A complete 45 page issue of "The Gentleman's Magazine" dated February 1751. This monthly London magazine was published from 1731 until 1922, a period of almost 200 years - see history below. 

The magazine provides reports primarily from England but also from around the world on a wide variety of subjects and interests, usually including one or more engraved illustrations. Wars, disasters, crimes, trials and punishments are widely reported. The monthly mortality report confirms that approximately 30% of all deaths are those of children under 2 years of age - child birth was a dangerous venture at that time - see scan

The magazine features two fine engravings one being a fold-out map of the Black Lead Mines in Cumberland (in the heart of the Lake District) and the second entitled "A View of Guild Hall in King Street, London". A sketch of a seated man is that of Edward Bright, the fattest man in England, whose waistcoat could accommodate seven local residents - see scan and below. An interesting report on the same page concerning pirates taking gold from a Spanish convoy from Mexico and burying it, is thought to be the incident which gave birth to the novel Treasure Island.

King George II was the reigning monarch at this period of relative calm in England. Reports are given of action in Europe 

Good condition - overall age toning and minor spotting - see scans. After six or twelve months the monthly issues were usually taken by the wealthy subscriber to the bookbinder to ensure safe retention. In this case the issue has subsequently been dis-bound. 

Page size 8 x 5 inches. A great and interesting resource for the historian 

The Gentleman's Magazine

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Front page of The Gentleman's Magazine, May 1759

The Gentleman's Magazine was a monthly magazine[1] founded in London, England, by Edward Cave in January 1731.[2] It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1922. It was the first to use the term magazine (from the French magazine, meaning "storehouse") for a periodical.[3] Samuel Johnson's first regular employment as a writer was with The Gentleman's Magazine.

History

The original complete title was The Gentleman's Magazine: or, Trader's monthly intelligencer. Cave's innovation was to create a monthly digest of news and commentary on any topic the educated public might be interested in, from commodity prices to Latin poetry. It carried original content from a stable of regular contributors, as well as extensive quotations and extracts from other periodicals and books. Cave, who edited The Gentleman's Magazineunder the pen name "Sylvanus Urban", was the first to use the term magazine (meaning "storehouse") for a periodical. Contributions to the magazine frequently took the form of letters, addressed to "Mr. Urban". The iconic illustration of St. John's Gate on the front of each issue (occasionally updated over the years) depicted Cave's home, in effect, the magazine's "office".

Before the founding of The Gentleman's Magazine, there were specialised journals, but no such wide-ranging publications (although there had been attempts, such as The Gentleman's Journal, which was edited by Peter Motteux and ran from 1692 to 1694).

Samuel Johnson's first regular employment as a writer was with The Gentleman's Magazine. During a time when parliamentary reporting was banned, Johnson regularly contributed parliamentary reports as "Debates of the Senate of Magna Lilliputia". Though they reflected the positions of the participants, the words of the debates were mostly Johnson's own. The name "Columbia", a poetic name for America coined by Johnson, first appears in a 1738 weekly publication of the debates of the British Parliament in the magazine.[4][5]

The magazine's long-running motto, E pluribus unum, Latin for "Out of many, one", is thought to have inspired the use of the phrase as an unofficial motto of the United States. Motteux's The Gentleman's Journal had previously used the phrase.[6][7][8]

A skilled businessman, Edward Cave developed an extensive distribution system for The Gentleman's Magazine. It was read throughout the English-speaking world and continued to flourish through the 18th century and much of the 19th century under a series of different editors and publishers. It went into decline towards the end of the 19th century and finally ceased general publication in September 1907. However, issues consisting of four pages each were printed in very small editions between late 1907 and 1922 in order to keep the title formally "in print".

Edward Bright

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Edward Bright
Born1721
Maldon, Essex
Died10 November 1750 (aged 28–29)
Essex
Other namesFat Man of Maldon
An engraving based on an illustration made six weeks before Bright's death

Edward Bright (1721–1750) was a grocer in Maldon, Essex, England – known as the "fat man of Maldon" – who was reputed at the time of his death in 1750 to be the "fattest man in England". He lived in a house on Maldon's High Street, and is buried in Maldon's Church of All Saints.[1] Bright weighed 47.5 stone(665 lb or 302 kg).

On 1 December 1750, a wager took place at the Black Bull Inn, in Maldon High Street. Bright's coat was said to be large enough to have seven men stand inside it, although this is also sometimes stated as seven hundred men because of a tale[2] in which a man in a local pub tempted a gambler with a bet that "seven hundred men" would fit into Edward Bright's waistcoat. The bet was accepted. The gambler lost, because seven men from the Dengie Hundred (a parcel of land) fit into the waistcoat.[3]