A member of one of the most prolific printing dynasties in American history, Andrew Bradford founded in 1719 the first newspaper in the Middle Colonies, the American Weekly Mercury, and in 1741 the first colonial magazine, the American Magazine, or A Monthly View of the Political State of the British Colonies. Although rarely remembered for anything he himself wrote for these periodicals, Bradford was one of the most capable and successful printers prior to 1800.

Andrew Bradford, born in Philadelphia in about 1686, was the older son of William and Elizabeth Sowle Bradford of London. The Bradford and Sowle families had been printers in England, and Andrew's father, William, had brought his trade to Philadelphia in 1685. Following a disagreement with his major customers, the Quaker leaders, William Bradford moved his family to New York City in 1693. Andrew spent the rest of his minority in New York, learning the printing trade in his...