell’s list was published in the form of a directory in 1869. This directory, George P. Rowell and Company American Newspaper Directory, was the first one to be issued every year. The directory provided information about newspapers in every state in the United States, including country newspapers, and Canada. It indicated the population of the city where the newspaper was published, circulation figures, rates, the purchase system, and other important characteristics.