The Crowell Publishing Company was founded by John S. Crowell in Springfield Ohio. Crowell, formerly of Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky had worked in the Courier-Journal print shop and press room and made the move to Springfield in 1877 to print his Farm and Fireside magazine for agricultural implements manufactured by P.P. Mast and Company. Within two years he formed the publishing firm Mast, Crowell and Kirkpatrick. In 1885 the company bought the Ladies Home Companion. Later known as Woman’s Home Companion it was very popular from the outset and remained one of the company's leading publications until it closed in 1956. Under Crowell's leadership the company underwent a marked expansion in both its infrastructure and publications over the next couple of decades, and in 1902 this was reflected in the company's change of name - to the Crowell Publishing Company. Four years later he sold a controlling interest to New York publisher Joseph Knapp, but remained with the company for another two years as Vice-President.
In 1919, the company bought out the book and magazine publisher P.F. Collier and relocated its operations from New York to Springfield. The purchase also gave Crowell's ownership over the hugely popular Collier's Weekly. The combined activities of the two companies were reflected in 1939 by the corporate name being changed to the Crowell-Collier Publishing Company.
Despite distributing millions of magazines per month, the Crowell-Collier was in trouble by the early 1950s. The problem was not so much competition from television programs - the circulation figures at the time were as strong as they had ever been - but due to a decline in revenue from advertising - which was being redirected towards television. The company eventually closed its Springfield operations in December 1956. Crowell-Collier merged with Macmillan of New York in 1960, with the assets of the entire company later being transferred to a wholly owned subsidiary incorporated in Delaware, which changed its name to Macmillan Company. The Crowell-Collier holding company continued operating, however, through its subsidiaries - among them P.F. Collier Inc. Although the the name Crowell Collier and Macmillan was adopted in 1965 the title was later changed to Macmillan, Inc.
Other titles published by Crowell Publishing Company and Cowell-Collier Publishing Company included The American Magazine (1911-), The Mentor (1921-), Country Home (fomerly Farm and Fireside, 1930-), Collier's Encyclopedia and Collier's Books.
