The American Magazine, by Brother Jonathan

4.2 Brother Jonathan.jpg

Title

The American Magazine, by Brother Jonathan

Coverage

London

Publisher

W. S. Johnson

Date

April 1851

Subject

Volume 1, number 1

Description

A monthly miscellany containing articles by American writers and a glorious cover illustration of the American flag. At a time when the lack of international copyright laws made it easy for American magazines (and entire publishing houses such as Harper Brothers) to thrive on pirated British literature, this magazine uniquely celebrated American literature in London. “Brother Jonathan” was the fictional predecessor of Uncle Sam as the personification of America, equivalent to the English John Bull.