| Description: | Abstract: The first edition of the Northern Star was published on 26th May, 1838 as a radical newspaper. Although the paper paid the 4d. stamp duty O'Connor denounced it as a tax on free speech. Within four months of starting publication, the Northern Star was selling 10,000 copies a week. By the summer of 1839 circulation of the Northern Star reached over 50,000 a week. The fortunes of the Northern Star declined with those of the Chartist movement. By the end of 1851 sales of the newspaper had fallen to 1,200 a week. |
