The Independent (New York City) facts for kids
Table of contents and masthead from the January 4, 1919 edition of The Independent
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| Frequency | Weekly, except fortnightly from May 27, 1922 to September 13, 1924 |
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| Circulation | 75,000 (1870) |
| First issue | December 7, 1848 |
| Final issue | October 13, 1928 |
| Country | United States |
| Based in | New York City Boston (from 1924) |
| OCLC | 4927591 |
The Independent was a weekly magazine that came out in New York City. It was published from 1848 to 1928. The magazine was started to support the Congregational church. It also strongly supported ending slavery and giving women the right to vote. In 1924, the magazine moved to Boston, Massachusetts.
The Magazine's Journey: A Look Back
How The Independent Began
From 1848 to 1861, three important Congregational ministers edited The Independent. These were Joseph Parrish Thompson, Richard Salter Storrs, and Leonard Bacon.
A group of New York businessmen helped publish and pay for the magazine. Henry Chandler Bowen led this group. The magazine took a strong stand against slavery. This made it hard for the magazine to get readers at first. However, its popularity grew in the 1850s. By the start of the American Civil War, it had 35,000 readers.
In 1861, Henry Ward Beecher became the editor. He was the brother of famous author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Beecher had often written for the magazine before this. His assistant editor was Theodore Tilton. Tilton took over as editor in 1863 and stayed until 1870.
While Tilton was editor, The Independent began to support women's suffrage. This meant they wanted women to have the right to vote. The magazine also printed poems and stories from famous writers. These writers included Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and John Greenleaf Whittier. In 1870, the magazine reached its highest number of readers: 75,000. This was the year Tilton left his job as editor.
Changing Times for the Magazine
After Tilton, Henry C. Bowen became the editor. He was also the publisher until he passed away in 1896. Then, William Hayes Ward became the editor. From this time on, the magazine focused less on religious topics. It started to cover more political news and included more pictures.
This trend continued when Hamilton Holt became editor. Holt was Bowen's grandson. He strongly supported the League to Enforce Peace and later the League of Nations. These groups aimed to prevent future wars. In the early 1900s, The Independent took over three other magazines. These were The Chautauquan (1914), Harper's Weekly (1916), and Countryside (1917).
In 1919, a strike by printers caused problems for the magazine. The Independent struggled with rising costs. It was bought and sold many times in the 1920s. In 1924, its last owners moved it to Boston. But it still did not do well. In 1928, The Independent joined with another magazine, The Outlook. Together, they became The Outlook and Independent.
