Country
Life in America,
March 1903
With post-civil
war railroad expansion and the deleterious health effects of
industrial urban living, the suburbs began to lure city dwellers
with promises of fresh air and the pleasures of country living.
One commuter of 1883 wrote:
I
live in a good neighborhood, close to a country station, ten
miles from the city, where each house has its garden…The
families are not rich, but intelligent and of good taste. They
like to make their salaries go as far as possible, to have something
for concerts and journeys… Each one raises potatoes enough
for the year, summer berries and green corn for the season…Everybody
says a garden is a great help.
Country
Life in America with Liberty Hyde Bailey as editor, was
the brainchild of Frank Doubleday, who launched the magazine
in 1901. After publishers had churned out 142 books on country
living without a single commercial failure, Doubleday saw great
potential for a magazine pitched to growing numbers of ambitious
suburbanites.
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