Little Potatoes: Marcellus Foster and his Contributions to Houston Texas
Marcellus Elliot Foster founded the Houston Chronicle in 1901. The Houston Chronicle’s consisted effort to battle injustice and argue on the side of the oppressed came from Foster’s life of growing up poor and working to build a better future. Marcellus Foster grew up in poverty, a fact that influenced his entire outlook on life. Despite his poor upbringings, Foster succeeded by hard work and dedication. Marcellus E. Foster contributed to the shaping of Houston at the turn of the century by founding the Houston Chronicle and dedicating his editorials to fight on the side of the average citizen.
Marcellus E. Foster, born in Pembroke Kentucky on November 28, 1870, migrated to Huntsville Texas with his parents, Marcellus Aurellius Foster and Mariella Fitzhugh Foster. His father fought with the Confederacy, but lost all his assets at the war’s end. His grandfather, George Fitzhugh, fiercely defended the southern economic system that depended on slavery. Despite the pro-Confederate views of his family, Foster developed a different philosophy throughout his younger years. Marcellus E. Foster grew up in Walker County, Texas poor. One of his earliest recollections states, ”attending a county school in old Walker County of being what they called poor folks and others chunking rocks from the top of the hill to laugh at us.” [1]. His family, impoverished by the Civil War, forced the young Marcellus Foster to take a job in a bakery shop. Foster later stated, “I can still smell those hot ginger cakes today and nowadays I eat gingerbread whenever just because I couldn’t have any in my boyhood days.” [2]. His mother made his own clothes and he admitted, “She didn’t realize how ridiculous I looked in the clothes she worked hard to make.” [3]. The family struggled for years until the young Foster attended, the Sam Houston Normal Institute. Marcellus Foster’s first job in the newspaper business started him on his path toward journalism. In 1890, the editor of the Huntsville Item hired him to train as a printer’s apprentice. His training included using lye to clean and scrub the floors. He soon eventually moved to typesetting and eventually received a position as a reporter. His first article with the Huntsville Item involved the neglected grave of Sam Houston and the condition of his houseboat. He received ten dollars for the article.
Foster applied to the Sam Houston Normal Institute later that year. He received a scholarship for thirty-five dollars a month. His parents helped him save it for his journey later to the University of Texas. Foster carried a philosophy all his career of fighting for the common man and the oppressed. This philosophy originated from an English Composition class. At his retirement banquet, he recalled, “The teacher of literature, the well trained and well educated Miss Elliot, told me to choose my subject by discussing some Shakespearean play, I tried it but it had no appeal to me.” [4]. He finished his recollection by stating, “I told of the hill of potatoes how the big ones were held in high esteem, but how the little ones furnished food and did their part in the world.” [5].
Foster felt the common everyday man provided the same contribution to the world as the rich industrial leaders. He did believe in leaders and stated plainly, “without leaders we could have little or nothing for the good of ordinary man.” [6]. Foster’s upbringing allowed empathy to influence his philosophy. The establishment of this philosophy brought the first step towards founding one of the most influential papers in the South.
Foster graduated from the Sam Houston Normal Institute and moved to the University of Texas. His passion towards journalism flourished. He wrote an article on Albert Sydney Johnston, which received great acclaim from former Confederate soldiers. As Foster continued with the Huntsville Item, he caught the eye of Colonel R. M. Johnston of the Houston Post. He read foster’s coverage of the gubernatorial debate between George Clark and James S. Hogg in 1892. He noticed Foster, “had a sizable string every week.” [7]. Johnston’s reportorial staff went weeks without obtaining great stories but observed a new story written by Foster every week.
Foster moved to Houston to work for the Houston Post. Foster arrived in a growing Houston still not fully developed. The town’s population of 44,000 made it fell like a, “overgrown country town.” [8]. When he arrived at the depot, he told his driver to take him to Pierce Street and the driver said, “Why that’s on the other side of the Calhoun ditch it will cost extra.” [9]. This quote illustrates the size of Houston, not quite the growth or progress like on the eastern seaboard. Houston still awaited growth from the lumber and oil industries.
Foster covered the burning fires of the fifth ward in 1899 but missed the deadline by ten minutes. Foster later stated, “There were no makeovers if you missed the 2:30 AM deadline then too bad for you.” [10]. Foster gained knowledge about politics through Col. R.M. Johnston. According to Foster, “I remember standing at the rice hotel, listening to Johnston discuss his views about politics and international affairs, those were the good old days for democracy.” [11]. Foster’s pen later on brought down many politicians who he felt denied justice to the people. At this moment, he started his famous “Why” column.
