John Holt (publisher)

John Holt (1721—1784) was a colonial American newspaper publisher, printer, postmaster, and mayor of Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. He was involved with publishing the ''Connecticut Gazette'', the ''New York Gazette'', and the ''New-York Journal'' newspapers. He worked with Benjamin Franklin, the prominent publisher James Parker, and Founding Father Samuel Adams. He had a store that sold miscellaneous supplies, ink, paper, and books on a variety of subjects including religion, freemasonry, economics, history, archaeology, poetry, and biographies.

The publications Holt printed reflected his readers' struggle between the colonies and England. He openly challenged the Stamp Act of 1765, which was a direct British tax on the colonies in America for many types of papers used that included legal documents, magazines, playing cards, and newspapers. Holt was the favorite printer of the Sons of Liberty, a political organization active in the Thirteen American Colonies founded to advance the rights of the colonists and to fight taxation by the British government. Provided by Wikipedia