#binny & ronaldson

[duardius]

b&r no.1

d.b. updike’s advice on acquisition of material for a printing office: «A third type (which originated with Binny & Ronaldson of Philadelphia over a hundred years ago) is in design transitional between old style and modern face. For books where the old-fashioned air of Caslon would be to obtrusive, and yet which call for a letter more interesting in design than the somewhat bald Scotch face, there is nothing better. I should not advise the purchase of this transitional series at the expense of the first two types chosen, but it will frequently do the work of either. … It is called ‘Oxford’ by the American Type Founders Company, from whom it may be had. I have used it for this book [first illustration]. It seems to me a type of real distinction.» [Printing Types, 2nd ed., vol ii, oup, 1937, p231].  a.f. johnson confirms: «The roman which Updike used for the text of his Printing Types, called ‘Oxford’ and originally cut by Binny and Ronaldson of Philadelphia, seems to have some affinity with Austin’s¹.» [Type Designs, grafton & co., london, 1959, p74].  in the same year as the 1892 merger that constituted the american type founders company [atf],  joseph warren phinney, atf vice-president & former partner in one of atf’s original constituents, the dickinson foundry of boston, advocated revival of the b&r no.1: repaired & augmented with additional sorts, b&r no.1 was reissued as atf «oxford» (but what has this face to do with oxford—presumably the university? ² ). «oxford» is not shown in atf specimen books of 1897 or 1923 (nor do i find b&r no.1 material in the huge mackellar, smiths & jordan book of 1892 ), but was available for special order into the 1960s. the atf oxford matrices (what of binny’s punches? [✓]) now repose in the smithsonian institution.   in 1946, in order to provide historically allusive faces for planned publication of The Papers of Thomas Jefferson [princeton unversity press, 1950], p.j. conkwright, then art director of the princeton university press, advocated adaptation of atf oxford for the linotype; c.h. griffith, then a vp at mergenthaler linotype, designed a b&r no.1 revival: linotype monticello, named in reference to the publication of its first showing. in 2003 linotype issued a digital version of monticello, based not upon the earlier linotype revival but on matthew carter’s redrawing, afresh from the atf oxford material [cf. ‹Monticello Typeface›]. for an allusive composition set in monticello vide ‹perdita›.

1st illustration: excerpted from Printing Types [updike, op. cit., p241]; oxford types.

2nd illustration [iphone photo]: showing of long primer no.1 roman & italic [Specimen of Printing Type, from the Letter Foundry of James Ronaldson, successor to Binny & Ronaldson. | Cedar, between Ninth and Tenth streets, | Philadelphia. | 1822. [Am 1822 Ron 17455.O.1]. for the largest size of no.1, long primer, binny cut a variant, more cursive, italic p; & note the dollar sign—binny was the first to engrave this famous symbol.

with thanks to the library company of philadelphia for permitting my examination of their extremely rare binny & ronaldson material.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ¹ johnson refers to the types cut by richard austin of london for london publishing pioneer john bell—vide ‹the letters of john bell›. the roman also shares affinity with baskerville’s—e.g. unclosed loop or bowl of g. updike affirms bell’s type but has no knowledge of bell: «The two upper sections in our plate (fig. 367) are set in a transitional font, which is, both in roman and italic, a fine and workable letter.» [updike, op. cit., p.243].

² latterly i discovered, harry carter posed the same question in his review of The Specimen Books of Binny and Ronaldson, 1809-1812, in facsimile [introduction c. p. rollins, the columbiad club, connecticut, 1936] in The Library [volume s4-xviii, issue 1, june 1937, p118].

[librarycompany]

We're kicking off this month's #TypographyTogether challenge with this lovely type ornaments from Binny & Ronaldson.

Binny & Rolandson, a printer and a baker, went into business together in 1796 to form the highly successful Philadelphia Type Foundry.

A Specimen of metal ornaments cast at the letter foundry of Binny & Ronaldson. Philadelphia: Fry and Kammerer, 1809

[bradenhnc]

type foundry research

Type foundry historical vs contemporize types faces

A type foundry is a company who distributes/ sells type and fonts to clients and projects.

Before digital type foundries would commission artist to make type and fonts, these types have been digitised as well in modern age.

Type foundry’s started 1476, when William Caxton made the printing press, importing at least some of the type that he used in printing. Until William Caslon (1692–1766), however, English type generally had a weak reputation with the best type imported from Holland.

Types of modern type foundries  

·       Adobe Type, a division of Adobe Systems

·       Apple Inc.