Marcellus E. Foster gained attention with the famous ‘Why” column. He used it as an outlet to discuss his political and social views. He discussed everything from elections to even school board decisions. He used the pseudonym Mefo. Soon, he arose to marketing editor, Sunday editor and finally managing editor. His next story brought him to Galveston due to a disaster brought on by a hurricane.
Shortly after, the Hurricane of 1900 devastated Galveston. Foster left Houston and established an office in Galveston. He saw the destruction and described it, “bodies lay out on the streets, buildings and homes were wiped out.” [12]. Foster decided to handle the situation differently by, “instead of publishing the names of the dead, he decided to publish the names of survivors in order to assure family members in Houston they survived.” [13]. Foster wanted the devastation to reach Houston in order to draw out assistance for aid.
Foster’s last assignment with the Post took him to Beaumont. The Spindle top Oil Field shot out its first oil in 1900. He gambled away a week’s salary to obtain an oil lease option. He sold the oil lease for five thousand dollars. He decided at this point to open up an afternoon paper for Houston. Marcellus wanted a new more aggressive paper but also wanted new profits in management. Charlie Myers, connected to the Star in Indianapolis, gave him the idea of raising money. He worked very hard and eventually raised twenty-five thousand dollars. All his associates told him, “two newspapers were enough, it won’t work.” [14].
Foster and Myers found a 3-story building on Texas Avenue between Fanin and Main. The rent cost two-hundred and fifty dollars per month. Marcellus and Myers worked to get the machinery and launched the first paper on October, 14, 1901 in the afternoon. The first copies sold for two cents. In fact, the Houston Press credited Foster for bringing the penny to Houston, “we had to bring in fifty thousand pennies in order to assure change for everyone, before the smallest coin was the nickel.” [15].
Foster used the Houston Chronicle as a platform to attack various issues in Houston in 1901. Foster continued to write his editorial under, Mefo. His first editorial involved the burning of the Hutchen’s House. He discovered the water pressure’s low strength added to the destruction of the home. He wrote impassioned articles that advocated forcing municipal works to become more responsible for public safety.
His next target, the most powerful organization in politics and business at the time, the Ku Klux Klan, fought back. Foster’s paper lost circulation in certain neighborhoods, some of his long time friends turned their backs, and his staff was threatened with death letters. Nevertheless, he attacked them, “for their reign of terror, influencing public officials, and threatening the disadvantaged, the threats were so bad he had armed guards protect his staff and was rarely seen in public.” [16].
He lived through the ordeal and his paper recovered when Miriam Ferguson was elected to the governorship. Marcellus fought with the governor to pass a state law banning masks because the KKK, “without the secrecy and ability to hide their faces the Klan could not exist.” [17]. Foster attacked the KKK for five years ignoring the threats and aiding in the destruction of the KKK as a power in not just Texas, but the United States too.
Foster fully involved in politics backed a mayoral candidate named O. T. Holt. Mefo attacked the candidate and the fire chief of Houston, who backed another candidate, stated, “he will be around next morning to clean out the whole blanket blank staff.” [18]. Mefo printed the words in the paper and any other threats that showed up. Mefo combated corruption in the U.S senate too. He accused Senator Joseph Weldon Bailey of corruption by taking legal fees to represent the Waters Pierce Oil Company as a senator. He called it, “treason.” [19]. It cost him a friendship with Judge Norman Kitrell who had ties to the company in question. However, Mefo put principle above friendship to unveil corruption and serve the people in Houston.
Mefo battled gambling as well. It turned up on Main Street and turned his editorials to the salons which also carried prostitution. Local businesses failed to take his sharp stance against gambling and threatened to pull out all advertising. According to Lori Rodriguez, “Mefo’s editorials kept coming, local businesses did not pull out, no advertising was lost, and to this day no one could figure out how this man did it.” [20]. The gambling dens disappeared. Mefo attacked drunkenness and once again turned his writing skills on destroying the saloons. He wrote articles attacking the saloons for being opened on Sunday. He continued until, “All the saloons threw their hands up and closed till noon.” [21].
Foster attacked poverty in Houston. He grew up in poverty and his empathy for the working poor grew. When asked by a man who earned seventy dollars a month, “how much longer can you live on shelling out twenty dollars on rent, seven dollars for utilities and two dollars and sixty cents for transportation”, he wrote an article, “scolding the rich corporations and not having enough empathy for the working class.” [22]. Foster never forgot his childhood years working at the bakery shops and scrubbing wooden floors and the Huntsville Item.
