Women Printers
The Nuns of San Jacopo di Ripoli
1476-1484
Italy
The earliest known involvement of women in printing books was during the period of printing "incunubla" with an Italian printing press operated by nuns under the direction of friars, thus revealing that women have impacted books since their very beginning. Due to their intellect, skill, and religious motivations, scribes were often monks and, although less common, nuns. In this Convent the nuns continued on such work as compositors with the invention of the printing press.
The types of books printed here included "short devotional works, religious broadsides, and important literary texts" (Bridwell Library). "From affordable early printed books for secular and religious readers, books for internal convent use and the education of the nuns, books for humanist book owners and members of other religious communities, to high end luxury manuscripts used to solidify ties of patronage" the nuns were essential to their community and the operations of their convent (Moreton, 2011). Their contributions, however, eclipsed even their own small community, placing them in the center of the cultural, religious, and intellectual environment of the Italian Renaissance and even all of Europe.
The images, all primary sources of works created by the nuns, include a manuscript colophon (left) identifying a Sister Angela as the scribe, a printed book (bottom left) that, based on the friar's day-book, was likely typeset by a Sister Marieta (demonstrating the technical ability of women), and a typical colophon (bottom right) for books printed at the convent.
1476-1484
Italy
The earliest known involvement of women in printing books was during the period of printing "incunubla" with an Italian printing press operated by nuns under the direction of friars, thus revealing that women have impacted books since their very beginning. Due to their intellect, skill, and religious motivations, scribes were often monks and, although less common, nuns. In this Convent the nuns continued on such work as compositors with the invention of the printing press.
The types of books printed here included "short devotional works, religious broadsides, and important literary texts" (Bridwell Library). "From affordable early printed books for secular and religious readers, books for internal convent use and the education of the nuns, books for humanist book owners and members of other religious communities, to high end luxury manuscripts used to solidify ties of patronage" the nuns were essential to their community and the operations of their convent (Moreton, 2011). Their contributions, however, eclipsed even their own small community, placing them in the center of the cultural, religious, and intellectual environment of the Italian Renaissance and even all of Europe.
The images, all primary sources of works created by the nuns, include a manuscript colophon (left) identifying a Sister Angela as the scribe, a printed book (bottom left) that, based on the friar's day-book, was likely typeset by a Sister Marieta (demonstrating the technical ability of women), and a typical colophon (bottom right) for books printed at the convent.
Images retrieved from: http://guildofbookworkers.org/_wp/?p=271 (top left); http://www.smu.edu/Bridwell/Collections/SpecialCollectionsandArchives/Exhibitions/FiftyWomen/EarlyPrinters/Marietta (bottom left); http://libweb2.princeton.edu/rbsc2/ga/unseenhands/printers/ripoli.html (bottom right)
Charlotte Guillard
1480s-1557
France
Charlotte Guillard was involved in the operations of her husband's printing press which, as a widow, she assumed full responsibility for as was the only acceptable means for a woman to own and operate a press during this time. Almost nothing is known of Charlotte's childhood although it is safe to assume that she came from a financially established family to have married a printer since printers of this time were typically in the upper-middle classes as their ventures required literacy, business and technical skills, connections for apprenticeships, and finances. Further, it is known that she would proof-read their Latin publications and was even commissioned by the Bishop of Verona to publish his works due to her printing accuracy and aesthetics, thus she must have received some form of education and was recognized by the community for her talent. Publishing mostly theological and religious texts with a few publications of legal and scientific works, Charlotte must have had significant contact with intellectual professionals and students. Considering her central role in the publication of these genres and publications in Latin she made a significant contribution to the "spreading of knowledge" during the Renaissance and challenging Protestantism (Beech, 1983, pp. 349). It is also a fair assumption that she directly oversaw the daily operations of this business and must have done well considering the printing house's success, even after both of her husbands' deaths; "not only did she have a book shop to manage but the running of four or five presses" required employment and care of workmen, likely "between twleve and twenty-five" of them (Beech, 1983, pp. 351). Her involvement with three other printers (one of which another widow) in a legal dispute impacting the entire printer's guild regarding the source of their paper indicates her acceptance by the community of printers and the serious perspective and pride she took in her work.
