Suggestion Magazine: The Periodical That Launched Atkinson’s Editorial Career

Introduction

In August 1898, a modest monthly periodical titled Suggestion began publication in Chicago, Illinois, under the editorship of Herbert A. Parkyn. It was a magazine devoted to suggestive therapeutics, hypnotism, telepathy, and the scientific investigation of occult phenomena—a blend that would come to define a crucial transitional phase in American metaphysical religion. More significantly, Suggestion served as the editorial launching pad for William Walker Atkinson, a former Pennsylvania attorney who would go on to become one of the most prolific authors in the New Thought movement. Atkinson’s tenure as associate editor from 1900 to 1901 not only shaped his own career but also helped the magazine articulate a systematic, non-mystical framework for New Thought that influenced the movement for decades. This article traces the history of Suggestion, its role in the broader intellectual climate, and its lasting significance in New Thought history.

Historical Context

The late nineteenth century witnessed a remarkable convergence of spiritual and scientific currents in America. Transcendentalism, with its emphasis on the inherent divinity of the individual, had prepared the ground for a more optimistic, self-directed spirituality. The rise of mesmerism and hypnotism in the 1840s and 1850s introduced the idea that the mind could influence the body and that suggestion could heal. Christian Science, founded by Mary Baker Eddy in the 1870s, brought mental healing into the mainstream, albeit with a theological overlay. By the 1890s, these threads were coalescing into what would become known as the New Thought movement—a diverse family of religious and philosophical groups emphasizing the power of positive thinking, mental healing, and the realization of health and success through right thought.

Chicago, a rapidly growing industrial city, became a hotbed of these new religious movements. It was here that Emma Curtis Hopkins, a former student of Eddy, established her own school and trained a generation of New Thought leaders. It was here that Charles and Myrtle Fillmore founded Unity, and where Nona Brooks and Malinda Cramer would later develop Divine Science. Into this milieu stepped Herbert A. Parkyn, a practitioner and teacher of suggestive therapeutics, who established the Chicago School of Psychology. In 1898, Parkyn launched Suggestion as the principal publication of this school, initially under the title Suggestions. The magazine was designed to promote the scientific study of suggestion as a therapeutic tool, while also exploring the broader psychical and occult phenomena that fascinated the era.

Main Narrative

Publication History

Suggestion began as Suggestions, A Monthly Magazine in August 1898, published by the Suggestion Publishing Company in Chicago. In October 1899, the journal officially changed its name to Suggestion. It appeared monthly, with each issue running about 48 pages, priced at ten cents a copy or one dollar per year. The magazine’s stated purpose evolved over time; early issues emphasized “the study of suggestive therapy, hypnotism, telepathy, suggestive education of children, dreams, visions, and all psychical phenomena,” while later issues adopted the broader subtitle “A Magazine of the New Psychology for Health, Happiness and Success.” The final issue appeared on November 1, 1906, after which the publication was succeeded by The Stellar Ray. During its eight-year run, Suggestion was edited by Herbert A. Parkyn and M.J. Murphy, with William Walker Atkinson serving as associate editor from 1900 to 1901 and Elmer Ellsworth Carey later filling that role.

Atkinson’s Editorial Career

William Walker Atkinson was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on December 5, 1862. He began his career as a grocer before being admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 1894. The stress of legal practice, however, took a toll on his health, leading him to explore mental healing and New Thought. By the late 1890s, Atkinson had relocated to Chicago, where he became involved with Parkyn’s Chicago School of Psychology. In 1900, he was appointed associate editor of Suggestion, a position he held for about a year. This editorial role marked the beginning of Atkinson’s remarkable career as a writer and publisher. He would go on to write an estimated 100 books, many under pseudonyms such as Theron Q. Dumont and Yogi Ramacharaka, all within the last three decades of his life. His time at Suggestion provided him with a platform to develop his ideas on the power of suggestion, mental science, and the practical application of New Thought principles. The magazine’s emphasis on systematic, non-mystical frameworks likely shaped Atkinson’s own pragmatic approach to metaphysics.

Content and Key Themes

Suggestion covered a wide range of topics, as reflected in its changing subtitles and the list of staff writers. The magazine featured articles on suggestive therapeutics, hypnotism, telepathy, and the education of children through suggestion, as well as dreams, visions, and occult phenomena. Regular contributors included William Xavier Sudduth, Stanley LeFevre Krebs, Edgar Lucien Larkin, Edwin Hartley Pratt, George Bieser, Charles Gilbert Davis, Scholey Fremont Meacham, and Mary Scott Fielding—a roster of mental scientists, physicians, and New Thought practitioners. The magazine sought to present suggestion as a scientifically grounded method, distinct from mere superstition or mysticism. It argued that the mind could influence the body and that positive suggestions could produce healing and personal transformation. This approach resonated with the broader New Thought movement, which was increasingly moving away from the explicitly Christian language of divine healing toward a more universal, psychological vocabulary.

Reception and Influence

As the principal publication of the Chicago School of Psychology, Suggestion reached a dedicated readership of practitioners and students of mental science. Its influence extended beyond Chicago, contributing to the national conversation about New Thought. The magazine’s systematic treatment of suggestion helped bridge the gap between the older hypnotic tradition and the emerging New Thought emphasis on affirmations and positive thinking. It also provided a model for other periodicals, such as Unity and The Nautilus, which would later become central to the movement. Atkinson’s editorial work at Suggestion honed his skills and prepared him for his later role as a founder of the New Thought magazine and the author of influential books like Thought Vibration and The Law of Attraction in the Thought World. The magazine’s legacy is thus twofold: it served as a training ground for one of New Thought’s most important writers, and it articulated a practical, scientific approach to mental healing that helped shape the movement’s institutional development.

Why It Matters in New Thought History

Suggestion occupies a pivotal position in the history of New Thought. It represents the moment when the movement began to systematize its ideas, moving from scattered experiments in mental healing to a coherent body of teachings. By emphasizing suggestive therapeutics as a science, the magazine contributed to the professionalization of New Thought practitioners and helped distinguish the movement from both Christian Science and spiritualism. Atkinson’s career, launched at Suggestion, produced a vast corpus of literature that would carry New Thought ideas to a global audience. The magazine’s influence can also be seen in the later development of Religious Science, founded by Ernest Holmes, who drew on many of the same principles of mental healing and positive thinking. For students of New Thought history, Suggestion offers a window into the movement’s formative years, when the boundaries between hypnotism, psychology, and religion were still fluid. Its archives, preserved in collections such as the IAPSOP database, provide invaluable primary source material for understanding how New Thought evolved from a fringe curiosity into a major American spiritual movement.

Primary Sources

• Suggestion magazine, 1898–1906 – The complete run of the periodical, available in archives and digital collections, including the IAPSOP database. It contains articles, editorials, and advertisements that reveal the magazine’s content and editorial direction.
• William Walker Atkinson’s early writings – Atkinson’s articles and editorials from his tenure as associate editor (1900–1901) provide insight into his developing philosophy.
• Herbert A. Parkyn’s works – Parkyn’s books and pamphlets on suggestive therapeutics, often advertised in Suggestion, illuminate the practical methods taught at the Chicago School of Psychology.
• The Stellar Ray (1906– ) – The successor periodical, which continued some of the same themes and allows researchers to trace the evolution of the publication.
• IAPSOP (International Association for the Preservation of Spiritualist and Occult Periodicals) – A digital archive containing full scans of Suggestion and related New Thought periodicals.