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Printer

Teacher note: A number of students contributed to these pages on Colonial times. Each contributed diffferent information or a different perspective. You may find that each article adds to your understanding and research base.

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Joshua H.
Oct.2002

In a colonial Printing press there where many things that, Where needed and many things going on. To make a printing press work you needed many tools. One of these tools was called a type. A type was a stamp with a letter on it. There where many different Pieces of type because each key had its own letter or punctuation on it. These Pieces of type where all put together to make the overall paper on the press. To plan the type form, a person took a block of wood and a mallet and lightly beat on the type surface. When putting together a paper first you got the pieces of type from the door that held them. After you got the pieces of type you would line them up on the press except in opposite order so that it would come out the right way on the paper. Then you would move the press on top of the paper as it shows in the picture below.

Skills you had to have to be a printer or an apprentice where that you had to have responsibility for getting a printing job done, and people skills, and a good vocabulary And finally how to do all the steps.

There where many printers in colonial America. One of them was William Parks. William Parks was a printer and publisher in three English towns before he opened the first the first printing office in Williamsburg and founded the Virginia Gazette in1736 He died in 1750.
A printing press was usually set up in the middle of the town or city and could also double as a post office when needed. A printing press was used to print flyers and newspapers. A printing press was also able to make pages for books and then send the pages to the bookbinder.

GO TO ARTICLE # 3

Article 1

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By:Christine D. & Katy H.

A printer is a person who produces printed materials, such as books and newspapers. He/she worked in a printing office in the center of towns and cities as a center of information for the townspeople. The printing office also served as a mail office for mail carriers. The printer ran the printing office, trained apprentices, and worked the printing press. One thing that the printer printed was a newspaper. This process began when the printer bought paper from the paper maker, and made the ink to print with. One way the printer would make the ink by mixing water with soot from candles. Then, after gathering those materials, and getting a commission and/or news to print, the printer would ready the printing press by setting the types in the press, rolling the ink, and setting the paper. Then, by running the press (pushing the pedal which kept it running, hammering the platen, setting more paper, rolling new ink, etc.) the printer would print put his/her newspaper, and assemble it. Even so, a lot went in to printing. The printer had to make sure he/she wasn't disobeying an order from the king of things not to print, and if the material printed wasn't directly offensive to any person/group that the printer wasn't prepared to defend the print to. After printing copies of the paper, the printer would have to determine a price, and set it up in the printing office to be sold.

The training needed to be a printer is as follows: *How to tend to customers (people skills/charisma) *How to receive and produce a commission (efficiency, responsibility, vocabulary, ethics) *How to use a printing press (to replace ink, to hammer platen, to restock paper, to stop it) *How to buy and barter for needed materials (people skills) *How to mix the ink, and find the necessary materials for the ink (resourcefulness, identification)

This craft was needed by the public because: *they needed their mail (which was received through the printing office) *they needed to know information *they needed literature and books *other businesses need advertisements *they needed news from England *they needed other important notices - new taxes, obituaries, inflation etc.

The printer would enjoy his/her job because of job satisfaction. It probably gave them great pride to see people reading a newspaper or copy that THEY had printed. Another possibility would be religious reasons. Who wouldn't be satisfied with providing their church with copies of the Bible (or other holy book, depending on religion)? Yet another possibility would be because of popularity. The printer was the center of information in Colonial cities.

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Last updated on March 12, 2003