Our Dumb Animals was an American animal welfare magazine published from 1868 to 1970 by the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; it was founded and edited by George T. Angell, the founder of the society.[1]
 May 1915 cover of Our Dumb Animals | |
| Editor | George T. Angell |
|---|---|
| Categories | Animal welfare |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Publisher | Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals |
| Founder | George T. Angell |
| First issue | 1868 |
| Final issue | 1970 |
| Country | United States |
| Based in | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Language | English |
| ISSN | 0275-2476 |
| OCLC | 977896424 |
History
editThe magazine was first published in 1868 and remained in publication until 1970.[2] For the first issue, over 200,000 copies were distributed, with Boston police officers distributing 25,000 of them.[3] Free copies were delivered to newspaper editors, legislators, clergy, and teachers.[4] The magazine had an annual fee of US$0.5 and was published monthly.[5] The use of the word "dumb" in its title was not intended to disparage non-human animals, but to refer to their lack of capacity for speech;[6] the motto "We Speak For Those Who Cannot Speak For Themselves" was printed on every cover.[1]
Content
editIts content included news about the organization's activities and members, news of pending legislation, humane education in the form of essays and fiction ("animal morality tales")[4] and reports on animal cruelty, which was contrasted with the virtues of the animals being harmed, such as their intelligence and faithfulness.[2][4]
Legacy
editThe magazine is considered important in the development of the early animal advocacy movement.[1]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "Our Dumb Animals". Be Kind: A Visual History of Humane Education. 2012-06-27. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
- ^ a b Song, Hoon (2011). Pigeon Trouble: Bestiary Biopolitics in a Deindustrialized America. University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 56–57. ISBN 978-0-8122-0009-6.
- ^ "George Thorndike Angell". MSPCA-Angell. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
- ^ a b c Freeberg, Ernest (2020). A Traitor to his Species: Henry Bergh and the Birth of the Animal Rights Movement. New York: Basic Books. pp. 33–4.
- ^ "Our Dumb Animals Vol 20 No.3". Animal Legal & Historical Center. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
- ^ Preece, Rod (2011). Animals and Nature: Cultural Myths, Cultural Realities. UBC Press. pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-0-7748-4220-4.
External links
edit
Media related to Our Dumb Animals at Wikimedia Commons- Our Dumb Animals at the Library of Congress
- Our Dumb Animals at the HathiTrust Digital Library
- Our Dumb Animals at the Internet Archive
