Vance Publishing history

Turner drew on his industry contacts to gather contributors to the first issue of Wood, which appeared in September 1946.

In 1951, Wood was still a young publication when it found itself in a position to buy one of its major competitors.

John O'Neil, who had first joined Vance Publishing in 1957 after his consulting company was called in to work with them, was serving as president.

In 1960, Herbert Vance turned over his duties as publisher of Wood & Wood Products to the magazine's editor Jack Koelisch and began devoting more attention to acquiring or starting new publications.

In 1963, Wood & Wood Products launched the Reference Data and Buying Guide, an annual guide for buyers in the woodworking industry.

Vance Publishing's wood division launched Logging Management in 1977 under the motto "From Seedling through Sawmill." The magazine was intended to expand the division's coverage to the entire wood products industry.

Logging Management stopped publication after October 1981.

By 1983, the company had a total of 20 publications and expected annual sales of about $27 million.

In 1987, it became the first agricultural publication to win a Neal award, the Pulitzer Prize of the business press.

Vance also acquired The Peanut Grower in 1991 from Agri-Publications Inc.

In 1992, the company bought Hog Farm Management and Dairy Herd Management from Capital Cities/ABC's publishing group.

1993: Home Improvement Center stops publication; Salon Today is acquired.

Vance Publishing acquired several agricultural publications in 1995 when it bought Little Publications Inc. of Memphis.

Closets was launched in 2003 to serve the closet and home organization industry, which was booming at the time.