Blogging History: Will Rogers, Eleanor Roosevelt Paved the Way

Surprisingly, the first blogger was a cowboy by the name of Will Rogers. Little-known today, he has a very good claim on being the most famous American in the first decades of the twentieth century.

Rogers was born on a ranch in Indian Territory, now Oklahoma in the 1870s. Always restless, his skills as a trick roper gave him an excuse to quit school and try Vaudeville as a novelty act. Rogers soon learned to punctuate the pauses in his act with his natural dry wit and homespun comments on events of the day. Soon, his success was noticed by Flo Ziegfield and he became a featured performer in the Ziegfield Follies, perhaps the most famous entertainment venue of its time. By the 1920's Hollywood movies were displacing Vaudeville shows as the entertainment of choice for American and Rogers took his family to California and was soon a star of the early silent films.

With films, he found a national audience. His simple ways and homespun commentary made him America's most celebrated stars.

The Will Rogers Blog

Rogers soon began writing a daily column printed in newspapers around the country. Although personal experiences are a staple of blogs today, it is hard to imagine any other American with the ability to captivate a national audience with his thoughts and experiences on a daily basis. His homespun observations would make it possible to lift his commentary seemlessly (with a few anachorisms) into a blog today. In content and style, Rogers was 70 years ahead of bloggers today.

Eleanor Roosevelt - My Day

First lady Eleanor Roosevelt was as respected and well-known as her husband, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. She also wrote a column similar in tone to Rogers, but more concerned with national issues. She would write about functions she attended, guests at her home, and national issues in her my day column. Her prominent position certainly help provide readable content, but her style was as plain, although not simple, as she was.

Although an electronic medium, blogging traces its roots to the daily musings of these famous Americans.