History has many lessons for all of us. Understanding our history is an essential aspect of determining our future direction. The Journal of Human Lactation (JHL) will be 35 years old in 2020. As the first scholarly journal focusing specifically on human lactation, which centralized a growing body of specialized knowledge, it has an important place in the history of the field of lactation and the professionalization of breastfeeding support. Although there have been several retrospective reflections about the changes that have occurred within the Journal over this time (Auerbach, 1990;Heinig, 2000;Merewood, 2015), there has not been a systematic approach to understanding how the Journal has changed over time and the influences facilitating those changes. The purpose of this historical analysis is to provide a scholarly examination of the changes occurring within JHL in the historical context of external forces, both inside and outside of the profession.