Equitable Trust Company (Maryland)

Frank Andrew Munsey
Born	Mercer, Maine, U.S.
Died	22 December 1925(1925-12-22) (aged 71)
Occupation(s)	Newspaper and magazine publisher, financier, author
Known for	Pioneer of pulp magazines; owner of multiple newspapers; founder of Munsey Trust Company

Frank Andrew Munsey (August 21, 1854 – December 22, 1925) was a prominent American figure known for his roles as a newspaper and magazine publisher, financier in banking and politics, and author. Originating from Mercer, Maine, he spent the majority of his career based in New York City. His legacy is commemorated through the naming of Munsey Park, New York and The Munsey Building located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland.

Munsey was a trailblazer in utilizing rapid printing press technology combined with affordable, uncut pulp paper to produce magazines on a massive scale at substantially reduced expenses. This innovation enabled him to offer magazines priced as low as 10 cents—less than half the price of similar contemporary publications. His periodicals primarily featured fictional action and adventure stories targeting working-class audiences who found the more expensive 25-cent "slick" magazines inaccessible or irrelevant.

By developing the pulp magazine industry, Munsey created a lucrative niche market that significantly increased his wealth. He maintained a dynamic publishing strategy by frequently introducing new titles and swiftly discontinuing those that failed to perform, thereby ensuring steady revenue expansion and sustained market presence.

Early life

Born near Mercer, Maine on August 21, 1854, Frank Munsey was the son of Andrew Chauncey Munsey, a Civil War veteran originally from Quebec, and Mary Jane Merrit Hopkins Munsey. During his childhood, the family relocated multiple times within Maine, residing in places such as Gardiner, Bowdoin, Lisbon Falls, and ultimately settling in Livermore Falls. Frank had five siblings: three older sisters and two younger brothers or sisters.

Munsey’s early work experience began at a grocery store in Lisbon Falls that also housed the local Post Office; there he taught himself telegraphy. At age sixteen, he moved to Portland, Maine to work as a hotel telegraph operator. After holding positions in locations including Rye Beach, New Hampshire and Boston, he returned around 1877 to manage Western Union’s office in Augusta, Maine’s capital. This role enabled him to establish connections with key political figures such as Senator James G. Blaine and influential businessmen like Edward Charles Allen, founder of People's Literary Companion, providing valuable contacts in both political and publishing circles.

The Golden Argosy and Munsey's Magazine

Munsey’s ambition to publish his own magazine began with a personal investment of $500 supplemented by $3,500 from two associates. Upon relocating to New York in 1882, he discovered that initial cost estimates were insufficient, forcing him to abandon the launch with only $40 remaining alongside purchased manuscripts. He persuaded New York publisher E. G. Rideout to take over the magazine project while Munsey served as editor and manager. The debut issue of The Golden Argosy was released on December 9, 1882. Following Rideout’s bankruptcy in early 1883, Munsey claimed ownership of the magazine’s title and subscriber base as payment for unpaid wages and continued publishing independently. In 1884, he introduced Munsey's Illustrated Weekly to support Blaine’s presidential campaign; although short-lived, this publication helped Munsey build credit with suppliers—a critical step he later acknowledged as foundational for his business reputation.

An aggressive advertising campaign in 1887 resulted in $95,000 of debt but succeeded in turning The Golden Argosy profitable with circulation reaching 115,000 by May. However, its focus on children limited advertiser appeal, causing subscription numbers to decline as readers matured. In response, Munsey shortened the title to The Argosy in 1888 and experimented with various format adjustments without notable success. In 1889 he launched Munsey's Weekly, followed by a brief four-month tenure running the Daily Continent newspaper in 1891 before relinquishing control. Later that year, he transformed the weekly magazine into a monthly edition called Munsey's Magazine, initially priced at 20 cents; this price was reduced to 10 cents by October 1893.

Confronted with distribution difficulties due to the American News Company’s monopoly—which compensated only four cents per copy for his lengthy magazine—Munsey circumvented this obstacle by managing his own distribution network, thus enhancing profitability. By February 1894, print runs reached 200,000 copies; this success secured his financial footing. Meanwhile, The Argosy saw circulation drop to 9,000 by March 1894 but rebounded to 40,000 after switching to monthly publication. In 1896 Munsey redefined The Argosy as a fiction-only periodical printed on cost-effective wood-pulp paper, effectively pioneering the pulp magazine format. Circulation steadily increased: reaching 300,000 copies by 1902 and half a million by 1907.

By 1895 Munsey's Magazine was distributing over half a million copies each month, climbing to 700,000 by 1897. In October 1906 Munsey introduced Railroad Man's Magazine, marking the first specialized pulp publication dedicated exclusively to railroad-themed stories and articles. This was followed by The Ocean launched in March 1907 featuring maritime fiction; it was renamed The Live Wire after January 1908 with expanded content scope. Additional titles under Munsey’s ownership included Puritan, Junior Munsey, All-Story Magazine, Scrap Book, Cavalier, Railroad, and Current Mechanics.

Newspapers

Munsey's engagement with newspapers significantly elevated his national reputation. Over a span of 24 years, he acquired, managed, and divested as many as 17 newspapers. At a time when the American newspaper industry was generally shrinking, Munsey gained a reputation for consolidating numerous publications he controlled—a financially shrewd yet contentious strategy that earned him epithets such as "Executioner of Newspapers" and "Dealer in Dailies."

