America Magazine Records

With headquarters in New York City, AMERICA Magazine traces its origins back to a set of directives (Oct. 26, 1891) by Jesuit Superior General Anthony Anderledy that anticipated the establishment of a monthly periodical published by the Maryland-New York Province of the Society of Jesus. The idea for the periodical originated with Fr. Thomas Campbell, Superior of the Maryland-New York Province. According to Fr. Thomas C. Widner's article "From the History," after three years of problems with a prospective publisher, the impossibility of meeting a proposed starting date, disagreement among staff members, and adverse sentiment among members of the Province, the project was abandoned in 1891. The idea was, nonetheless, kept alive by Fr. John Wynne who would later become the founding editor.

Fr. Wynne began planning a weekly review of world affairs presented from the Catholic perspective. His initial plan was for a scholarly review, but he later saw the need for a more practical review with shorter articles and more timely topics. He was also determined that the journal should defend the Church against the prejudices he saw against Catholicism; however, it was not until December 8, 1909, the issuance date of Superior General Francis Xavier Wernz's "Ordinatio, that it was founded. AMERICA was to be the US counterpart to "The Tablet" of London, a well-respected English Catholic weekly. Although Fr. Wynne served as the founding editor, his tenure in that post lasted less than a year (1909-1910). Due to his involvement in personal and professional controversy, Fr. Wynne was relieved of his duties as Editor-in-Chief and was replaced by Fr. Thomas Campbell, the Jesuit Provincial Superior who first conceived of the idea for the review.

AMERICA was originallu housed in a building located at 32 Washington Square, West in New York City. In 1911, it was moved to 59 East 83rd Street. In 1918, another location was 39 West 86th Street. In 1926 came a residence on 329 W. 108th Street where it remained until the move to its present location--106 West 56th Street. This site was the former New York headquarters of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and was a purchase made possible by a donation from Cardinal Richard Cushing, Archbishop of Boston.

The Editors of AMERICA from its foundation in 1909 through 2024 are as follows: Frs. John J. Wynne, 1909-1910; Thomas J. Campbell, 1910-1914; Richard H. Tierney, 1914-1925; Wilfrid Parsons, 1925-1936; Francis X. Talbot, 1936-1944; John LaFarge, 1944-1948; Robert C. Hartnett, 1944-1955; Thurston Davis, 1955-1968; Donald R. Campion, 1968-1975; Joseph A. O'Hare, 1975-1984; George Hunt, 1984-1998, Thomas J. Reese 1998-2005, Andrew Christiansen 2005-2012, Matthew Mallone 2012-2022, and Samuel Sawyer 2022-.

For more detailed information concerning the history of AMERICA, one should consult Fr. John L. Ciani's master's degree thesis entitled "Sufficiently Indicated by Its Name: The Founding of America Magazine and the Development of American Catholic Identity" (1987). The magazine's 50th anniversary issue, published 11 April 1959, also provides background material.