The Quebec Gazette – Lower Canada (Québec), Guillaume Brown and Thomas Gilmore, 1764

The success of The Halifax Gazette was soon followed by another milestone in Canadian printing. Although France had governed Quebec for more than a century, no printing press had ever been established in the colony. Following the British conquest in 1759, that quickly changed.

Sensing an opportunity in Britain’s new  colony, printers Guillaume (William) Brown and Thomas Gilmore travelled from Philadelphia to Quebec City. On June 21, 1764, they published the first issue of The Quebec Gazette, establishing the first newspaper in the Province of Quebec.

The paper was remarkable for being bilingual, carrying both English and French content. Government notices, foreign news and advertisements appeared side by side, helping the newspaper serve the colony’s diverse population. Since neither Brown nor Gilmore spoke French, they hired a translator to prepare the French-language text. Despite the expense, the partners secured a government printing contract worth £50 a year.

The newspaper survived several early challenges. Publication was suspended during protests over the Stamp Act in 1765 and again when American forces besieged Quebec City during the Revolutionary War 
in 1775 – 76. In addition to the weekly newspaper, Brown and Gilmore printed catechisms, schoolbooks and other materials requested by local residents.

Gilmore died in 1773, while Brown continued publishing until his death in 1789. The press then passed to Brown’s nephews, Samuel and John Neilson, who expanded its reputation for quality printing. John Neilson’s detailed business records provide historians with a rare glimpse into an early Canadian print shop, while the paper’s special supplements helped make it one of the colony’s most influential publications.

The newspaper continued publication until 1874, leaving behind a legacy as the Province of Quebec’s first newspaper and Canada’s first bilingual newspaper. It’s success helped establish Quebec as one
of the leading centres of printing in British North America, a position it would hold for generations.