Countryside Magazine: History, Ownership, Content and Editors
Profile updated November 2026
Countryside magazine, formally Countryside and Small Stock Journal, is one of America's longest-running homesteading publications. Its roots go back to January 1917, when Wallace H. Blair started the Pet Stock Journal, and to the Countryside that JD Belanger founded in 1969; the two merged in the early 1970s. Now part of Ogden Publications, it covers growing and preserving food, raising animals, building and living gently on the land.
| Oldest root | Pet Stock Journal, January 1917, Wallace H. Blair |
|---|---|
| Countryside founded | 1969, JD Belanger |
| Merged title | Countryside and Small Stock Journal, early 1970s |
| Publisher | Ogden Publications, Topeka, Kansas |
| Frequency | Six issues a year (2023 schedule) |
| Reach | Print audience about 44,100 including pass-along; 255,000 digital (media kit) |
| Official website | IAmCountryside.com |
History of Countryside (Ogden Publications)
Wallace H. Blair founded the Pet Stock Journal in January 1917. It was renamed Rabbitcraft and Small Stock Journal in 1919, Rabbitcraft and American Breeders Review in 1921 and Small Stock Magazine in 1925, absorbing other rabbit titles in the 1930s. Blair ran it until his death on January 8, 1954; his widow remained publisher, Vincent Hunter became publisher in 1960, and Everett Shilliday of Ohio bought it in 1969 before dying in June 1970.
JD Belanger, who had started Countryside in 1969, bought the small stock title from Kay Shilliday in August 1970, when it had about 2,000 readers. He consolidated Countryside, Rabbit World and Dairy Goat Guide into Countryside and Small Stock Journal in the early 1970s; the company dates the merger to 1973, while its own history article cites September 1972. Run from Belanger's living room and then an office in Waterloo, Wisconsin, it grew to about 25,000 readers by the mid-1970s.
Countryside later became part of a group of homesteading titles, including Backyard Poultry and Goat Journal, owned by Swift Communications through its Fence Post subsidiary. In 2020 Ogden Publications, the Topeka company behind Mother Earth News and Grit, acquired several of Swift's titles, and Countryside is now an Ogden brand.
Countryside (Ogden Publications) Today
Countryside publishes six issues a year in print and digital form, backed by a website, email newsletters, social media, video, podcasts and webinars. Its stated mission is helping readers grow and raise their own food, build, fix and craft by hand, and live as gently on the planet as possible.
Ogden's media kit describes readers who own an average of 38 acres; 98% garden, 71% own livestock and 91% live in smaller C and D counties. Members get digital issues, store discounts, expert Q and A and tutorials.
What Countryside (Ogden Publications) Is Publishing Now
Food from the land
Gardening, food preservation, cooking and natural health for self-reliant households.
Small stock
Rabbits, goats, poultry, sheep and other small livestock, the core of the magazine since its Small Stock Journal days, alongside sister titles Backyard Poultry and Goat Journal.
Building and doing it yourself
Homestead construction, repairs, tools, crafts and reader stories from homesteads across the country.
Countryside (Ogden Publications) Editors and Staff
Editors and leaders named in Countryside's histories and the Countryside network's About page:
- Ann Tom - Editor, Countryside (as listed on the network's About page)
- Marissa Ames - Editor, Goat Journal and Backyard Poultry (as listed)
- JD Belanger - Founder of Countryside (1969), former owner and editor
- Wallace H. Blair - Founder of Pet Stock Journal (1917), died 1954
Who Reads Countryside (Ogden Publications)
Readers are homesteaders and small landholders: half women, average age about 50, mostly in rural counties, nearly all gardeners and most with livestock. Many sell eggs, produce or meat locally; the 2022 Census of Agriculture counted 116,617 U.S. farms selling $3.3 billion directly to consumers, and ATTRA offers small-farm resources for the same audience.
Countryside readers have been swapping advice on rabbits, goats and root cellars since before most of their grandparents were born. farm.FM keeps that neighborly voice with farm satire about goats that open gates, farm humor about canning marathons and ranch humor for the homesteaders who bought one cow and somehow have nine. Its farm jokes need no electricity, just a porch.
The outlet behind those laughs, farm.FM, is the nation's first satirical farm site, complete with Tractor Tunes country music for farmers. A farm.FM humorist's archive shows what a week of it looks like.
Countryside (Ogden Publications) Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Countryside: History of Countryside and Small Stock Journal - the magazine's own history since 1917.
- Countryside network: Meet our magazines - Countryside and its sister titles.
- Ogden Publications: Company history - the current publisher.
- ATTRA (NCAT): Census insight - small and sustainable farm statistics.
- USDA NASS: 2022 Census of Agriculture - direct-to-consumer farm sales.
Countryside (Ogden Publications) FAQ
How old is Countryside magazine?
Its oldest root, the Pet Stock Journal, began in January 1917; JD Belanger founded Countryside in 1969.
Who publishes Countryside today?
Ogden Publications of Topeka, Kansas, which acquired titles from Swift in 2020.
How often is Countryside published?
Six issues a year, per its 2023 production schedule.
What does Countryside cover?
Growing and preserving food, raising small stock and poultry, building and DIY, and natural living.
More than a century after the Pet Stock Journal, Countryside magazine remains a practical companion for Americans living close to the land.