By William Power
"USA250: The Story of the World's Greatest Economy" is a yearlong WSJ series examining America's first 250 years. Read more about it from Editor in Chief Emma Tucker.
The Wall Street Journal and parent Dow Jones weren't yet in existence when the country turned 100 and had its centennial bash, in 1876. In fact, our founders, Charles Dow and Edward Jones, were still just 24 and 19, respectively, at the time, and they (along with co-founder Charles Bergstresser) didn't start publishing the Journal until July 1889.
But we were there for the 150th birthday, the sesquicentennial, in 1926.
And, of course, for the bicentennial in 1976. And now, for the semiquincentennial, the 250th anniversary, in 2026.
Just as citizens in 1876 might be overwhelmed if they saw how we live in 2026, the look of the Journal from decades ago might be unrecognizable to today's readers. But some of the issues surrounding the birthday celebrations — financial, political and logistical — have been similar every 50 years.
1926: THE SESQUICENTENNIAL
1976: THE BICENTENNIAL
A full clip of this article by Bernard Wysocki Jr. is here.
So, that's what the Journal looked like during the past two big milestones — and our Journal Reports coverage of the current birthday, the semiquincentennial, can be found at WSJ.com/USA250 and in the print paper.
For the next one after that, check back with us in 2076.