Among the prominent newspapers Munsey owned were:

• Washington Times – Established in 1894, Munsey purchased it in 1901 and later sold it to William Randolph Hearst in 1917. It combined with the Washington Herald in 1922 to create the Washington Times-Herald, which was subsequently acquired by Cissy Patterson in 1939 and merged into the Washington Post in 1954.
• New York Daily News – Managed by Munsey from 1901 through 1904; this publication is separate from the later paper founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson.
• The Boston Journal – Held ownership from 1902 until its sale in 1913.
• Baltimore News-American – Resulted from merging the Baltimore American and The News, both acquired between 1908 and 1923; later combined with the Baltimore Post before ceasing operations in 1986.
• Philadelphia Evening Times – Ceased publication in 1914.
• New York Herald – Purchased in 1920 along with the Paris Herald and New York Evening Telegram for $4 million; sold four years later to Ogden Mills Reid, who merged it with the New York Tribune.
• The New York Sun (historical) – Acquired in 1916 and consolidated with the Press, eventually incorporated into the Herald.
• New York Press – Bought in 1912 and merged with the Sun in 1916.
• The Mail
• The New York Globe – Purchased and merged into the Sun in 1923.

By the time Munsey disposed of the Herald in 1924, only two newspapers remained under his ownership at his passing in 1925. The Evening Telegram was transferred to Scripps-Howard in 1927.

Novels

Munsey also authored multiple novels, including:

• Afloat in a Great City (1887)
• The Boy Broker (1888)
• A Tragedy of Errors (1889)
• Under Fire (1890)
• Derringforth (1894)

Banking

In 1913, Munsey established the Munsey Trust Company, which was restructured two years later as The Equitable Trust Company with Munsey serving as chairman. This financial institution grew to become a leading force within Baltimore and Maryland's banking sector throughout much of the twentieth century until its acquisition by Maryland National Bank in 1990.

Politics

Munsey played an influential role during the 1912 presidential race by providing financial support to former president Theodore Roosevelt's challenge against sitting President William Howard Taft for the Republican nomination. Together with George W. Perkins, Munsey backed Roosevelt prior to the 1912 Republican National Convention.

After Roosevelt left the convention, Munsey condemned what he described as "corrupt proceedings" and helped fund the creation of the Progressive Party, which nominated Roosevelt as its candidate. As a major donor, Munsey contributed significantly to this third-party effort, which garnered one of the highest vote totals ever recorded for a non-major party contender in U.S. history.

Buildings

In 1905, Munsey commissioned the construction of the Munsey Trust Building situated in downtown Washington, D.C., specifically on 'F' Street between 12th and 13th Streets, close to the National Theatre and just off Pennsylvania Avenue. This 13-story edifice, designed by the New York architectural firm McKim, Mead and White, ranked among the tallest buildings in the city at that time. From 1913 until 1916, it served as the inaugural national headquarters for the Girl Scouts of the USA. Despite efforts to preserve it, the building was ultimately razed.

Approximately 35 miles to the northeast in Baltimore, two structures carried Munsey’s name. The Munsey Building located at the intersection of North Calvert and East Fayette Streets, facing Battle Monument Square, underwent reconstruction in 1911 by Baldwin & Pennington alongside McKim, Mead and White, briefly holding the title of Baltimore’s tallest building. This replaced the former newspaper headquarters that had been destroyed during the Great Baltimore Fire of 1904. A distinctive feature was its ground floor, which displayed printing presses for The News of Baltimore behind expansive windows.

Following acquisition by Hearst, the newspaper moved in 1924 to East Pratt Street near the Inner Harbor. Subsequently, the Munsey Building was repurposed as headquarters for Hearst’s Munsey Trust Company, boasting interiors adorned with marble, brass, and bronze finishes. In the early 21st century, after a series of bank mergers and acquisitions, it was transformed into residential apartments combined with commercial areas. By 2013, an M&T Bank branch had opened on its first floor, continuing its financial heritage.

Death and legacy

Munsey passed away in New York City on December 22, 1925, at age 71 due to a ruptured appendix. His will allocated substantial inheritances to family members and senior executives but notably excluded most employees. He arranged an annuity for Annie Downs, a former romantic partner who had declined marriage because of his uncertain future prospects. Additionally, Munsey made donations to various institutions such as Bowdoin College and medical facilities in Maine.

The remainder of his estate was left to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, including ownership of the Sun-Herald newspaper, The Mohican Stores grocery chain, and real estate holdings in Manhasset on Long Island. Under Museum President Robert W. DeForest, a portion of this land was developed into the planned residential neighborhood known as Munsey Park, New York, characterized by Colonial-style houses and streets named after prominent American artists. The first model home opened its doors in 1928. By mid-century, around 1950, these properties were sold by the Museum for roughly four million dollars.

At the time of his death, Munsey’s wealth was estimated between $20 million and $40 million—equivalent to approximately $250 million to $500 million today when adjusted for inflation.

Sources and further reading

• Chace, James. 1912: Wilson, Roosevelt, Taft & Debs — The Election That Changed the Country. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004.
• Locke, John. "Lost at Sea: The Story of The Ocean," in The Ocean: 100th Anniversary Collection. Castroville, CA: Off-Trail Publications, 2008.
• Lowell, D. O. S. A Munsey-Hopkins Genealogy. Boston: privately printed. 1920.
• Mowry, George E. Theodore Roosevelt and the Progressive Movement. (1946) focus on 1912
• Subtitles: Quarter of a Century Old : The Story of The Argosy, Our First Publication, and Incidentally the Story of Munsey's Magazine

External links

• Encyclopædia Britannica: Frank Andrew Munsey