The images are all from books printed by Charlotte Guillard. After her first husband's death she added her initials to his trademark (left) and continued to use this trademark as well as include her Latin name, Carola Gvillard, listed as the publisher (bottom left), suggesting a continued, in-depth involvement as a printer, which continued through her second marriage. Guillard recounts that "for fifty years, I have taken care of printing these books, that is to say I push and roll along with a huge mass of expenses and bother" in a preface to a dictionary printed in 1552 (bottom center left) from which it is also clear that she was central to the decision of publishing this work, and is depicted next to her first husband in a 1513 engraving (bottom center), a rare portrait of an early female printer, further suggesting the esteem her husbands felt for her personally and professionally. From 1537 to her death she printed more than 158 titles with her name as the publisher (bottom right), and worked with remarkable artists of her time such as Hans Holbein for engravings for a Latin Bible in 1552 (bottom center right).
1480s-1557
France
Charlotte Guillard was involved in the operations of her husband's printing press which, as a widow, she assumed full responsibility for as was the only acceptable means for a woman to own and operate a press during this time. Almost nothing is known of Charlotte's childhood although it is safe to assume that she came from a financially established family to have married a printer since printers of this time were typically in the upper-middle classes as their ventures required literacy, business and technical skills, connections for apprenticeships, and finances. Further, it is known that she would proof-read their Latin publications and was even commissioned by the Bishop of Verona to publish his works due to her printing accuracy and aesthetics, thus she must have received some form of education and was recognized by the community for her talent. Publishing mostly theological and religious texts with a few publications of legal and scientific works, Charlotte must have had significant contact with intellectual professionals and students. Considering her central role in the publication of these genres and publications in Latin she made a significant contribution to the "spreading of knowledge" during the Renaissance and challenging Protestantism (Beech, 1983, pp. 349). It is also a fair assumption that she directly oversaw the daily operations of this business and must have done well considering the printing house's success, even after both of her husbands' deaths; "not only did she have a book shop to manage but the running of four or five presses" required employment and care of workmen, likely "between twleve and twenty-five" of them (Beech, 1983, pp. 351). Her involvement with three other printers (one of which another widow) in a legal dispute impacting the entire printer's guild regarding the source of their paper indicates her acceptance by the community of printers and the serious perspective and pride she took in her work.
The images are all from books printed by Charlotte Guillard. After her first husband's death she added her initials to his trademark (left) and continued to use this trademark as well as include her Latin name, Carola Gvillard, listed as the publisher (bottom left), suggesting a continued, in-depth involvement as a printer, which continued through her second marriage. Guillard recounts that "for fifty years, I have taken care of printing these books, that is to say I push and roll along with a huge mass of expenses and bother" in a preface to a dictionary printed in 1552 (bottom center left) from which it is also clear that she was central to the decision of publishing this work, and is depicted next to her first husband in a 1513 engraving (bottom center), a rare portrait of an early female printer, further suggesting the esteem her husbands felt for her personally and professionally. From 1537 to her death she printed more than 158 titles with her name as the publisher (bottom right), and worked with remarkable artists of her time such as Hans Holbein for engravings for a Latin Bible in 1552 (bottom center right).
