Railroad Model Craftsman
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| Editor | Stephen Priest |
|---|---|
| Categories | Rail transport modeling |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Publisher | White River Productions |
| First issue | 1933 |
| Country | USA |
| Website | rrmodelcraftsman |
| ISSN | 0033-877X |
Railroad Model Craftsman is an American magazine specializing in the hobby of model railroading. The magazine is published monthly by White River Productions, which acquired the title from Carstens Publications in 2014. Its first issue in March 1933 was called The Model Craftsman because it covered other areas of scale modeling as well. Founded by Emanuele Stieri, it was second owner Charles A. Penn who helped grow the company and lead the publication towards the hobby of scale models. In April 1949 it changed its focus to model trains and changed its name to Railroad Model Craftsman reflect this change in editorial content. While it can claim to be the oldest model railroading magazine in continuous publication in the United States, rival Model Railroader counters with the tagline "Model railroading exclusively since 1934." (However, both were predated by The Model Maker, which dates from 1924, and showcased working models of steam engines, trains, and boats.) Over the years, several other titles have been folded into the publication, including Toy Trains, Electric Trains and Hobby Railroading, Miniature Rail Roading, Model & Railway News, and The O Gager.
The company was founded in 1933 by Emmanuele Stieri, a prolific how-to writer, and was the first editor-in-chief of the fledgling publication. Published by Model Craftsman Publishing Corp., the company moved headquarters from Chicago to New York City in 1934. The company was acquired by Charles A. Penn in 1935. The company relocated to suburban Ramsey, New Jersey in 1940. During the 1940s, the staff consisted of Charles Penn as editor and publisher, Robert W. Thompson as managing editor, Lewis Austin as the model railroad editor, Leon Shulman as the model airplane editor, and Louis H. Hertz as the research editor. After World War II, Robert Thompson was succeeded by his brother Jim as managing editor.
Harold Carstens joined the staff as an associate editor in 1952, after previously contributing several articles. As of 1954, the magazine staff consisted of Charles Penn as editor and publisher, Jim Thompson as executive editor, Hal Carstens as managing editor, Sam Skean, Bill Schopp as technical editor, and Edwin P. Alexander as research editor.
In 1962, Hal Carstens was named publisher and president following the retirement of Charles Penn. Hal Carstens later purchased the company, and the name was changed to Carstens Publications in 1969. Tony Koester joined the staff as an associate editor in 1968, and later became managing editor in 1971. By 1972, Jim Boyd was working full-time as editor of Flying Models, but was also listed as an associate editor of RMC. The last big move came in 1973 when the publishing company moved to rural Newton in northern New Jersey, housed in a newly constructed suite of offices with an attached warehouse. Koester and Boyd worked together to push more modern prototype content and fine scale modeling features in contrast to the more loose interpretations of the hobby previously published by Hal Carstens. Boyd would be named editor of the new Railfan & Railroad magazine launched by Carstens in 1974.
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