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Great public interest in astrology

In the first half of twentieth century a great surge of popular interest in astrology took place in the US. I found some interesting facts during my research in archives of funeral home directory. A very popular astrologer Evangeline Adams from New York City helped quench the public’s thirst for astrology readings with many accurate forecasts. Adams was even arrested and charged with illegal fortunetelling in 1914. But the case was dismissed when Adams correctly read the horoscope of the judge’s son provided with just his birth date. Her acquittal set a precedent, establishing that astrologers can practice freely and was not guilty of any wrongdoing.

The wave of interest towards astrology even increased by wide distribution of astrological journals, text, papers, and textbooks throughout the United States. Astrologers became celebrities, like, for example, Alan Leo, Sepharial, Paul Cheisnard and Charles Carter. The serious and complex writings on astrological practice and concepts in America progressed into a new period of popular. Many complex astrological materials were simplified to attempt to carve a clear line through points of contention and controversy.

Great public interest in astrology made publishers realize that millions of readers were interested in astrological forecasts and the interest grew ever more intense with the advent of America’s entry into the First World War. The war heightened interest in astrology. Journalists began to write articles based on character descriptions and astrological forecasts were published in newspapers based on the one and only factor known to the public: the month and day of birth, as taken from the position of the Sun when a person is born. The result of this practice led to modern-day publishing of Sun-Sign astrology columns and expanded to some astrological books and magazines in second half of the twentieth century.