Hale’s poem “Mary’s Lamb” (“Mary Had a Little Lamb”) appears in the September 1830 issue of Juvenile Miscellany.
In September 1830, in an issue dated by month but not day, Sarah Josepha Hale’s poem “Mary’s Lamb” first appeared in Lydia Maria Child’s children’s periodical Juvenile Miscellany.[1][4] The issue is known to be from September 1830, so historians treat the publication as month‑specific rather than day‑specific. The poem, later widely known as “Mary Had a Little Lamb”, quickly became one of the most famous nursery rhymes in the English‑speaking world.[1][11]
Hale originally published the verse in her collection Poems for Our Children, but its appearance in Juvenile Miscellany gave it national circulation among middle‑class families interested in moral and educational children’s literature.[5] The poem’s simple narrative—about a child’s affection for a lamb and the lamb’s loyalty—embodies values of kindness, innocence, and the emotional life of children.
For women’s cultural history, the September 1830 publication is significant because it illustrates how a female writer could shape everyday childhood experience. Generations of children learned language, rhythm, and social norms through Hale’s verse.[1][11] The poem’s enduring popularity has often overshadowed her more serious work, but it also testifies to the breadth of her influence—from domestic instruction to national politics.
Although the exact day of the issue remains unknown, the month‑dated appearance of “Mary’s Lamb” marks one of the most lasting contributions by a woman author to global children’s culture.