Marcellus Foster retired for the first time on June 26, 1928. He made up with old friends and retired as editor and publisher turning it over to Jesse H Jones. The Chronicle started with twenty-five thousand dollars in assets, by the time of his retirement; there were over two million dollars worth. He was supposed to retire to California but Bob Scripps asked him to be editor of Houston Press, which he accepted.
He continued his fight for justice with the Houston Natural Gas Company. The Houston City Council wanted to raise the gas rate on households. Despite being in New York at the time, he wrote an editorial blasting the City Council. The Council wanted to raise the average gas rate from sixty-five to eighty cents per one thousand feet and increase the service rate from fifty to seventy-five cents. These increases would cost the citizens of Houston almost five hundred thousand dollars each year.
He cut his trip in New York early, rode back to Houston, and started an editorial campaign. According to Foster, “The women answered the call to arms formed the housewives league, stormed the city hall, and with the determined support of the Press forced the council to rescind the order.” [23]. Marcellus foster retired once again after a car accident. He died April 1, 1941 of a heart attack.
Marcellus Elliot Foster served the city of Houston since his arrival. Foster battled the forces of corruption in the Senate, battled the KKK for five years, and made Houston a powerhouse with the Houston Chronicle. His fierce editorials fired at any organization or government body that threatened the oppressed and at the same time allowed Houston to progress as a modern city. Marcellus foster helped shape Houston at a time of growth with the power of the pen and the support of his subscribers.
Works Cited
[1] Obituary of Marcellus Foster, Houston Press, April 1, 1942.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] “Fight for the Little Man Always His Policy, Foster Declares at Honor Banquet,” Houston Press, March 1, 1941.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid.
[7] “Death Takes M.E Foster At His Home.” Houston Chronicle, April 1, 1942.
[8] Lori Rodriguez, “Chronicle Founder a Gentle Man but a Rugged Crusader,” Houston Chronicle, October 17, 1979.
[9] Ibid.
[10] Ibid.
[11] “Services to be Held for M.E Foster This Afternoon,” Houston Press, April 20, 1941.
[12] Foster, Marcellus. “ ME Foster Completes 42 Years Work,” Houston Chronicle, February 22, 1938.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15] “Fight For the Little Man,” Houston Press, March 1, 1941.
[16] Foster, Houston Chronicle, February 22, 1942.
[17] Ibid.
[18] Rodriguez, Houston Chronicle, 1979.
[19] Ibid.
[20] Ibid.
[21] Ibid.
[22] Ibid.
[23] Ibid.
Marcellus E. Foster, born in Pembroke Kentucky on November 28, 1870, migrated to Huntsville Texas with his parents, Marcellus Aurellius Foster and Mariella Fitzhugh Foster. His father fought with the Confederacy, but lost all his assets at the war’s end. His grandfather, George Fitzhugh, fiercely defended the southern economic system that depended on slavery. Despite the pro-Confederate views of his family, Foster developed a different philosophy throughout his younger years. Marcellus E. Foster grew up in Walker County, Texas poor. One of his earliest recollections states, ”attending a county school in old Walker County of being what they called poor folks and others chunking rocks from the top of the hill to laugh at us.” [1]. His family, impoverished by the Civil War, forced the young Marcellus Foster to take a job in a bakery shop. Foster later stated, “I can still smell those hot ginger cakes today and nowadays I eat gingerbread whenever just because I couldn’t have any in my boyhood days.” [2]. His mother made his own clothes and he admitted, “She didn’t realize how ridiculous I looked in the clothes she worked hard to make.” [3]. The family struggled for years until the young Foster attended, the Sam Houston Normal Institute. Marcellus Foster’s first job in the newspaper business started him on his path toward journalism. In 1890, the editor of the Huntsville Item hired him to train as a printer’s apprentice. His training included using lye to clean and scrub the floors. He soon eventually moved to typesetting and eventually received a position as a reporter. His first article with the Huntsville Item involved the neglected grave of Sam Houston and the condition of his houseboat. He received ten dollars for the article.
Foster applied to the Sam Houston Normal Institute later that year. He received a scholarship for thirty-five dollars a month. His parents helped him save it for his journey later to the University of Texas. Foster carried a philosophy all his career of fighting for the common man and the oppressed. This philosophy originated from an English Composition class. At his retirement banquet, he recalled, “The teacher of literature, the well trained and well educated Miss Elliot, told me to choose my subject by discussing some Shakespearean play, I tried it but it had no appeal to me.” [4]. He finished his recollection by stating, “I told of the hill of potatoes how the big ones were held in high esteem, but how the little ones furnished food and did their part in the world.” [5].
