Goodbye old Friend

The final print issue of the Woodworker’s Journal magazine, October 2025.

As most people who have been reading this blog (and sorry for the long hiatus) likely know, I was part of the Woodworker’s Journal organization for a long time. Starting as an associate editor and advancing to publisher. I am convinced that there was no better job for me in the entire world than the one I was blessed with at the Journal. I got to work with great people and made acquaintance with all the “superstars” of our curious little world. And was also blessed with meeting and corresponding with woodworkers of every stripe across the country and indeed around the world.

My time in the industry propelled opportunities for me to travel to Europe and China exploring the woodworking industry around the world. I was part of the development of the craft and helped industry manufacturers refine their products. I helped create one of the earliest online newsletters, the Woodworker’s Journal eZine. It went on to win awards and is still going strong today as the Woodworker’s Journal Weekly.

The Journal was started in the late 1970s just a few months after Fine Woodworking began publishing. In fact, to my way of thinking, those two publications kick started a type of woodworking, the serous home woodworker, that had not truly existed before. It created a place for craftsmen like Frank Kaus, Sam Maloof, James Krenov and Ian Kirby to put their work and ideas before a group of people who wanted to make beautiful furniture and were looking for a nexus to belong to. At the same time, companies like Delta, Powermatic and Porter Cable saw a growth opportunity in taking commercial woodworking technology and shaping it for the home woodworking market.

The editorial and industrial aspects of this new niche were further empowered by catalogers and retailers like Rockler Woodworking and Hardware. By providing hardware and products that previously were difficult for woodworkers to purchase, they created a foundation for the further growth of the home woodworker and what my friend Ian Kirby called the designer builder.

I was extremely fortunate to find my way into this developing world of woodworking print publishing. Indeed, I was there for its golden days. And I was there and aided its decline. In some ways I was both the defender and the vandal at the gate. I loved print and know its strength, but I saw and embraced the benefits of the Internet.

My time at the Woodworker’s Journal featured not only print articles but also videos, both long and short form, online articles and a newsletter and time meeting with woodworkers at various events. It was the best job of my life.

The Internet and the curious fact that woodworkers in our specific niche were early Internet adopters started the decline of the print woodworking world. Woodworking by its nature is a solitary environment. The Internet was a way to share your work and ask questions. Remember Bulletin Boards? It also became, over time, the preferred way to learn how to do things. I can lament that shift, but for us at the Journal it was the key to our decline. This year’s October issue was the last print issue. I have been separated from the Journal for almost a year now, but I am still saddened by its demise. There are a few woodworking magazines out there doing good work and I commend you to them. There is a lot of sketchy woodworking information out on the Internet and I warn you to be careful out there.

So long old friend. Ours was a rich and satisfying relationship and as such, I have so many wonderful memories. They must suffice.