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Henry Taylor Wyse: The early British typefounders
Henry Taylor Wyse writes in 1911 in Modern type display and the use of type ornament: GUTENBERG, the inventor of printing, as well as his immediate successors, cut their own punches, made their own matrices, and cast their own type. In the early part of the sixteenth century } however, as the number of printers increased, type-founding as a regular business began to be developed, and periodical markets for the sale of type were held throughout Europe. In England the pioneers of printing, Caxton, Wynkn de Worde, and Pynson, were founders as well as printers, casting type however mostly for their own use. One of the most noted of these founder-printers was John Day, who began business in 1546. He cut founts of Roman, Saxon, and Italic letters, and was the first English founder-printer who cut Roman and Italic letters which would range as one fount. After Day's death, English printers had to depend upon Dutch matrices from which to receive their supplies of type. The year 1585 witnessed a revival of the Oxford University Foundry and Press under Joseph Barnes. During the next century it received two important gifts. Dr John Fell, its Chancellor, in 1677 presented it with a complete foundry, consisting of over seventy sets of punches and matrices for Roman, Italic, Oriental, Saxon, and black letter founts, as well as all the necessary utensils and apparatus requisite for a complete printing office. In the same year Francis Juvinus presented similar gifts to the University. In the middle of the seventeenth century type-founding and printing began to be carried on as separate businesses in England. Joseph Moxon (1659-1683), Robert and Sylvester Andrews (1683-1733), and Thomas and John James (1710-1782) all figure as early English type-founders. Joseph Moxon combined the business of type-founder and printer with that of hydrographer to the King. In 1669 he printed what is supposed to have been the first type-founders' specimen issued in England. Moxon was suc- ceeded by Robert Andrews and his son Sylvester, who had established a type-foundry in Oxford. This was purchased in 1733 and removed to London by Thomas James, who had been an apprentice to Robert Andrews, but had left his service before 1710, being joined by his son John at a later date. It does not appear that they cut any punches for themselves ; they depended upon Holland for their supply of matrices. By 1758 James' Foundry had absorbed no fewer than nine of the old English foundries. Varying fortunes of the Caslon firm form an interesting chapter in the history of type-founding in England. William Caslon I. (1692-1766) may be said to have been the first English type-founder who whole-heartedly devoted himself to the cutting of punches and the casting of type. Originally an engraver of gun barrels, he attracted the attention of Mr Watts, an eminent printer of his day. This printer, struck by the neatness and taste displayed by Caslon in his engraving, and being in need of a new fount of type, enquired whether he thought he could cut letters for him. After one day's consideration, he replied that he thought he could, and straightway began to cut a series of punches for the type which is now known as Caslon Old Face. It is inter- esting to know that Benjamin Franklin, who later became the well-known American printer, ambassador, and statesman, was at this time a journeyman printer in the service of Mr Watts. The efforts of Caslon gave such satis- faction the type he had produced was so much better than that in common use that the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge, being in need of a new Arabic fount, commissioned him to cut it for them. In the same year (1720) he cut a Pica Roman and Italic fount. His next perform- ance was a Pica Coptic fount for Dr Wilkins' edition of the Pentateuch. These successful founts soon made him famous, and by 1730 he had eclipsed most of his competitors, and secured the exclusive custom of the King's printer. About 1733 he cut a black letter fount, and in 1734 issued his first specimen from Chiswell Street, and it contained no fewer than thirty-eight founts, all of which, with the exception of three, were from his own hand. These thirty-five founts represented the untiring industry of fourteen years. The production of this specimen placed Caslon at the head of his profession, and his type was regarded as the standard. It was illustrated in the second edition of Ephraim Chambers's Cyclopaedia in 1738. In 1739 Caslon purchased half of Robert Mitchell's matrices, the other half being bought by John James. In 1742 Caslon assumed his eldest son, Wm. Caslon II., as a partner, and in the specimen of the same year the firm appears as Wm. Caslon & Son. Caslon II. was as expert as his father at punch-cutting, and the following notice appears in " Ames' Typographical Antiquities," published in 1749: "The art seems to be carried to its greatest perfection by William Caslon and his son, who, besides the type of all manner of living languages now by him, has offered to perform the same for the dead, that can be recovered, to the satisfaction of any gentleman desirous of the same." The "Universal Magazine" of June 1750 contains an article on letter-founding, accompanied by a picture of the interior of Caslon's Foundry. The print includes representations of four casters at work, one rubber (Joseph Jackson), and one dresser (Thomas Cottrell). Punch-cutting and justifying was carried on in secret by the Caslons themselves, but Jackson and Cottrell found means to observe them at work, and learned for themselves the manual part of the "art and mystery." In the year 1757 a movement for higher wages was made by the men in Caslon's employment. The increase of wages was granted, but Jackson and Cottrell, the ringleaders, were