Foster felt the common everyday man provided the same contribution to the world as the rich industrial leaders. He did believe in leaders and stated plainly, “without leaders we could have little or nothing for the good of ordinary man.” [6]. Foster’s upbringing allowed empathy to influence his philosophy. The establishment of this philosophy brought the first step towards founding one of the most influential papers in the South.
Foster graduated from the Sam Houston Normal Institute and moved to the University of Texas. His passion towards journalism flourished. He wrote an article on Albert Sydney Johnston, which received great acclaim from former Confederate soldiers. As Foster continued with the Huntsville Item, he caught the eye of Colonel R. M. Johnston of the Houston Post. He read foster’s coverage of the gubernatorial debate between George Clark and James S. Hogg in 1892. He noticed Foster, “had a sizable string every week.” [7]. Johnston’s reportorial staff went weeks without obtaining great stories but observed a new story written by Foster every week.
Foster moved to Houston to work for the Houston Post. Foster arrived in a growing Houston still not fully developed. The town’s population of 44,000 made it fell like a, “overgrown country town.” [8]. When he arrived at the depot, he told his driver to take him to Pierce Street and the driver said, “Why that’s on the other side of the Calhoun ditch it will cost extra.” [9]. This quote illustrates the size of Houston, not quite the growth or progress like on the eastern seaboard. Houston still awaited growth from the lumber and oil industries.
Foster covered the burning fires of the fifth ward in 1899 but missed the deadline by ten minutes. Foster later stated, “There were no makeovers if you missed the 2:30 AM deadline then too bad for you.” [10]. Foster gained knowledge about politics through Col. R.M. Johnston. According to Foster, “I remember standing at the rice hotel, listening to Johnston discuss his views about politics and international affairs, those were the good old days for democracy.” [11]. Foster’s pen later on brought down many politicians who he felt denied justice to the people. At this moment, he started his famous “Why” column.
Marcellus E. Foster gained attention with the famous ‘Why” column. He used it as an outlet to discuss his political and social views. He discussed everything from elections to even school board decisions. He used the pseudonym Mefo. Soon, he arose to marketing editor, Sunday editor and finally managing editor. His next story brought him to Galveston due to a disaster brought on by a hurricane.
Shortly after, the Hurricane of 1900 devastated Galveston. Foster left Houston and established an office in Galveston. He saw the destruction and described it, “bodies lay out on the streets, buildings and homes were wiped out.” [12]. Foster decided to handle the situation differently by, “instead of publishing the names of the dead, he decided to publish the names of survivors in order to assure family members in Houston they survived.” [13]. Foster wanted the devastation to reach Houston in order to draw out assistance for aid.
Foster’s last assignment with the Post took him to Beaumont. The Spindle top Oil Field shot out its first oil in 1900. He gambled away a week’s salary to obtain an oil lease option. He sold the oil lease for five thousand dollars. He decided at this point to open up an afternoon paper for Houston. Marcellus wanted a new more aggressive paper but also wanted new profits in management. Charlie Myers, connected to the Star in Indianapolis, gave him the idea of raising money. He worked very hard and eventually raised twenty-five thousand dollars. All his associates told him, “two newspapers were enough, it won’t work.” [14].
Foster and Myers found a 3-story building on Texas Avenue between Fanin and Main. The rent cost two-hundred and fifty dollars per month. Marcellus and Myers worked to get the machinery and launched the first paper on October, 14, 1901 in the afternoon. The first copies sold for two cents. In fact, the Houston Press credited Foster for bringing the penny to Houston, “we had to bring in fifty thousand pennies in order to assure change for everyone, before the smallest coin was the nickel.” [15].
Foster used the Houston Chronicle as a platform to attack various issues in Houston in 1901. Foster continued to write his editorial under, Mefo. His first editorial involved the burning of the Hutchen’s House. He discovered the water pressure’s low strength added to the destruction of the home. He wrote impassioned articles that advocated forcing municipal works to become more responsible for public safety.
His next target, the most powerful organization in politics and business at the time, the Ku Klux Klan, fought back. Foster’s paper lost circulation in certain neighborhoods, some of his long time friends turned their backs, and his staff was threatened with death letters. Nevertheless, he attacked them, “for their reign of terror, influencing public officials, and threatening the disadvantaged, the threats were so bad he had armed guards protect his staff and was rarely seen in public.” [16].
