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{{short description|American publisher}}
'''Titan Leeds''' (1699–1738) was an 18th-century [[United States|American]] [[almanac]] publisher.
'''Titan Leeds''' (1699–1738) was an 18th-century American [[almanac]] publisher.


Titan Leeds was a [[Philadelphia]]-based publisher of ''The American Almanack.'' He was mentioned as a "good friend and fellow student" of [[Benjamin Franklin]] in Franklin's rival publication ''[[Poor Richard's Almanack]]''.
⚫
He is best known for his treatment by [[Benjamin Franklin]]'s rival publication ''[[Poor Richard's Almanack]]''. In an attempt to damage Leeds, Franklin used his own almanac to predict Leeds' death (Oct. 17, 1733, 3:29 P.M., at the very instant of the conjunction of the Sun and Mercury), and when the date of Leeds' supposed passing had come and gone, Franklin published Leeds' obituary anyway. When challenged by the very much alive Leeds, Franklin insisted that Leeds had in fact died, but that he was being impersonated. When Leeds actually died in 1738 Benjamin Franklin publicly commended the impostors for ending their charade.<ref>http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/Hoaxipedia/Death_of_Titan_Leeds/</ref>

Titan's father, [[Daniel Leeds]], was a devout [[Quaker]] who fell out with the local Quaker community when he began publishing the almanac in 1687. Daniel Leeds was in born 1651 in Essex, England; he died in New Jersey in 1720. Daniel Leeds migrated in 1676. In 1687 Daniel Leeds published an almanac that than astrology signs. He eventually migrated from Quakers to Episcopal church. Daniel Leeds turned over publication to his son, Titan, in 1716. ''The American Almanack'' pre-dated Franklin's almanac. Franklin used the first edition of his almanac to promote the hoax prediction of Leeds's death (Oct. 17, 1733, 3:29 P.M., at the very instant of the conjunction of the Sun and Mercury), and encouraged his readers to buy next year's edition of ''Poor Richard's Almanack'' to see if Franklin was right as a publicity stunt and attempt to drive Titan Leeds's ''American Almanack'' out of business.<ref>{{cite web|title=Golden Nuggets from U. S. History: '''Benjamin Franklin''' and ''Poor Richard's Almanac''|first=Frank|last=Laughter|date=1999–2003|access-date=2007-04-17|url=http://www.laughtergenealogy.com/bin/history/almanac.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929163829/http://www.laughtergenealogy.com/bin/history/almanac.html|archive-date=2007-09-29}}</ref>

⚫
When the date of Leeds' supposed passing had come and gone, Franklin published Leeds's obituary anyway. When challenged by the very much alive Leeds, Franklin insisted that Leeds had in fact died, but that he was being impersonated by an inferior publisher. When Leeds actually died in 1738, Franklin publicly commended the impostors for ending their charade.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hoaxes.org/archive/permalink/the_death_of_titan_leeds|title=Death of Titan Leeds, Museum of Hoaxes}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
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{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


{{Authority control|VIAF=45757638}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
| NAME = Leeds, Titan
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American publisher
| DATE OF BIRTH = 1699
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH = 1738
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leeds, Titan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leeds, Titan}}
[[Category:1699 births]]
[[Category:1699 births]]
[[Category:1738 deaths]]
[[Category:1738 deaths]]
[[Category:Almanac compilers]]
[[Category:18th-century American publishers (people)]]
[[Category:People from colonial Pennsylvania]]




Latest revision as of 01:37, 29 August 2024

Titan Leeds (1699–1738) was an 18th-century American almanac publisher.

Titan Leeds was a Philadelphia-based publisher of The American Almanack. He was mentioned as a "good friend and fellow student" of Benjamin Franklin in Franklin's rival publication Poor Richard's Almanack.

Titan's father, Daniel Leeds, was a devout Quaker who fell out with the local Quaker community when he began publishing the almanac in 1687. Daniel Leeds was in born 1651 in Essex, England; he died in New Jersey in 1720. Daniel Leeds migrated in 1676. In 1687 Daniel Leeds published an almanac that than astrology signs. He eventually migrated from Quakers to Episcopal church. Daniel Leeds turned over publication to his son, Titan, in 1716. The American Almanack pre-dated Franklin's almanac. Franklin used the first edition of his almanac to promote the hoax prediction of Leeds's death (Oct. 17, 1733, 3:29 P.M., at the very instant of the conjunction of the Sun and Mercury), and encouraged his readers to buy next year's edition of Poor Richard's Almanack to see if Franklin was right as a publicity stunt and attempt to drive Titan Leeds's American Almanack out of business.[1]

When the date of Leeds' supposed passing had come and gone, Franklin published Leeds's obituary anyway. When challenged by the very much alive Leeds, Franklin insisted that Leeds had in fact died, but that he was being impersonated by an inferior publisher. When Leeds actually died in 1738, Franklin publicly commended the impostors for ending their charade.[2]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Laughter, Frank (1999–2003). "Golden Nuggets from U. S. History: Benjamin Franklin and Poor Richard's Almanac". Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-04-17.
  2. ^ "Death of Titan Leeds, Museum of Hoaxes".


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