dismissed. In the specimen of 1764 eighty-two different founts were illustrated, more than twice as many as had been shown in the specimen of 1734. Most of the new founts had been cut by Caslon II. Caslon I. was in many ways a cultured man, being extremely fond of music. He was married three times. His first family consisted of one daughter and two sons William, who succeeded him, and Thomas, who became an eminent bookseller. Caslon I. died at Bethnal Green on January 23, 1766, aged seventy-four. In 1766 Caslon II., who had succeeded to the business on the death of his father, issued a specimen on the title-page of which the original name of Wm. Caslon appears. Caslon II. died in 1778, aged fifty-eight, leaving the business to his son William (Caslon III.). In 1792 Caslon III. disposed of his interest in Chiswell Street to his mother and sister-in-law. Mrs Caslon senior died in 1795, and as her will was the object of some litigation, the estate was thrown into Chancery, and the foundry put up to auction. It was bought by Mrs Henry Caslon for 520, whereas seven years previously one-third share of the concern had been sold for 3000. In buying the foundry, Mrs Henry Caslon determined to revive the business, and for this purpose secured the services of Mr John Isaac Drury, who cut new Canon, Pica, and Double Pica founts. At the same time, Mr Nathaniel Catherwood, a distant relative, was introduced as a partner. By 1808 the foundry had regained its former position. Both Mrs Henry Caslon and Mr Catherwood died in 1809. In 1802 the firm appeared as Caslon & Catherwood, but in 1809 it was styled Wm. Caslon & Son once more. From 1814 to 1821 the partnership included John James Catherwood, brother of a former partner. From 1830 to 1834 it was styled Caslon & Livermore, then in 1839, Caslon Son and Livermore ; in 1846 Caslon & Son ; and in 1850, H. W. Caslon & Co., Ltd. the name by which it is now so widely known. When, in 1757, Wm. Caslon I. summarily dismissed his two workmen, Joseph Jackson and Thomas Cottrell, he little thought that his action would lead to the starting of two new businesses, which would develop into rivals of his own and his successors. Thos. Cottrell started as a type-founder in 1757, and had associated with him for some time, Joseph Jackson, his unfortunate coadjutor. Cottrell's business eventually developed into that of Sir Charles Reed & Sons, while Jackson's foundry, established in 1763, at length became that of Stephenson, Blake & Co., both firms being joined under the same management in 1906. The story of the ups and downs of these firms would be too lengthy for narration in such a work as this, but it may be interesting to relate that the foundries, or at least the punches and matrices of about a dozen concerns were absorbed by Thos. Cottrell's successors. These belonged to Joseph Moxon, 1659-1683 ; R. & S. Andrews, 1683-1733 ; Thomas & John James, 1710-1782 ; Fry and Pine, 1764-1776 ; Joseph Fry & Co., 1776-1782 ; Edmund Fry & Co., 1782-1794 ; Edmund Fry and Isaac Steele, 1794-1799 ; Fry, Steele & Co., 1799-1808 ; and Edmund Fry & Son, 1816-1829, at which date William Thorowgood, who was the then living successor of Thos. Cottrell, took over the business of Edmund Fry & Son, then known as the Polyglot Letter Foundry. In 1838 the style of the firm was Thorowgood & Besley ; in 1849, Besley & Co. ; in 1861, Reed & Fox; and in 1877, Sir Charles Reed & Sons. The foundry started by Joseph Jackson in 1763 was put up to auction after his death in 1792, and was acquired by Caslon III., who had left the Chiswell Street firm. In 1807 it belonged to Wm. Caslon, Junior, son of Caslon III. In 1819, Wm. Caslon, Junior, disposed of the foundry to Blake, Garnett & Co., who had become partners for the purpose of acquiring it, and the entire stock was removed to Sheffield. In 1830 the firm was known as Blake & Stephenson, while in 1841, it went under the style of Stephenson, Blake & Co., the name which, in association with Sir Charles Reed & Son, it now bears. An obituary notice of Thomas Cottrell, written by his friend Nicols, throws a curious light upon the usages of the time, and is as follows : " Mr Cottrell died, I am sorry to add not in affluent circumstances, though to his profession of a letter founder, were superadded that of a doctor for the toothache, which he cured by burning the ear ! " It is interesting to notice that many of the early type-founders forsook other occupations to follow that of punch-cutting. Joseph Moxon was a hydrographer ; Caslon I. was an engraver of gun barrels ; Alex. Wilson of St Andrews, the first Scotch type-founder, and Joseph and Edmund Fry were all doctors, while John Baskerville of Birmingham was successively a footman, a writing master, a printer, and finally a type-founder. Baskerville seems to have been in many ways a remarkable man. He spent six years of effort and over 600 in improving the typography of his own day. He made everything required for his business, punches, matrices, type, ink, and even printing presses. His type was of beautiful and elegant form ; and the issue in 1757 of the first book printed with it (Virgil) was hailed with delight by the entire literary world. This was not sufficient, however, to compensate him for the years of labour he had spent on his founts. The printers of his own day preferred the bold Caslon Old Face, which had taken them by storm. He spared no effort to bring his founts into the market, but without success. His entire stock of type-punches and matrices were eventually purchased by Beaumarchais for the "Societe Litteraire Typographique " for 3,700, and transferred to France. |
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Luc Devroye ⦿ School of Computer Science ⦿ McGill University Montreal, Canada H3A 2K6 ⦿ lucdevroye@gmail.com ⦿ https://luc.devroye.org ⦿ https://luc.devroye.org/fonts.html |