Images retrieved from: http://www.smu.edu/Bridwell/Collections/SpecialCollectionsandArchives/Exhibitions/FiftyWomen/EarlyPrinters/Guillard (top and bottom left); http://www.garamond.culture.fr/en/page/women_in_the_book_trade (bottom center left and bottom center); http://www.smu.edu/Bridwell/Collections/SpecialCollectionsandArchives/Exhibitions/First4CenturiesIllustratedBible/Early16thCentury/HansHolbein bottom center right); http://beineckeearlymodern.library.yale.edu/2008/09/03/new-acquisition-charlotte-guillard-imprint/ (bottom right)
Elinor James
1644-1719
England
Except for the identify of her mother, little is known of Elinor James prior to marrying journeyman printer Thomas James in 1662. Elinor worked alongside her husband in their printing press until 1710 at which time she assumed the role as head of the business which, upon her death, was passed down to her daughter Jane and her husband who was also a printer. In addition to printing and overseeing the printing business, Elinor was a writer of "more than ninety broadsides and pamphlets addressing political, religious, and commercial concerns" earning her the names of She-State Politician and London City-Godmother; in fact it has been speculated that not only did she manage the typeset and printing of her own writings, but perhaps may have even written through setting type rather than by hand with quill and paper (McDowell, 2010). Several of her broadsides addressed the printing industry, giving advice to other printers and supporting licensing which had recently lapsed to allow printing open to all; some of these, like many of her other religious and political writings, addressed politicians directly and even the king. Elinor James' writing and printing career is equal to any of her contemporary male counterparts, placing her, a woman, in the center of a period when public petitioning was thriving at presses and there was great controversy and debate surrounding varying religious and political beliefs and practices. Indeed, unlike many contemporary male counterparts involved in the great debates of her time, "James could produce her petitions more rapidly" due to having a press in her own home" (McDowell, 2007, pp. 129).
All images but the portrait above which shows James with a book and binding, are images of her broadsheets. The first two are examples of her religious, anti-Puritan appeals. The third is a petition addressed to the king, and the fourth concerns printer's licensing addressed to the House of Commons and spoken on behalf of the printers. Although an image of Mrs. James's Advice to all Printers in general cannot be provided here, a transcript is in the document below.
1644-1719
England
Except for the identify of her mother, little is known of Elinor James prior to marrying journeyman printer Thomas James in 1662. Elinor worked alongside her husband in their printing press until 1710 at which time she assumed the role as head of the business which, upon her death, was passed down to her daughter Jane and her husband who was also a printer. In addition to printing and overseeing the printing business, Elinor was a writer of "more than ninety broadsides and pamphlets addressing political, religious, and commercial concerns" earning her the names of She-State Politician and London City-Godmother; in fact it has been speculated that not only did she manage the typeset and printing of her own writings, but perhaps may have even written through setting type rather than by hand with quill and paper (McDowell, 2010). Several of her broadsides addressed the printing industry, giving advice to other printers and supporting licensing which had recently lapsed to allow printing open to all; some of these, like many of her other religious and political writings, addressed politicians directly and even the king. Elinor James' writing and printing career is equal to any of her contemporary male counterparts, placing her, a woman, in the center of a period when public petitioning was thriving at presses and there was great controversy and debate surrounding varying religious and political beliefs and practices. Indeed, unlike many contemporary male counterparts involved in the great debates of her time, "James could produce her petitions more rapidly" due to having a press in her own home" (McDowell, 2007, pp. 129).
All images but the portrait above which shows James with a book and binding, are images of her broadsheets. The first two are examples of her religious, anti-Puritan appeals. The third is a petition addressed to the king, and the fourth concerns printer's licensing addressed to the House of Commons and spoken on behalf of the printers. Although an image of Mrs. James's Advice to all Printers in general cannot be provided here, a transcript is in the document below.
