The Electric Railway Journal: In 1884, McGraw Hill began weekly publication of the Street Railway Journal, a trade periodical for the mostly horse-drawn street railways that had proliferated in the US and Canada by that time. From the start, it included information and discussion of a vast range of concerns, including care of horses, track and car construction and maintenance, fares and fare collection, financial planning, scheduling and route designation, and relations with government, the public and employees. It also contained information about developing companies and, of course, advertising from manufacturers.

In 1891, another journal was introduced, the Electric Railways Review, which, as the name implies, focused on the newly introduced electric street railways, and included articles on power plant construction and operation, electrical maintenance and operation and technological developments, along with much the same sorts of information contained the Street Railways Journal. In 1908, the two periodicals were combined as the Electric Railways Journal, under the McGraw Hill banner. In 1929, reflecting the decline of electric railways, the journal became monthly, and ceased publication in 1932. Today, old copies are a wonderful source of historic information for scholars, museums and just people with a interest in these railways and their times.

Pictures, libraryarchives.metro.net: 1) Journal Cover, 2) Journal Ad. 3) Journal ad showing NORM’s own AE&FR car and 4) News article on Akron, Bedford & Cleveland.