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

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History

Founded in 1841, the newspaper claimed to be politically independent but also "democratic, in the strongest sense of the word". The four-page, two-penny daily newspaper was owned by

Anson Herrick Anson Herrick (January 21, 1812 – February 6, 1868) was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from New York during the latter half of the American Civil War. A newspaperman by trade, he served a single term in Unite ...

and John F. Ropes and had a circulation of about 5,000. Its first editor was Thomas Low Nichols, who left by February 1842 after printing a libelous article.

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among t ...

began contributing to the ''Aurora'' in February 1842; his first works in the publication are likely the series "Walks in Broadway". He was named the paper's editor on March 28, 1842. 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.Greenspan, Ezra. ''Walt Whitman and the American Reader''. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990: 48. The ''

Brooklyn Eagle :''This article covers both the historical newspaper (1841–1955, 1960–1963), as well as an unrelated new Brooklyn Daily Eagle starting 1996 published currently'' The ''Brooklyn Eagle'' (originally joint name ''The Brooklyn Eagle'' and ''King ...

'' praised the new editor as offering "marked change for the better" but noted "a dash of egotism" in him. 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". Their quarrels led to Whitman leaving the ''Aurora'' in May 1842.Krieg, Joann P. ''A Whitman Chronology''. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1998: 13.

References

External links

Whitman's Editorial Work on the ''New York Aurora''
from the Walt Whitman Archive {{DEFAULTSORT:New York Aurora, The Defunct newspapers published in New York City Daily newspapers published in New York City