Images retrieved from: http://books.google.com/books?id=gBmYsCKwz24C&pg=PA127&lpg=PA127&dq=elinor+james+printer&source=bl&ots=SIkyfYSTgY&sig=f-2m6l-VL3aBWSrSsLYALZqSSt0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=vqd6Uu32K8SzqAHZh4D4DQ&ved=0CD4Q6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=elinor%20james%20printer&f=false (top); http://eebo.chadwyck.com/search/full_rec?SOURCE=pgimages.cfg&ACTION=ByID&ID=V193282 (bottom left); http://eebo.chadwyck.com/search/full_rec?SOURCE=pgimages.cfg&ACTION=ByID&ID=V51146 (bottom center left); http://eebo.chadwyck.com/search/full_rec?SOURCE=pgimages.cfg&ACTION=ByID&ID=31355804&SEARCHCONFIG=config.cfg&ECCO=undefined&HIGHLIGHT_KEYWORD=param(HIGHLIGHT_KEYWORD) (bottom center right); http://books.google.com/books?id=gBmYsCKwz24C&printsec=frontcover&dq=agent+of+change+print+culture+studies&hl=en&sa=X&ei=TyOBUq2UCcqT2QWE-oHgBA&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (bottom right)
Mary Katherine Goddard
1738-1816
America
Mary Katherine Goddard, born in New England and educated with her brother by their mother, was the daughter of a postmaster. After her father's death and by the means of her mother's financing and direction and her brother's initiative, Mary Katherine Goddard became involved in her brother's printing business first in Rhode Island followed by Philadelphia and then Baltimore. Although the business was in William Goddard's name much of its management and operations were run by Mary and her mother until her mother's death at which time Mary assumed control. Between 1762 and 1784 Mary was a central figure to colonial communication systems, editing and publishing three different newspapers which continued with complete regularity throughout the Revolutionary War, almanacs, pamphlets and a few books as well as becoming the first female postmaster in 1775. "Unlike her brother, who used the paper to promote his own opinions, Mary Katherine Goddard used a more objective, impersonal, and professional tone" (Weatherford). Although obviously dedicated to her work it was of financial necessity and Mary demonstrated business savvy throughout her career supplementing publications early on and during the war with book bindery, petitioning against the Stamp Act having recognized the potential for it to increase printing production costs, and running a bookstore after losing her postmaster position and being forced out of her brother's printing house.
The images below are of primary source material related to Mary Katherine Goddard's career. Mary is distinguished as the first person to print the Declaration of Independence with the signers, which was also printed in her newspaper (bottom left), especially significant considering that at the time this act would have been viewed as treason by Britain. The center item below is a letter written by Mary appealing for her position as Postmaster of Baltimore after having been removed from this post after 14 years of service. The final item is the cover of the almanac showing her as the publisher in 1780.
1738-1816
America
Mary Katherine Goddard, born in New England and educated with her brother by their mother, was the daughter of a postmaster. After her father's death and by the means of her mother's financing and direction and her brother's initiative, Mary Katherine Goddard became involved in her brother's printing business first in Rhode Island followed by Philadelphia and then Baltimore. Although the business was in William Goddard's name much of its management and operations were run by Mary and her mother until her mother's death at which time Mary assumed control. Between 1762 and 1784 Mary was a central figure to colonial communication systems, editing and publishing three different newspapers which continued with complete regularity throughout the Revolutionary War, almanacs, pamphlets and a few books as well as becoming the first female postmaster in 1775. "Unlike her brother, who used the paper to promote his own opinions, Mary Katherine Goddard used a more objective, impersonal, and professional tone" (Weatherford). Although obviously dedicated to her work it was of financial necessity and Mary demonstrated business savvy throughout her career supplementing publications early on and during the war with book bindery, petitioning against the Stamp Act having recognized the potential for it to increase printing production costs, and running a bookstore after losing her postmaster position and being forced out of her brother's printing house.
The images below are of primary source material related to Mary Katherine Goddard's career. Mary is distinguished as the first person to print the Declaration of Independence with the signers, which was also printed in her newspaper (bottom left), especially significant considering that at the time this act would have been viewed as treason by Britain. The center item below is a letter written by Mary appealing for her position as Postmaster of Baltimore after having been removed from this post after 14 years of service. The final item is the cover of the almanac showing her as the publisher in 1780.
