Latest / The SmallBizChat with Melinda Emerson / America at 250: Mary Katharine Goddard - America's First Woman Publisher

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America at 250: Mary Katharine Goddard - America's First Woman Publisher · The SmallBizChat with Melinda Emerson

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  Three, two, one, zero.
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  Ignition.
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  Lift off.
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  Ending small business failure.
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  Welcome to the Small Biz Chat podcast with the number one small business expert, Melinda
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  Emerson.
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  Melinda's goal is to end small business failure, and she'll give you the information
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  you need to succeed and live the life you dream of.
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  Now here's your host, the small biz chat lady herself, Melinda Emerson.
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  Have you subscribed to the small biz chat podcast?
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  Well, it's time.
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  Every Wednesday, we offer listeners bite sized actionable tips to start and grow a successful
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  small business.
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  In just twenty minutes or so a week, you can get a ton of insight and resources to propel
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  your business forward.
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  Be sure to subscribe to the Small Bitch Chat podcast today.
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  Hi, everybody.
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  This is Melinda Emerson, the small biz lady, and I wanna welcome you to another installment
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  of our special Small Bitchette podcast in celebration of America's anniversary, the two
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  hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
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  Today, I'm going to be giving you another installment of our America two fifty series,
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  Entrepreneurs Who Built America.
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  Today, I want to tell you the story of a woman whose work helped spread the very document that
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  created The United States.
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  Her name is Mary Katherine Guttard and she was a printer and a publisher.
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  She was a business owner and she was one of America's first female postmasters.
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  She was actually the woman responsible for widely distributing a copy of the Declaration
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  of Independence that included the names of the 56 men who signed it.
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  Without entrepreneurs like Mary Catherine Goddard, the ideas that shaped America may
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  never have reached the people.
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  Her story teaches us a powerful lesson.
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  Control information and you can shape history.
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  Mary Catherine Goddard was born in Connecticut in 1738.
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  During the colonial period, women rarely owned businesses.
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  Most were expected to marry, manage households, and support their husband's work.
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  But Goddard's family was involved in printing and publishing.
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  She learned the trade from a very early age and became deeply involved in the family business.
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  She learned how to operate the printing presses, manage finances, and oversee
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  production.
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  And when her younger brother moved away to pursue other interests, she had the opportunity
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  to step in and run the business.
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  Instead of accepting the limits that society places on women, she built her expertise and
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  grew the business.
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  When you have technical skills that can create opportunities and the more valuable your
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  skills, the harder it is for people to overlook your talent.
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  In the era before radio, television, podcasts, social media, printing was the media industry.
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  Printers controlled the flow of information.
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  They published newspapers, they distributed government notices, They sold advertising and
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  they shaped public opinion.
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  Mary Katherine Goddard operated the Maryland Journal, one of the most influential newspapers
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  in the colonies.
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  She managed subscriptions, sold advertising, and published news and political commentary.
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  She built a business that generated revenue while informing the public.
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  In modern terms, she was the media executive, the editor, the publisher, and she owned a
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  distribution channel.
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  Now you can never underestimate the value of owning your audience.
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  The person who controls distribution controls influence and in 1776, the Continental Congress
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  approved the Declaration of Independence.
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  Most people have seen the famous handwritten version, but many do not know that the
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  declaration had to be printed and distributed throughout the colonies.
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  And in January 1777, Mary Katherine Goddard printed the first broadside edition, which
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  included the names of the signers.
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  And this was quite a courageous act at the time.
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  The signers were basically committing treason against the British crown, publishing their
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  names publicly carried an enormous risk, and it was also a risk to Goddard as the printer and
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  distributor of the document.
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  Her work helped spread the revolutionary message throughout colonial America.
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  And that's true even for today's entrepreneurs, Sometimes leadership requires courage.
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  As business owners, we often have to make difficult decisions and it shapes our
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  communities and even our industries.
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  Goddard's reputation as a reliable and competent printer also led to another
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  historical role for her.
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  She became the postmaster of Baltimore.
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  At the time, the postal system was one of the most important communication networks in
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  America.
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  She successfully managed postal operations during the revolutionary war.
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  And for fourteen years after that, she handled the logistics, information flow, and public
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  communications.
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  In many ways, she was running part of America's information infrastructure.
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  Trust is one of the most valuable assets you can build in a business.
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  People do business with people that they like, know, and trust, and communities rely on
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  leaders that they trust.
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  Despite her success, Goddard eventually lost her postmaster position after actually serving
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  for fourteen years.
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  Political decisions removed her from the role, even though many citizens and community leaders
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  supported her leadership.
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  Many petitioned for her reinstatement, but it was unsuccessful.
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  Many people would have allowed disappointment to define their story, but Goddard did not.
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  She continued working and contributing to her community.
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  She ran her bookstore, as well as continued with her printing company.
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  So her legacy was larger than one single title.
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  And that's important.
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  Your position is not your identity.
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  Your contribution is actually your legacy.
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  As we celebrate America's two hundred and fiftieth anniversary, Mary Katherine Goddard
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  reminds us that entrepreneurs do more than sell products and services.
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  They spread ideas, they connect communities, they create access to information, they shape
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  public conversation.
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  And in today's world, content creators, publishers, podcasters, authors, and media
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  entrepreneurs are doing the same work.
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  It's just that the technology has changed, but the mission has not.
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  If you control information, you can create influence.
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  And if you can create influence, you can create an opportunity for yourself.
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  Mary Katherine Goddard didn't command armies.
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  She didn't write the Declaration for Dependence, but she did something equally
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  important.
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  She printed it.
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  She made sure the ideas reached the people.
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  She built a media business.
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  She operated a newspaper, managed the postal network, and she helped communicate the birth
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  of a nation.
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  As entrepreneurs, we should all be asking ourselves, what ideas am I helping to spread?
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  What information am I sharing?
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  And what impact am I making through my business?
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  History is often not shaped by those who create great ideas, but also by those who ensure that
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  the world hears them.
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  I'm Melinda Emerson, the small business lady, helping you succeed as your own boss, and thank
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  you for listening to another edition of the small biz chat podcast.
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  We just have one more of these special podcasts to go, and hopefully, you guys love this
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  series.
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  As always, if you are a fan of the small bitch chat podcast, we invite you to leave a five
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  star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or wherever you listen to your favorite podcast.
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  I leave you with this.
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  You never lose in business.
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  Either you win or you learn.
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  God bless everybody.
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  Information and interviews.
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  You can find more sources and small business success strategies by visiting Melinda's
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  website, succeedasyourownboss.com.
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  Thanks again for listening, and we'll see you next week.