Harper's 19th century magazine

I was a little surprised to find similarities between today's Haper's magazine and the one in the 19th century.  I had expected to find poems or stories, but I found a few pages that resembled a fashion magazine in some sense.  The pictures are hand drawn, but that's to be expected of the earlier issues.  The descriptions go into great detail about the clothing, and boy did they wear layers back in the day.  I did find other things in the magazine such as poetry, but I found this part interesting.  The way they presented clothes was different.  They gave a lot of attention to one outfit and described it in full.  Mass production would just have been invented during this magazine's first issue. I'm sure that had something to do with it.   
In the same volume, there was an article in the magazine about Longfellow and his influences.  It talked about his love interest and how he wooed her with poems.  I thought this kept in line with the time period and the idea of the Romantics. I doubt it would work today, but this time period had the environment and the natural surroundings necessary for this kind of mood.  Fellows who could write poetry were like rock stars, probably.  Another thing that struck me was how the magazine was arranged.  It wasn't in a big paragraph or essay.  It was broken almost like a newspaper.  I'm not sure if this was easier to read or if it looked better on the page.                                 
The magazines in the old days were much more committed to literature.  In today's magazine it's celebrity gossip or new scientific findings.  There's been a shift in the magazine industry over the last century.  I've never really seen a poem in a magazine.  Most of the pages look like the ones below, except with more pictures and many more accessories.  I realize that images are easier to sell and market, but it seems like we're not exercising our brains.  Newspapers are going out of print. Magazines are full of pictures.
Another thing is that the cover on Harper's was plain.  It had the name of the magazine, volume number, and issue.  People didn't need to be flashed with airbrushed covers to want to buy the magazine.  It really shows how our culture has changed.