The New York Aurora Explained

The New York Aurora was a 19th-century daily newspaper in New York City.

History

Founded in 1841, the newspaper claimed to be politically independent but also "democratic, in the strongest sense of the word".^[1] The four-page, two-penny daily newspaper was owned by Anson Herrick and John F. Ropes and had a circulation of about 5,000.^[2] Its first editor was Thomas Low Nichols, who left by February 1842 after printing a libelous article.^[3]

Walt Whitman began contributing to the Aurora in February 1842; his first works in the publication are likely the series "Walks in Broadway".^[4] He was named the paper's editor on March 28, 1842.^[5] In his editorials, Whitman was open in expressing his personal opinions and beliefs and wrote about New York attractions and personalities, local theater and opera, and various happenings around the city.^[6] The Brooklyn Eagle praised the new editor as offering "marked change for the better" but noted "a dash of egotism" in him.^[6] In fact, owners Anson and Herrick accused Whitman of writing biased articles, including some that criticized Bishop John Hughes as "serpent tongued" and a "hypocritical scoundrel".^[7] Their quarrels led to Whitman leaving the Aurora in May 1842.^[8]

External links

• "Whitman's Editorial Work on the New York Aurora" from the Walt Whitman Archive

Notes and References

1. Erkilla, Betsy. Whitman the Political Poet. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989: 27.
2. Oliver, Charles M. Critical Companion to Walt Whitman: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work. New York: Facts on File, 2006: 318.
3. Reynolds, David S. Walt Whitman's America: A Cultural Biography. New York: Vintage Books, 1995: 92.
4. Krieg, Joann P. A Whitman Chronology. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1998: 12.
5. Stacy, Jason. Walt Whitman's Multitudes: Labor Reform and Persona in Whitman's Journalism and the First 'Leaves of Grass', 1840–1855. New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 2008: 6.
6. Greenspan, Ezra. Walt Whitman and the American Reader. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990: 48.
7. Oliver, Charles M. Critical Companion to Walt Whitman: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work. New York: Facts on File, 2006: 319.
8. Krieg, Joann P. A Whitman Chronology. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1998: 13.