Get the Hole Story!
Why is there a hole in The Old Farmer’s Almanac? We’re talking about the punched-out hole in the upper top left corner of the book. It’s not a mistake. It’s part of our history. Enjoy learning the “hole” story!
The classic Almanac paperback has a hole drilled in the top left corner corner of the paperback Old Farmer’s Almanac. Every wondered why? When did it start? And what do we do with the punched-out holes? These are deep questions.
The Hole in the Almanac Was Started by Readers
It began in the late 1700s, when we made our earliest Almanacs. Readers discovered how useful the Almanac was in their daily lives and wanted it close at hand. They’d nail a hole into the corner to hang the Almanac in a handy spot, such as the barn or kitchen, or even the outhouse.
When the Almanac Started Making the Hole
About 100 years ago, in the 1900s, after the technology became available, The Old Farmer’s Almanac had these holes put in commercially, to make it easier for our readers. We pre-drill the holes in the corner at the plant when we print the paperback.
The hole will allow you to put a string through the Almanac and hang it in your kitchen, barn, or bathroom. Or, you could put it around your belt and take it to the garden; you can attach it to your backpack or tie it around your telescope. You can take it just about anywhere!
Or, just enjoy the hole as a piece of history and nostalgia—a reminder of simpler days!
Note: It’s the classic Old Farmer’s Almanac paperback, such as found at the newsstand or the Almanac store, which features the hole. We also produce a hardcover edition and put no hole in it, of course. We produce a “softcover” edition at the request of bookstores such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble, which does not have a hole in the corner because it is too thick to punch.
What Do We Do With the Holes?
After all the almanacs are printed, we’re left with nearly 400 million teeny tiny little pieces of paper.
That’s a lot of paper! We do recycle all that paper—although they would make great confetti!
What do you think? Do you use the hole or want to revive this tradition? All you need is a piece of string! We hope you enjoyed this Almanac trivia—and would love to hear where you put your Almanac!
P.S. You can find a copy of this year’s Old Farmer’s Almanac on Amazon, in our own Almanac Web store, and at your local retail store. See where to buy in your area!
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I used to hang the Almanac in the kitchen, like old times. The last few years I've been buying the bookstore edition. The extra information is worth the loss of the hole, even if it seems almost sacrilegious -- in fact, unhole-y.
In the outhouse, if you hang it up, the next person can read it. In the case of the Sears catalog also taken to the outhouse with NO
hole, if you run out of tissue, guess what the pages were used for?
For those of you needing to hang a holeless version of the almanac, just use some sturdy twine or string. Place it between the pages in about the center of the almanac against the binding like a bookmark. Loop it up the outside of the binding and tie the ends of the string together to make a hanging loop.
I must be doing something wrong when I order my almanac.... 2016 - 2017 and now 2018....none of them have a hole..... so "where's the hole"????
The classic Almanac paperback at the newsstand ($6.99) is the one that gets a hole. If you bought this and it has no hole, we can inquire of the production people.
We also produce a hardcover edition and put no hole in it, of course. And we do a “softcover” hardcover version (same paper inside as the hardcover) that does not have a hole in the corner because it is too thick to punch. The latter version is priced at $9.95 (the hardcover is $15.95.).
I hang my copy of the Almanac on a string on the bulletin board in the kitchen just like my Grandpa did, and after he passed away, my Mom did the same thing. So of course I have to carry on the tradition. But it's not just a tradition. It's full of useful information and I use it almost everyday.
We keep our trusted book of knowledge, (anybody remember that series?) inside the door pocket of our dear baby blue VW bug convertible. Comes in handy when the back roads are really and truly dead ends and my husband is looking through the atlas trying to figure a way out. Me, i'm enjoying my "book of knowledge" and smiling......
What a charming video. Loved the presenter. Now, I know the reason for the hole.
Thank you.
Janet Kalmadge
Any video or audio played in class in California is required to be captioned or scribed. I have used your material as a resource and the comments below prompted me to inform you.
I am hearing impaired. Videos are hard for me to understand and sometimes the captions don't work. Please show the text below the video so I can read the article instead and don't miss out on your amazing facts and stories! Been a loyal reader for years so I already knew about the hole. Thank you!
