The National Geographic Magazine, Vol. II., No. 5, April, 1891

In the late 1880s a group of curious scholars founded a society dedicated to spreading geographic knowledge across the United States. Their first few issues of a quarterly journal quickly ran into timing problems, prompting a shift to a more flexible brochure format that could bring fresh reports to readers as soon as they arrived. This early edition explains the change, introduces the society’s growing membership across dozens of states, and invites anyone with a passion for place to join the conversation.

Among the pages you’ll hear about an ambitious 1890 expedition to Alaska’s rugged Mt. St. Elias, complete with new altitude measurements, glacier studies, and detailed topographic sketches that laid groundwork for future surveys. The issue also previews a lively series of public lectures—ranging from ancient Egyptian tombs to life among Australian tribes and journeys through China, Mongolia, and Tibet—offering listeners a taste of the world’s most remote corners. A forthcoming physical atlas of the United States hints at even more cartographic adventure to come.