Young Folkswas a weeklychildren's literarymagazinepublished in the United Kingdom between 1871 and 1897. Its publishing office was initially in Manchester, then relocated to London in 1873.[1]It is most notable for having first published a number of novels byRobert Louis Stevensonin serial form, includingTreasure Island,Kidnapped,andThe Black Arrow.
| Former editors |
|
|---|---|
| Founder | James Henderson |
| Founded | 1871 |
| First issue | 1 January 1871 |
| Final issue | 29 April 1897 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
It enjoyed a wide demographic appeal, as the test of time as shown, unique compared to contemporary publications. First sold for one half-penny with eight pages, the price was increased to one penny in 1873 and the page count increased to sixteen. Its motto wasTo Inform, To Instruct, To Amuse.[2]
Young Folkswent under a number of different names in its 26-year history:
- Our Young Folks' Weekly Budget(1 January 1871 – 28 June 1879) (447 editions)
- Young Folks(5 July 1879 – 20 December 1884) (326 editions)
- Young Folks' Paper(27 December 1884 – 28 June 1891)
- Old and Young(4 July 1891 – 11 September 1896)
- Folks at Home(18 September 1896 – 29 April 1897)
The proprietor and sometimes editor of the magazine wasJames Henderson.Young FolksserialisedTreasure Islandin Volumes 19 and 20 from 1 October 1881 to 28 January 1882.[3]It ran under the titleTreasure Island; or, the mutiny of the Hispaniolaand under thepseudonymCaptain George North.It made little difference to the sales of the magazine.[3]Robert Leightonrecalled that: "The boy readers did not like the story. As a serial it was a failure. Boys like a story to plunge at once into the active excitement..."[4]
The Black Arrow—published under the same pseudonym—was serialised between 30 June and 30 October 1883. As a serial it was, unlike Treasure Island, a huge success.[1]Kidnappedwas serialised in the magazine from May to July 1886.
Editors
edit| Editor's name | Years |
|---|---|
| Robert Leighton[5] | 1884–85 |
Other editors were Clinton Leighton and Richard Quittenton[2](22 November 1833 – 23 January 1914) who wrote under the pseudonymRoland Quizand worked on the magazine for 42 years.[6]
Artists
editJohn Proctor(AKA 'Puck') was a regular contributor in the 1870s.
References
edit- ^abRobert Louis Stevenson; John Sutherland (27 September 2007). "The Composition and Publication of the Black Arrow".The Black Arrow.Penguin Books Limited.ISBN978-0-14-190524-2.
- ^abcdLaurel Brake; Marysa Demoor (2009).Dictionary of Nineteenth-century Journalism in Great Britain and Ireland.Academia Press. p. 474.ISBN978-90-382-1340-8.
- ^abFrederick Joseph Harvey Darton (3 November 2011).Children's Books in England: Five Centuries of Social Life.Cambridge University Press. p. 302.ISBN978-1-108-03381-7.
- ^Steuart, John Alexander (1928). "Unromantic Reality and Some Engaging Philosophy".Robert Louis Stevenson: a critical biography.p. 382.Retrieved9 April2020.
- ^"LEIGHTON, Robert".Who's Who.Vol. 59. 1907. p. 1044.
- ^Tres, Mark."Roland Quiz: Pseudonym of the author Richard Martin Howard Quittenton".Benfleet Community Archive.Retrieved9 April2020.
Further reading
edit
- Frederick Wilse Bateson,The Cambridge Bibliography of English Literature(Cambridge University Press, 1966).