Hearth.com Milestones - 15+ years on the net - and Forum Milestone - maybe 1,000,000 posts by end of

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
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webbie

webbie

Seasoned Moderator
Nov 17, 2005
12,165
Western Mass.
Wow, what a long strange trip it has been!

The hearth.com domain name was registered on Oct 10, 1995 - and the site was first put up within a couple months after that. By the end of one year, it was fairly big time (for the time, anyway) and had multiple sponsors, etc.

Here is one of the earliest captures of Hearth.com - this one from Nov 5, 1996
http://web.archive.org/web/19961105192651/https://www.hearth.com/

It's neat to see that we have some of the same clients we had 15 years ago - Jotul, Harman, Quad, Woodmans, etc.

I noticed today that the forums have over 910,000 posts! Based on our normal traffic counts, we should see over a million by the time the winter ends.......

Yeah, what a long strange trip it's been! My thanks to our mods and all those who read, help others, etc....for such a pleasant journey. Hopefully, we can keep this thing going for ANOTHER 15 years!
 
I discovered this site when my husband brought home a woodstove and I had no idea how to operate it. I was so afraid of the stove that I was terrified to open the door. I had no prior experience with wood burning.
I was determined to learn and this site helped me, although I was a bit apprehensive to post here since I was female, but the mods and members have been so helpful.
If it wasn't for this site....I would have told my husband to stick the wood stove up (you know where!)
Thanks Craig for this forum...and what a great forum it is!
Congrats to you...as well as the great mods you have.... :)
 
Been quite a run for ya Craig. And as far as I know of no members have either married or murdered each other. That has to be a first for an Internet common interest site that has been up this long.

Keep on keeping on.
 
We're probably the only site on the internet that's made money every year for 16 years......
:cheese:

Back then, the net was so new that when I would call up my prospective clients, the riff would go something like this: "Hey, Kurt, I'm calling about this new thing called the internet. I know you've never heard of it, but take my word for something - it's going to be BIG. Give me a few bucks and I'll put together a site for you and list you on Hearth.com".....

The business model has changed only slightly over the years. Back then we charged retailers $395 for making up a couple pages and listing them for a year. Now we list them for FREE. Such a deal. Manufacturers and direct sellers tend to sponsor the site now.

If there truly is a God, he created Google...which sends us millions of visitors and then pays us for the crazy ads they place here.
:coolsmile:
 
BrotherBart said:
Been quite a run for ya Craig. And as far as I know of no members have either married or murdered each other. That has to be a first for an Internet common interest site that has been up this long.

Keep on keeping on.
Click to expand...

I don't know how the heck we survived without you for the first 1/2 of the run!

Probably because we didn't have a forum.......
 
SWEET! I love history and stats. Now you can say "almost a million served"

Great job all. Education on wood burning brought me here, the people keep me coming back.
 
Webmaster said:
BB, did you have a different handle on that old forum?
Click to expand...

I was around and pretty much lurking then. Some of it got a little barbed and heated on occasion. The new forum has been a lot better. BeGreen, Eric Johnson (boy do I miss him here) and Mo Heat set a friendlier tone with the new forum right off the bat.

About that time I busted my old stove and dove in here head first.
 
Congrats Craig. This site is so user friendly, and the format is easy to use too. Thanks for your dedication. It keeps me off Facebook and other useless sites. It has brought so many people solid information and insights to better burning habits. Thanks to all the mods and regular posters too.
 
Thanks for the service Craig. I have learned a lot from those willing to share. Thanks to all who do share.
 
I wasn't here then but I was spending time on forums that looked like this one did at that time. I am soooooo glad the formats have been refined!

Thanks for the place to hang out Craig.

pen
 
Thanks Craig for creating a site based on sharing information, being respectful and helping one another. That's a cause I heartily endorse and a good way of life. Congratulations on the 15 yr mark. It's quite a milestone.
 
And through the site BeGreen has designed more chimneys than fifty hearth shops and saved more people from burning down their abode than a train load of building inspectors.
 
BrotherBart said:
And through the site BeGreen has designed more chimneys than fifty hearth shops and saved more people from burning down their abode than a train load of building inspectors.
Click to expand...

Hear, hear! Not only the wisdom in several regards, but I also certainly wish I had a touch of BG's patience.

pen
 
Didn't know the internet was around then even. We only got it back home in the very late 90s.
 
I love this place .

Congrats !!!!
 
Ah shucks, you are all good folks that have kept this place honest and a lot of fun. Happy to be a part of this interesting virtual community.
 
Great milestone! I haven't been around long but it didn't take long to get a good feeling from the forum and it's members. I frequent a few different forums and this one runs the smoothest of them all.

Good work and thank you to all that make it possible!
 
I love this place too, and the forums and the articles are a great source of information about all facets of wood burning, safety issues, stoves, fixes, work arounds, and the best ideas around. I really like the pictures people post for ideas. Somebody knows what you need to know, and all you have to do is think of the question. A wonderful resource, and great fun.
 
Congratulations to you Craig for creating this wonderful site. I too lurked a while before jumping in. It has been a learning experience and we've come to know some really nice folks too. May you continue to proper and may hearth.com continue to grow without growing pains. May it be a smooth road all the way.
 
I'm thinkin a free Hearth.com hat to the 1,000,000 post...what do you say Craig?
 
Congrats Craig . . . truly an accomplishment . . . truly a great site . . . made more so by its members . . . it really is no exaggeration to say this is among my favorite BBS that I check into daily . . .
 
I get more chuckles here from the mods than I do at work. The steady guidance of Fossil and Pen help keep this place honest and respectful. I really appreciate the homespun, commonsense humor and lyrical contributions of BrotherBart. I too miss MoHeat and Eric. But good folks like Gooserider and Shane are still with us and I thank you all. And now, time for a 15th yr anniversary song.

(with apologies to Buddy Ebsen)

Come and listen to a story about a man named Craig
A poor woodburner, barely kept his family fed,
Then one day he was crunching on some code,
And up through the wires came the ad motherlode.

Google that is, green gold, cyber tea.

Well the first thing you know ol Craig's a millionaire,
Kinfolk said "Craig move away from there"
Said "The internet is the place you ought to be"
So they loaded up the BBS and moved 'lectronic'ly.

Dot com, that is. Forum posts, videos.


Well now its time to tip the hat to Craig and all his kin.
And they would like to thank you folks fer kindly droppin in.
You're all invited back again to this locality
To have a heapin helpin of their hospitality

Hearth.com that is. Set a spell, Take your shoes off.

Y'all come back now, y'hear?
 
Whatever happened to some of the veterans . . . a few were still here when I joined . . . some I have only seen in zombie posts.
 
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