Godey’s Lady’s Book was first published in 1830 and quickly became the first successful American journal for women. This digitized and searchable database of the magazine allows full-text retrieval and includes hand-colored fashion plates and illustrations. (To retrieve these, construct a search such as dress AND illus AND color.)
In addition to extensive fashion descriptions and color plates, Godey’s also included biographical sketches and articles about mineralogy, handicrafts, female costume, the dance, science, equestrian procedures, health and hygiene, and recipes and remedies. It became an important literary magazine and contained extensive book reviews and works by Harriet Beecher Stowe, Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry Wadworth Longfellow, and many other celebrated 19th century authors, who regularly furnished Godey’s with essays, poetry, short stories, and novels.
Coverage: 1830-1898