Meredith group: chronology

Landmarks

This chronology is indicative only. This site includes a broader communications and media timeline.

1876 birth of Edwin Thomas Meredith (1877-1928)

1894 general manager of uncle's Populist Party Farmers Tribune weekly in Des Moines

1896 buys Farmers Weekly

1902 launches Successful Farming magazine

1904 sells Farmers Tribune

1912 appointed as Director of Chicago Federal Reserve

1914 fails to gain Democratic senatorial nomination for Iowa

1916 unsuccessful Democrat candidate for Governor of Iowa

1920-21 serves as Woodrow Wilson's Secretary of Agriculture

1920 Meredith is unsuccessful candidate for Democratic presidential nominee (James Cox gains nomination but not presidency)

1921 buys The Dairy Farmer

1922 launches Fruit, Garden & Home magazine

1924 changes Fruit, Garden and Home to Better Homes & Gardens

1928 Meredith is unsuccessful candidate for Democratic presidential nominee

1930 publishes first edition of Better Homes & Gardens Cook Book

1934 opens New York office

1935 opens offices in Dallas and Los Angeles

1937 launches Better Homes & Gardens Special Interest Publications

1946 goes public

1948 buys WHEN-TV in Syracuse, New York

1952 buys KPHO-TV, Phoenix

1953 buys KCTV-TV, Kansas City

1957 launches commercial printing business

1959 buys Replogle Globes

1960 buys Appleton Century Croft publishing group

1965 listed on New York Stock Exchange

1969 forms Meredith/Burda printing partnership with Burda family of West Germany

1969 buys WNEM-TV, Saginaw

1973 sells Replogle to William C Nickel

1974 sells most Appleton Century operations to Charles Walther
and Prentice Hall

1978 launches the Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate Service

1978 launches Australian edition of Better Homes & Gardens with Packer

1979 buys Suburban Newspaper group

1983 buys WOFL-TV, Orlando

1983 buys KSEE-TV, Fresno

1984 launches Country Home magazine as subscription publication

1984 launches WOOD magazine

1985 buys KVVU-TV, Las Vegas

1986 sells Suburban Newspaper group (subsequently acquired by Tribune)

1986 buys Ladies' Home Journal title from Curtis

1987 launches Midwest Living magazine

1988 launches Weekend Woodworking Projects magazine

1988 buys Craftways Corporation, publisher of Cross Stitch & Country Crafts magazine

1989 launches Country America magazine

1989 launches Traditional Home magazine

1989 buys Golf for Women magazine

1990 sells stake in printing business to R.R. Donnelley

1991 buys American Park Network

1991 launches Decorative Woodcrafts magazine

1991 sells fulfillment business to Neodata Services

1991 launches Meredith Cable

1992 launches Country Home Country Gardens magazine

1993 launches American Patchwork & Quilting magazine

1993 sells KSEE-TV and WTVH-TV (formerly WHEN) to Granite Broadcasting

1994 launches Crayola Kids and Floral & Nature Crafts magazines

1995 buys WSMV-TV (Nashville)

1995 sells book clubs to Time-Warner's Book-of-the-Month Club

1996 buys WOGX-TV (Ocala)

1996 sells Minneapolis/St Paul Cable

1997 buys KPDX-TV (Portland), KFXO-TV (Bend), WHNS-TV (Greenville) and WCPX-TV (Orlando)

1997 swaps WCPX-TV for WFSB-TV (Hartford/New Haven)

1997 launches Better Homes and Gardens Television

1997 launches Family Money Magazine

1998 launches More magazine

1998 sells Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate Service to GMAC Home Services

1999 buys WGNX-TV (Atlanta) from Tribune

1999 launches Hometown Cooking magazine

1999 launches Antiques Extra magazine

2002 swaps WOFL-TV in Orlando, Florida and WOGX-TV in Ocala, Florida for Fox's KPTV(TV) in Portland, Oregon

2002 buys American Baby group from Primedia for US$115m

2005 buys Gruner + Jahr USA consumer titles (inc Family Circle, Parents, Child and Fitness) for US$350m

2006 buys interactive marketing services firm O'Grady Meyers

2007 buys 'online intelligence' service New Media Strategies (et 1999)

2007 buys interactive marketing services firm Genex