The Anthology Club, or Anthology Society, was a literary society based in Boston, Massachusetts by the

Rev. William Emerson William Emerson (May 6, 1769 – May 12, 1811) was one of Boston's leading citizens, a liberal-minded Unitarian minister, pastor to Boston's First Church and founder of its Philosophical Society, Anthology Club, and Boston Athenaeum, and fath ...

, father of

Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803April 27, 1882), who went by his middle name Waldo, was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champ ...

. It operated from 1804 until 1811.

History

The society organized in response to the first publication, and first failure for want of patronage, of the

Monthly Anthology The ''Monthly Anthology and Boston Review'' was a miscellaneous magazine published by the Anthology Club of Boston, Massachusetts, from 1804 to 1811. The more famous ''North American Review'' is generally considered to be its successor. Olive ...

. As recorded in the ''History of the Boston Athenaeum'', an enterprising firm of publishers, "being desirous that the work should be continued, applied to the

, a clergyman of the place, distinguished for energy and literary taste; and by his exertions several gentlemen of Boston and its vicinity, conspicuous for talent and zealous for literature, were induced to engage in conducting the work, and for this purpose they formed themselves into a Society. This Society was not completely organized until the year 1805, when Dr. Gardiner was elected President, and William Emerson Vice-President. The Society thus formed maintained its existence with reputation for about six years, and issued ten octavo volumes from the press, constituting one of the most lasting and honorable monuments of the literature of the period." Early club members included

Samuel Cooper Thacher Samuel Cooper Thacher (December 14, 1785 – January 2, 1818) was an American clergyman and librarian. Thacher, who was born in Boston, on December 14, 1785, was sprung from a long line of preachers. His father Peter was the pastor of the Bra ...

Joseph Stevens Buckminster Joseph Stevens Buckminster (May 26, 1784 – June 9, 1812) was an influential Unitarian preacher in Boston, Massachusetts, and a leader in bringing the German higher criticism of the Bible to America. Biography Born in Portsmouth, New Hampsh ...

, and

Joseph Tuckerman Joseph Tuckerman (January 18, 1778 Boston – April 20, 1840 Havana) was a United States clergyman and philanthropist. Biography He graduated from Harvard College in 1798, where William Ellery Channing William Ellery Channing (April 7, 1780 � ...

, pastors of churches in Boston and vicinity, John Sylvester John Gardiner, the rector of Trinity Church, president of the club throughout the whole period of its existence, and one of the most frequent contributors to its periodical, and

William Tudor William Tudor (March 28, 1750 – July 8, 1819) was a wealthy lawyer and leading citizen of Boston, Massachusetts. His eldest son William Tudor (1779–1830) became a leading literary figure in Boston. Another son, Frederic Tudor, founded t ...

. Later members included Charles Stewart Dana,

Alexander Hill Everett Alexander Hill Everett (March 19, 1792 – June 28, 1847) was an American diplomat, politician, and Boston man of letters. Everett held diplomatic posts in the Netherlands, Spain, Cuba, and China. His translations of European literature, publish ...

, and

John Collins Warren John Collins Warren (August 1, 1778 – May 4, 1856) was an American surgeon. In 1846 he gave permission to William T.G. Morton to provide ether anesthesia while Warren performed a minor surgical procedure. News of this first public demonstrati ...

. illiam Smith Shaw, President John Adams' former Personal Secretary. The club's publication, the '' Monthly Anthology and Boston Review'', or ''Magazine of Polite Literature'', and had contributors including

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States S ...

Daniel Webster Daniel Webster (January 18, 1782 – October 24, 1852) was an American lawyer and statesman who represented New Hampshire and Massachusetts in the U.S. Congress and served as the U.S. Secretary of State under Presidents William Henry Harrison, ...

, and many scholars. However, with the death of Emerson in 1811, the Anthology ceased publication. The famous ''

North American Review The ''North American Review'' (NAR) was the first literary magazine in the United States. It was founded in Boston in 1815 by journalist Nathan Hale and others. It was published continuously until 1940, after which it was inactive until revived a ...

'', which started bimonthly publication in 1815, under the direction of the Anthology Club, is generally considered a revival of the earlier magazine. The

Boston Athenæum The Boston Athenaeum is one of the oldest independent libraries in the United States. It is also one of a number of subscription library, membership libraries, for which patrons pay a yearly subscription fee to use Athenaeum services. The instit ...

is an outgrowth of the Anthology Club.

Members

Jacob Bigelow Jacob Bigelow (February 27, 1787January 10, 1879) was an American physician, botanist and botanical illustrator. He was architect of Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts (in which he is interred), husband to Mary Scollay, and the f ...

Edmund Trowbridge Dana Edmund Trowbridge Dana, Jr. (29 August 1818, in Cambridge, Massachusetts – 18 May 1869, in Cambridge, Massachusetts) was an American lawyer and author.

* William Emerson *

* Robert Field * John Sylvester John Gardiner * Robert Hallowell Gardiner * John Gorham * Thomas Gray * Joseph Head Jr. * James Jackson * John Thornton Kirkland * Joseph McKean * Andrews Norton * Andrew Ritchie * Winthrop Sargent * James Savage * William Smith Shaw * John Stickney * Samuel Cooper Thacher *

George Ticknor George Ticknor (August 1, 1791 – January 26, 1871) was an American academician and Hispanist, specializing in the subject areas of languages and literature. He is known for his scholarly work on the history and criticism of Spanish literature. ...

* Joseph Tuckerman *

* Arthur Maynard Walter *

* Benjamin Welles * William Wells * Sidney WillardCharles Dexter Cleveland
A compendium of American literature
chronologically arranged: with biographical sketches of the authors. J.A. Bancroft, 1865; p.19-20

References

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History

Members

References

Further reading