Nathaniel Parker Willis was an astute magazine editor and one of the most versatile writers of his era. A prolific poet, magazine writer, and travel writer, Willis also wrote a novel and two plays. In addition, he edited several leading magazines and earned a reputation as a literary critic. One of the most outstanding features of Willis's career as an editor was his ability to know the public's reading tastes and to deliver skillfully what the public wanted. He brought the world of gossip, fashion, and high society to eager middle-class readers. At the same time, Willis also wrote many essays about travel and nature. He brought the quiet joys of country life and the beauties of American scenery to a middle-class audience eager to experience nature in a romanticized pastoral setting.

Willis was born on 20 January 1806 in Portland, Maine. He came from a family of writers and...