1888-9-22 National Geographic Magazine

.22nd September 1888: 1st edition of National Geographic Magazine published - HiPo > .

The National Geographic Society was established in Washington D.C. in January 1888. Founded by just thirty-three men, the Society’s first President was the lawyer and financier Gardiner Greene Hubbard whose lay interest in science and geography perfectly embodied the Society’s creation ‘for the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge’.

Nine months after the Society’s foundation, the first edition of its journal was sent to its 165 charter members. Consisting mostly of short technical articles, the magazine struggled to increase its readership for the first few years of its existence. Following the election of Alexander Graham Bell as President and the appointment of the new editor Gilbert H. Grosvenor, the early 1900s saw the magazine begin to focus more on pictorial content. Although criticised by some members of the Board of Managers for being ‘unscientific’, the increasing use of often pioneering photographs soon helped to secure a much wider audience.

Initially only available to members of the National Geographic Society, the magazine is now available to purchase on newsstands and through direct subscription around the world. The creation of nearly 40 different local-language editions has resulted in a global circulation of more than 6.5 million copies per month, reaching an estimated 60 million readers. Revenue from sales of the magazine help to fund scientific expeditions and scientific research as well as sponsor travelling exhibitions, making the National Geographic Society one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organisations in the world.