Images retrieved from: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/photos/mdwomgoddard,0,2065075.photo (top); http://myloc.gov/Exhibitions/creatingtheus/DeclarationofIndependence/BattleJoined/ExhibitObjects/DeclarationQuicklyReprinted2.aspx?Enlarge=true&ImageId=59f73981-d8a3-4aa3-9dcf-45e7caf1fd93%3A82c9299a-72c5-4147-9a45-93f28da87704%3A488&PersistentId=1%3A59f73981-d8a3-4aa3-9dcf-45e7caf1fd93%3A41&ReturnUrl=%2FExhibitions%2Fcreatingtheus%2FDeclarationofIndependence%2FBattleJoined%2FExhibitObjects%2FDeclarationQuicklyReprinted2.aspx; http://www.gwu.edu/~ffcp/exhibit/p11/p11_3Large.jpg; https://archive.org/stream/pennsylvaniadela1780godd#page/n1/mode/2up
Emily Faithfull
1835-1895
England
Little is known of Emily Faithful's early life other than that she was the last of 8 children born to a vicar in Surrey, England, that she received an education at a school in Kensington, and that she was presented to the Queen at the age of 21. Joining a group in the 1850s for the enfranchisement of women, Faithfull developed a focus on employment opportunities in a trade industry, particularly as compositors for books. After an experiment to determine if women could adequately perform the tasks of compositors and proof-readers, Faithfull, with her own finances as well as a contribution from another member of the Society for Promoting the Employment of Women, opened the Victoria Press in 1860, a printing press that solely employed women. Although it was quite controversial especially with the all male trade unions, it was a commercial success. In addition to establishing the printing press, Faithfull was a writer, editor, and lecturer, and even counted Queen Victoria among her patrons. (Hunt, 2013).
Although not part of the aristocracy, Emily's early life and parentage as well as her financial ability to help found the Victoria Press suggests that she came from a stable middle-class background and likely had a combination of finances from her family and her work. These characteristics allowed her to remain unmarried and to establish useful connections, thus enabling her to contribute to the women's movement developing during this time. Her establishment of the Victoria Press is a considerable contribution to the history of the book by being the first to challenge the unions that excluded women and demonstrating the ability of women in skilled printing trades. Through publishing many works devoted to the women's movement, Faithfull's press was vital to the spread of their social cause and through its success reached a broad, public audience.
The images below include a pictorial representation of her female printing press (left) as published in The Times, her printer's mark (center), and a title page (right) showing her name as the publisher and indicating the patronage of the Queen.
1835-1895
England
Little is known of Emily Faithful's early life other than that she was the last of 8 children born to a vicar in Surrey, England, that she received an education at a school in Kensington, and that she was presented to the Queen at the age of 21. Joining a group in the 1850s for the enfranchisement of women, Faithfull developed a focus on employment opportunities in a trade industry, particularly as compositors for books. After an experiment to determine if women could adequately perform the tasks of compositors and proof-readers, Faithfull, with her own finances as well as a contribution from another member of the Society for Promoting the Employment of Women, opened the Victoria Press in 1860, a printing press that solely employed women. Although it was quite controversial especially with the all male trade unions, it was a commercial success. In addition to establishing the printing press, Faithfull was a writer, editor, and lecturer, and even counted Queen Victoria among her patrons. (Hunt, 2013).
Although not part of the aristocracy, Emily's early life and parentage as well as her financial ability to help found the Victoria Press suggests that she came from a stable middle-class background and likely had a combination of finances from her family and her work. These characteristics allowed her to remain unmarried and to establish useful connections, thus enabling her to contribute to the women's movement developing during this time. Her establishment of the Victoria Press is a considerable contribution to the history of the book by being the first to challenge the unions that excluded women and demonstrating the ability of women in skilled printing trades. Through publishing many works devoted to the women's movement, Faithfull's press was vital to the spread of their social cause and through its success reached a broad, public audience.
The images below include a pictorial representation of her female printing press (left) as published in The Times, her printer's mark (center), and a title page (right) showing her name as the publisher and indicating the patronage of the Queen.
