''Meccano Magazine'' was an English monthly

hobby A hobby is considered to be a regular activity that is done for enjoyment, typically during one's leisure time. Hobbies include collecting themed items and objects, engaging in creative and artistic pursuits, playing Sport, sports, or pursu ...

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

published by

Meccano Ltd Meccano Ltd was a British toy manufacturing company, established in 1908 by Frank Hornby in Liverpool, England, to manufacture and distribute Meccano and other model toys and kits created by the company. During the 1920s and 1930s it became th ...

between 1916 and 1963, and by other publishers between 1963 and 1981. The magazine was initially created for

Meccano Meccano is a brand of scale model, model construction system created in 1898 by Frank Hornby in Liverpool, England. The system consists of reusable metal strips, plates, Structural steel#Common structural shapes, angle girders, wheels, axles and ...

builders, but it soon became a general

magazine aimed at "boys of all ages".

History

The magazine was launched by

Frank Hornby Frank Hornby (15 May 1863 – 21 September 1936) was an English inventor, businessman and politician. He was a visionary in toy development and manufacture, and although he had no formal engineering training, he was responsible for the inven ...

, the inventor of

, as a bi-monthly publication in 1916 in the United States as "Meccano Engineer", and was a month ahead of the UK issue. The first copies were given away free but in 1918 readers had to pay two

pence A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is th ...

for postage for four issues. In 1917 and again in 1932 Hornby published a history of

, its manufacture, and marketing in the magazine. In 1919 it doubled its size to eight pages and now cost one penny. New Meccano parts were advertised for the first time in 1920 and in 1922 the magazine became a monthly publication. From 1921, the magazine was edited by

Ellison Hawks Ellison Hawks (13 March 1889 – 5 April 1971) was a British writer on popular science and technology topics. He wrote numerous books explaining the working of gadgets and the manufacture of industrial products. From 1921 he became an editor of ''Me ...

who worked at Meccano as an advertising manager. From the May 1924 issue, the magazine had full-colour covers, and the December 1924 issue was 96 pages, costing six pence. By the 1930s ''Meccano Magazine'' had a circulation of 70,000. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the content and quality of the magazine was reduced greatly, and the size decreased from approximately A4 to A5. The A5 pocket-size format remained until 1961 when it was increased again to A4. In 1963 the magazine started reporting a loss and

handed its publishing over to its printers, Thomas Skinner. In August 1967 Thomas Skinner terminated production of the magazine and passed the magazine on to Model & Allied Publications (MAP) of

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of London, which is part of the Greater London Urban Area. The population at the 2011 census was 97,500. Developed after the Second World War as a ne ...

in 1968. At the end of 1972 publication stopped due to a decline in popularity. In April 1973 it was resurrected again, this time as a quarterly magazine, and from 1977 it incorporated Meccano Engineer and the Meccanoman's Journal. ''Meccano Magazines last issue was

Spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season) Spring, also known as springtime, is one of the four temperate seasons, succeeding winter and preceding summer. There are various technical definitions of spring, but local usage of ...

1981.

Content

''Meccano Magazine'' was originally aimed at

builders and featured articles on Meccano construction and new Meccano developments. When Frank Hornby launched the Meccano Guild in 1919, the magazine carried regular Guild news to keep Meccano clubs informed of each other's activities. But over time ''Meccano Magazine'' became a general

magazine aimed at "boys of all ages". Aside from Meccano related articles, it also featured

Hornby Hornby may refer to: Places In England * Hornby, Lancashire * Hornby, Hambleton, village in North Yorkshire * Hornby, Richmondshire, village in North Yorkshire Elsewhere * Hornby, Ontario, community in the town of Halton Hills, Ontario, Canad ...

trains,

Dinky Toys Dinky Toys was the brand name for a range of die-cast toy, die-cast zamak zinc alloy scale model model car, vehicles produced by British toy company Meccano Ltd. They were made in England from 1934 to 1979, at a factory in Binns Road in Liverpo ...

and other products of

, plus a wide variety of general interest articles, including,

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, aircraft, trains, modelling, camping,

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...

and

philately Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is poss ...

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

countries always featured strongly in articles as Meccano Ltd exported its products to these countries. The magazines today are an excellent source of historic information and an invaluable aid to collectors of toys from those years. They have also become

collector's item A collectable (collectible or collector's item) is any object regarded as being of value or interest to a collector. Collectable items are not necessarily monetarily valuable or uncommon. There are numerous types of collectables and terms t ...

s and there is a healthy trade in them at

auction An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...

Footnotes

External links

Browse ''Meccano Magazine'' on the Internet Archive''Meccano Magazine'' Archive – The primary indexed Meccano Magazine archiveOnline ''Meccano Magazine'' Archive – Download scans of complete Meccano Magazines''Meccano Magazine'' viewer – search Meccano Magazines and read/download articles''Meccano Magazine'' indices for downloadToys for the Boys: ''Meccano Magazine'' (article from Collector Café)
{{scale model brands Hobby magazines published in the United Kingdom Children's magazines published in the United Kingdom Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom Quarterly magazines published in the United Kingdom Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1916 Magazines disestablished in 1981