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Trial for Libel, the King vs. Joseph Howe, Halifax, 1835

Joseph Howe · 1835

The printed record of Joseph Howe's 1835 libel trial in Halifax, where he defended himself and argued for a free press.

This is the trial record of Howe's own landmark defence, central to his legacy as a champion of press freedom.

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Trial for Libel, the King vs. Joseph Howe, Halifax, 1835PDF · 108 pages
Trial for Libel, the King vs. Joseph Howe, Halifax, 1835. Digitized microform, Internet Archive.

About this source

What it is

This is the printed transcript of the trial The King vs. Joseph Howe, held in 1835 before the chief justice and a special jury at the Supreme Court in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Howe was prosecuted for libelling the magistrates of Halifax.

Why it matters

Howe defended himself in this case, and his speech became a landmark moment in the fight for freedom of the press in Nova Scotia. This document preserves the courtroom proceedings, including the jury and the opening address by counsel.

Look closer

  • Why would a trial transcript be preserved and printed for the public?
  • What does the formal courtroom language tell you about how trials were conducted at the time?
  • Why might Howe's case matter beyond his own personal fate?

This document is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Joseph Howe on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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