Washington Bee
Masthead
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| Type | Weekly newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner(s) | Bee Publishing Company |
| Editor | William Calvin Chase |
| Founded | June 3, 1882 |
| Ceased publication | January 21, 1922 |
| Headquarters | 1109 I Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20005 USA |
The Washington Bee was a Washington, D.C.-based American weekly newspaper founded in 1882 and primarily read by African Americans. Throughout almost all of its forty years in publication it was edited by African-American lawyer-journalist William Calvin Chase. The newspaper was aligned with the Republican party. It continued publication, with gaps in 1893 and 1895, until 1922, shortly after editor Chase's death.
The Bee's publication history coincided with a two-generation period of American history during which the political roles of African-Americans were sharply constrained by the politically reactionary Redeemers. Successful professional-level African Americans, such as editor Chase, faced ceaseless political battles in order to hold on to the limited gains made in previous generations. Chase's editorials at first criticized accommodationist black leaders such as Booker T. Washington, but later made peace with the influential Tuskegee leader. The Bee shared the Washington, D.C. market with a rival weekly, the Colored American, and Washington's private papers indicate that he and his network provided financial support to both news sheets.
The Bee's masthead slogan was "Sting for Our Enemies – Honey for Our Friends", and according to a Library of Congress critic, "the Bee represented the Republican attitudes of its editor, although Chase did not hesitate to criticize Republican Party leaders when he thought they were on the wrong side of an issue."
The Bee′s circulation numbers are unknown but were never large; the highest figure given is 9,700 in 1922. That was the year the Bee ceased publication, unable to survive the death of its editor in 1921.
Other contemporaneous papers that served a similar demographic clientele included the Colored American, Grit, People's Advocate,Washington American, and Washington Eagle. There were nearly 75 other historical newspapers in the District of Columbia.
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