Wide Awake (magazine)
Daniel Lothrop launched Wide Awake in July 1875 from his Boston publishing firm. He envisioned a magazine for children aged ten to eighteen years old. His evangelical background shaped the publication's core mission. The first issue declared it would avoid run-away-to-sea stories or elope-and-be-happy incentives. Parents of that era criticized such content heavily. Lothrop wanted boys and girls to become broad-minded, pure-hearted, and thoroughly wide awake.
Ella Farman served as the magazine's first editor starting in 1875. She edited from her home in Battle Creek, Michigan with help from Emma L. Shaw. Both women moved to Boston shortly after beginning their work. Charles Stuart Pratt handled art direction during this early period. Farman married Pratt in 1877 which prompted Shaw to return to Michigan. Ella Farman Pratt remained editor until December 1891 when she stepped down following her marriage.
Early issues contained between 60 and 72 pages of well-illustrated short stories. Readers found word puzzles on a page called Tangles. A section named Wide Awake Post Office printed letters about homes and families. Wide Awake Athletics covered team sports and gymnasium exercises. Later issues averaged 92 pages excluding advertising sections. No advertisements appeared within the stories themselves. All ads sat in special sections at the front and back covers.
Harriet Mulford Stone wrote under the pen name Margaret Sidney for the magazine. Her story Polly Pepper's Chicken Pie appeared in 1877. Phronsie Pepper's New Shoes followed in 1878. Positive reader response led editor Ella Farman Pratt to request more Pepper family tales. These new stories ran in 1880 issues of the magazine. Daniel Lothrop visited Stone in New Haven and eventually married her in 1881. D. Lothrop Company published an expanded novel version titled Five Little Peppers and How They Grew that same year.
Wide Awake added a 16-page Chautauqua Young Folks Reading Union supplement starting in 1882. The supplement listed books published by D. Lothrop Company as part of its reading course. These supplements did not appear in bound volumes marketed as Wide Awake Pleasure Books. The program ended in 1888 after six years of operation. It aimed to promote self-improvement among young readers through structured study.
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Common questions
When did Daniel Lothrop launch Wide Awake magazine?
Daniel Lothrop launched Wide Awake in July 1875 from his Boston publishing firm. The first issue declared the publication would avoid runaway-to-sea stories or elope-and-be-happy incentives.
Who edited Wide Awake magazine starting in 1875?
Ella Farman served as the magazine's first editor starting in 1875 and remained editor until December 1891 when she stepped down following her marriage to Charles Stuart Pratt. She edited from her home in Battle Creek, Michigan with help from Emma L. Shaw before both women moved to Boston shortly after beginning their work.
What content appeared in early issues of Wide Awake magazine?
Early issues contained between 60 and 72 pages of well-illustrated short stories including word puzzles on a page called Tangles. A section named Wide Awake Post Office printed letters about homes and families while Wide Awake Athletics covered team sports and gymnasium exercises.
Which author wrote under the pen name Margaret Sidney for Wide Awake magazine?
Harriet Mulford Stone wrote under the pen name Margaret Sidney for the magazine and published Polly Pepper's Chicken Pie in 1877. Her story Phronsie Pepper's New Shoes followed in 1878 and these new stories ran in 1880 issues of the magazine.
When did the Chautauqua Young Folks Reading Union supplement end operation within Wide Awake magazine?
Wide Awake added a 16-page Chautauqua Young Folks Reading Union supplement starting in 1882 and the program ended in 1888 after six years of operation. These supplements did not appear in bound volumes marketed as Wide Awake Pleasure Books.