Founded in 1859, The Anglo-African Magazine was an influential source of African American literature and political thought. Some of the most revered and celebrated African American writers of the 19th century were amongst those most heavily involved in the magazine’s publication, including Edward Wilmot Blyden, Martin Delany, James McCune Smith, Frances Ellen Watkins, and Sarah Mapps Douglass. The magazine accepted submissions from only African American writers, and was advertised to the public and as a literary and scientific journal. In doing so, the magazine provided a safe and unobtrusive environment for writers at both the notable and local level to exercise their craft.