He lived through the ordeal and his paper recovered when Miriam Ferguson was elected to the governorship. Marcellus fought with the governor to pass a state law banning masks because the KKK, “without the secrecy and ability to hide their faces the Klan could not exist.” [17]. Foster attacked the KKK for five years ignoring the threats and aiding in the destruction of the KKK as a power in not just Texas, but the United States too.
Foster fully involved in politics backed a mayoral candidate named O. T. Holt. Mefo attacked the candidate and the fire chief of Houston, who backed another candidate, stated, “he will be around next morning to clean out the whole blanket blank staff.” [18]. Mefo printed the words in the paper and any other threats that showed up. Mefo combated corruption in the U.S senate too. He accused Senator Joseph Weldon Bailey of corruption by taking legal fees to represent the Waters Pierce Oil Company as a senator. He called it, “treason.” [19]. It cost him a friendship with Judge Norman Kitrell who had ties to the company in question. However, Mefo put principle above friendship to unveil corruption and serve the people in Houston.
Mefo battled gambling as well. It turned up on Main Street and turned his editorials to the salons which also carried prostitution. Local businesses failed to take his sharp stance against gambling and threatened to pull out all advertising. According to Lori Rodriguez, “Mefo’s editorials kept coming, local businesses did not pull out, no advertising was lost, and to this day no one could figure out how this man did it.” [20]. The gambling dens disappeared. Mefo attacked drunkenness and once again turned his writing skills on destroying the saloons. He wrote articles attacking the saloons for being opened on Sunday. He continued until, “All the saloons threw their hands up and closed till noon.” [21].
Foster attacked poverty in Houston. He grew up in poverty and his empathy for the working poor grew. When asked by a man who earned seventy dollars a month, “how much longer can you live on shelling out twenty dollars on rent, seven dollars for utilities and two dollars and sixty cents for transportation”, he wrote an article, “scolding the rich corporations and not having enough empathy for the working class.” [22]. Foster never forgot his childhood years working at the bakery shops and scrubbing wooden floors and the Huntsville Item.
Marcellus Foster retired for the first time on June 26, 1928. He made up with old friends and retired as editor and publisher turning it over to Jesse H Jones. The Chronicle started with twenty-five thousand dollars in assets, by the time of his retirement; there were over two million dollars worth. He was supposed to retire to California but Bob Scripps asked him to be editor of Houston Press, which he accepted.
He continued his fight for justice with the Houston Natural Gas Company. The Houston City Council wanted to raise the gas rate on households. Despite being in New York at the time, he wrote an editorial blasting the City Council. The Council wanted to raise the average gas rate from sixty-five to eighty cents per one thousand feet and increase the service rate from fifty to seventy-five cents. These increases would cost the citizens of Houston almost five hundred thousand dollars each year.
He cut his trip in New York early, rode back to Houston, and started an editorial campaign. According to Foster, “The women answered the call to arms formed the housewives league, stormed the city hall, and with the determined support of the Press forced the council to rescind the order.” [23]. Marcellus foster retired once again after a car accident. He died April 1, 1941 of a heart attack.
Marcellus Elliot Foster served the city of Houston since his arrival. Foster battled the forces of corruption in the Senate, battled the KKK for five years, and made Houston a powerhouse with the Houston Chronicle. His fierce editorials fired at any organization or government body that threatened the oppressed and at the same time allowed Houston to progress as a modern city. Marcellus foster helped shape Houston at a time of growth with the power of the pen and the support of his subscribers.
Works Cited
[1] Obituary of Marcellus Foster, Houston Press, April 1, 1942.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] “Fight for the Little Man Always His Policy, Foster Declares at Honor Banquet,” Houston Press, March 1, 1941.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid.
[7] “Death Takes M.E Foster At His Home.” Houston Chronicle, April 1, 1942.
[8] Lori Rodriguez, “Chronicle Founder a Gentle Man but a Rugged Crusader,” Houston Chronicle, October 17, 1979.
[9] Ibid.
[10] Ibid.
[11] “Services to be Held for M.E Foster This Afternoon,” Houston Press, April 20, 1941.
[12] Foster, Marcellus. “ ME Foster Completes 42 Years Work,” Houston Chronicle, February 22, 1938.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15] “Fight For the Little Man,” Houston Press, March 1, 1941.
[16] Foster, Houston Chronicle, February 22, 1942.
[17] Ibid.
[18] Rodriguez, Houston Chronicle, 1979.
[19] Ibid.
[20] Ibid.
[21] Ibid.
[22] Ibid.
[23] Ibid.