Images retrieved from: http://backspace.com/notes/topic/publishing/2 (top and bottom left); http://backspace.com/notes/topic/publishing/2 (bottom center); http://libweb2.princeton.edu/rbsc2/ga/unseenhands/printers/Faithfull.html (bottom right)
Jane Bissell Grabhorn
1911-1973
America
Coming from a well-to-do family, Jane Bissell Grabhorn was very well-educated and cultured. She became involved in printing through her husband, Robert Grabhorn who, with his brother, owned and operated the Grabhorn Press in San Francisco, considered to be "the most important purveyor of fine printing in America" from the 1920s through its end in 1965 (MacLeod, 2013). Her involvement in the Grabhorn Press started as a hobby and developed into a supporting role for the entire operation. She quickly became a printer of fine quality herself and founded two other presses: Jumbo Press in 1937 and Colt Press in 1938 with partner William Roth.
Housed at and using the equipment of Grabhorn Press, Jumbo Press was primarily a means for Jane to express her creativity and, through satire, playfully criticize the engrained "artistic and professional expectations of her sex and the the aesthetic tradition in which she worked" (Sands, 2010, pp. 4). Her tenets (pictured on the bottom row below) and the forward (centered in the first row below) demonstrate how she creatively addressed issues of printing with aesthetic appeal; A Typographic Discourse, (an image of the title page shown on the far left of the first row below) is an example of her advice and guidance for fine printing.
Colt Press was a serious venture that, independently of Grabhorn Press, "selected, edited, designed, and printed" a wide range of books, but primarily reasonably priced, fine editions of western Americana and notable authors (Kent et al, 1973, pp. 143); The Journal of Julius Rodman by Edgar A. Poe (an image of the title page shown on the far right on the first row below) is an example of such a work. Colt Press also printed for the Book Club of California making them a central figure in the printing and literary world of California at that time.
1911-1973
America
Coming from a well-to-do family, Jane Bissell Grabhorn was very well-educated and cultured. She became involved in printing through her husband, Robert Grabhorn who, with his brother, owned and operated the Grabhorn Press in San Francisco, considered to be "the most important purveyor of fine printing in America" from the 1920s through its end in 1965 (MacLeod, 2013). Her involvement in the Grabhorn Press started as a hobby and developed into a supporting role for the entire operation. She quickly became a printer of fine quality herself and founded two other presses: Jumbo Press in 1937 and Colt Press in 1938 with partner William Roth.
Housed at and using the equipment of Grabhorn Press, Jumbo Press was primarily a means for Jane to express her creativity and, through satire, playfully criticize the engrained "artistic and professional expectations of her sex and the the aesthetic tradition in which she worked" (Sands, 2010, pp. 4). Her tenets (pictured on the bottom row below) and the forward (centered in the first row below) demonstrate how she creatively addressed issues of printing with aesthetic appeal; A Typographic Discourse, (an image of the title page shown on the far left of the first row below) is an example of her advice and guidance for fine printing.
Colt Press was a serious venture that, independently of Grabhorn Press, "selected, edited, designed, and printed" a wide range of books, but primarily reasonably priced, fine editions of western Americana and notable authors (Kent et al, 1973, pp. 143); The Journal of Julius Rodman by Edgar A. Poe (an image of the title page shown on the far right on the first row below) is an example of such a work. Colt Press also printed for the Book Club of California making them a central figure in the printing and literary world of California at that time.
Images retrieved from: http://libweb2.princeton.edu/rbsc2/ga/unseenhands/printers/GrabhornOne.html (top and left middle row); http://sites.uci.edu/ucisca/2013/01/10/jumbo-colt-the-current-exhibit-in-special-collections-archives/ (center middle row); http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rodman_1947_colt_sf.jpg (right middle row); http://sfhcbasc.blogspot.com/2012/01/janes-valentine.html (bottom row); http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rodman_1947_colt_sf.jpg