Boston University’s Flagship Alumni Magazine Celebrates 125 Years
Bostonia Celebrates 125 Years
BU’s flagship alumni magazine looks back at some memorable covers
By today’s standards, the covers of the first issues of Bostonia magazine, in 1900, aren’t exactly eye-catching. The name appears in black across the top and “Published Quarterly by Boston University” at the bottom. A quotation from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s Hyperion: A Romance is centered, in heavy type, on the thick paper. That drab cover persisted for years, with only the date, volume, and issue number changing.
As Bostonia celebrates its 125th anniversary this year, we looked back at our covers. By the 1920s, the magazine had introduced touches of scarlet, then photographs. For a time, Bostonia billed itself on the cover as “the magazine of culture and ideas” and was also available by subscription.
These days, we’re an award-winning publication whose mission is to maintain a strong connection with our alumni and to foster a sense of pride in their alma mater. In recent decades, our covers have featured luminaries like Lukas Foss, the late College of Fine Arts professor of music and acclaimed composer, conductor, and pianist (Spring 1994); Jhumpa Lahiri (GRS’93, UNI’95,’97), the Pulitzer Prize–winning author (Summer 2000); Elie Wiesel (Hon.’74), the late Nobel laureate and Andrew W. Mellon Professor Emeritus in the Humanities at BU (Winter 2006–2007); and Alfre Woodard (CFA’74, Hon.’04), the Emmy-winning and Oscar-nominated actor (Spring 2008). We’ve tackled important, topical issues and the University’s groundbreaking research.
We can’t know what the next 125 years will bring. For now, Bostonia will continue to produce magazines—and covers—that reflect the intellectual life and vibrancy of the BU community. But it’s unlikely we’ll reprise that Longfellow quote.
Comments & Discussion
Boston University moderates comments to facilitate an informed, substantive, civil conversation. Abusive, profane, self-promotional, misleading, incoherent or off-topic comments will be rejected. Moderators are staffed during regular business hours (EST) and can only accept comments written in English. Statistics or facts must include a citation or a link to the citation.