 William Trotter Porter ( December 24 , 1809 – July 19 , 1858 ) was an American journalist and newspaper editor who founded an early American newspaper devoted to sports . After working at a number of small newspapers , Porter moved to New York City in the 1830s . After employment at a newspaper in the city , he founded the Spirit of the Times , a newspaper modeled on a London paper called Bell 's Life in London . The Spirit , which went through a number of names and incarnations over the years , was devoted to sports and other recreational pursuits . One of Porter 's main interests involved horse racing , and he was involved in attempts to create the first stud book in the United States , which did not bear fruit . He was also instrumental in the development of American literature , as the Spirit published a number of short stories by American tall tale writers , and Porter edited two collections of short stories by American writers . After publishing the Spirit through the 1830s , he sold it to another printer but continued as the editor into the 1850s . He left the original Spirit in 1855 and in 1856 was hired as editor for another sporting newspaper , Porter 's Spirit of the Times , published by George Wilkes . Porter died in 1858 . 
