215

other newspaper, or other business venture under the
same name, there seems to be no record of it.

The "Mr. Wilmer, at Havre de Grace" mentioned in
the Maryland Journal advertisement as a possible
partner of Gerrish's, was quite likely the Reverend
James Jones Wilmer, who had helped to publish the
Eagle of Freedom in Baltimore, for about four months
in 1796, and who, at the time the advertisement was
issued, was conducting schools in different Maryland

towns, among which was Havre de Grace.⁷ Luckily for
Wilmer, the proposed partnership with Gerrish was
probably never consummated.

Information is much more uncertain concerning
Robert Saunders, Jr., Gerrish's partner during the
first four weeks of their Chestertown venture.

Robert Saunders was probably the son of Robert
Saunders, planter of Harford County, Maryland, and of
Elizabeth Andrews, his wife, and was born July 12,
1772.⁸ There is no absolute proof that this Robert
Saunders of Harford County was the first printer of

7 Dictionary of American biography, v. 20, p. 314.

8 Joppa, Md, St. John's Protestant Episcopal
church. Church records, p. 184.

9 L.C. Wroth¹s History of printing in colonial Mary-
land (p. 49-53) investigates the Maryland episode
In the life of John Peter Zonger, who may have.
operated a printing press in Chestertown or Kent
county in 1720 and 1721. However, nothing has
been proved concerning Zenger^fs Maryland press;
and it is possible that Saunders and Gerrish set
up Chestertown's first printing office*