author
Benjamin Wood
1820–1900
A newspaper owner, congressman, and lively figure in 19th-century New York, he helped shape public debate during and after the Civil War. His life joined politics, publishing, and the rough-and-tumble world of Democratic journalism.
1 Audiobook
Fort Lafayette or, Love and Secession: A Novel
by Benjamin Wood
About the author
Born in Shelbyville, Kentucky, on October 13, 1820, he moved to New York City as a child and later built a career in business, publishing, and politics. He became the owner, editor, and publisher of the New York Daily News, a paper he bought in 1860 and led for decades.
He also served several nonconsecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat from New York. During the Civil War era, he was known as a prominent public voice with strong opinions, and his newspaper gave him an unusually powerful platform in the city's political life.
Benjamin Wood died in New York City on February 21, 1900. He is also remembered as the brother of Fernando Wood, the well-known New York mayor and congressman, though Benjamin made his own mark through both elected office and the newspaper business.