Monthly magazine published in New York, N.Y., U.S., one of the oldest and most prestigious literary and opinion journals in the U.S. Founded in 1850 as Harper's New Monthly Magazine by the printing and publishing firm of the Harper brothers , it was a leader in publishing works by illustrious British and U.S. authors.
By 1865 it had become the most successful periodical in the U.S. In the 1920s its format changed to that of a forum on public affairs, balanced with short stories. Financial problems began in the 1960s, and in 1980 its demise was averted by grants from a philanthropic organization, the MacArthur Foundation. Since 1976 it has been edited almost continuously by Lewis Lapham (b. 1935).