In his early twenties, James Russell Lowell (1819–1891) created this periodical in an effort to “furnish the intelligent and reflecting portion of the Reading Public with a rational substitute for the enormous quantity of thrice-diluted trash, in the shape of namby-pamby love tales and sketches, which is monthly poured out to them by many of our popular Magazines.” Though it survived for only three issues, the Pioneer presented never-before-seen classics of American fiction and poetry, including Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” and this famous Hawthorne story about a scientist whose determination to improve nature’s handiwork leads to the death of his wife.

Boston Public Library, Rare Books & Manuscripts