·       Google LLC

·       Letraset

·       Many more

Historical type foundries

·       American Type Founders

·       Barnhart Brothers & Spindler

·       Bauer Type

·       Binny & Ronaldson

·       Bruce's New York Type Foundry

·       Many more

[myfontz]

ATF - American Type Founders

American Type Founders (ATF) was an American typefounding agglomeration formed in 1892, that eventually contained most of the American typefounding industry. ATF owned the rights to one of the world’s greatest libraries of original typefaces, largely directed and created by Morris Fuller Benton. It was based in New Jersey, USA.

Foundries that were incorporated into ATF included: Barnhart Brothers & Spindler (1911); Binny & Ronaldson (1892); Boston Type Foundry (1892); Bruce Type Foundry (1901); Central Type Foundry (1893); Farmer, Little & Co. (1892); Inland Type Foundry (1912).

By the 1920s ATF was the dominant player in the world’s printing equipment market. Not just fonts, but entire printing plants were on offer. This strong position did not continue, due to the ever-changing nature of the printing industry.

Kingsley, a manufacturer of imprinting and marking equipment, acquired ATF in 1986, and the type division became Kingsley/ATF Type Corporation. The foundry closed in 1993 with an ignominious bankruptcy auction. Digital type foundries such as Bitstream, Adobe and the ATF Collection have revived many of the famous ATF fonts to make them available for today’s users.

website - myfonts

[duardius]

binny & ronaldson

reports of early type-founding in the usa tend to be anecdotal, but one fact is certain: in 1796 two scots émigrés entered into partnership (as to the details of their meeting reports are conflicting) & established the first full-time, professional type-foundry¹ in the usa, in philadelphia. skilled punch-cutter archibald binny, & businessman james ronaldson issued their first specimen book of ornamental material in 1809; indeed, the first such specimen book issued in the nascent usa, showing the firm’s ready repertoire of newly engraved ornamental material, as well as four sizes of type, the punches & or matrices for which binny presumably carried from edinburgh [p.j. conkwright, «Binny & Ronaldson’s First Type», PAGA, vol.1, 1953, p27]. their second specimen of 1812 shows new faces, replacing those of 1809, in prevailing fashion—no.2, a modern; & of the previous, transitional, fashion— vide ‹b& r no.1›.  theodore low de vinne gives concise descendency of binny & ronaldson material: «The first founder in the United States of marked ability was Archibald Binny of Scotland, who had made types in a small way at Edinburgh. In 1796, in connection with James Ronaldson, he established a type-foundry in Philadelphia, which soon took the lead of the other foundries in that city. … He retired in 1819. James Ronaldson & Richard Ronaldson [jame’s brother] continued the business. ¶In 1820 Lawrence Johnson, a printer and native of England, established a stereotype foundry in Philadelphia. In 1833 he formed a partnership with George F. Smith for the purpose of buying the type-foundry of Richard Ronaldson. Under the new management the operations of the foundry were largely extended. In 1843 George F. Smith withdrew. In 1845 Johnson admitted to partnership Thomas MacKellar, John F. Smith, and Richard Smith, who had been trusted employees of this house. Peter A. Jordan was added afterword. Before his death in 1860 Johnson sold the foundry to his junior partners, who continued the business under the name MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan, and afterword of MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan Company, but the house has not lost its old name of the Johnson Foundry [presumably the premises]. In 1892 the Mackellar, Smiths & Jordan Company became the Philadelphia branch of the American Type Founders Company.» [Plain Printing Types, the century co., nyc, 1902, p102]. and thus descended the binny & ronaldson material to atf—vide ‹b&r no.1›.

illustration: A Specimen of Metal Ornaments Cast at the Letter Foundery of Binny & Ronaldson. | Philadelphia. | Printed by Fry and Kammerer. | 1809. [Am 1809 Bin 13347.O .4]. with thanks to the library company of philadelphia for permitting my examination of this extremely rare specimen book.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ¹ others had attempted type-founding in english america before 1796, but most were unsuccessful, others succeeding only in a small way: isaiah thomas enumerates seven [isaiah thomas, The History of Printing in America, 3rd edition (original 1810), imprint society, barre, mass., 1970, pp28-32].

[duardius]

perdita

mary robinson (1757?-1800) was a celebrated london actress. at 21 [1779] she gained great acclaim for her performances as perdita, heroine of shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale: the sobriquet «perdita» permanently attached. the twenty-seven year old prince of wales, future george iv, fell in love with her from the audience & four days later made her an offer; they had an affair which brought perdita into highest society. perdita had given up acting for the prince & the prince, a short while later, broke off their liaison not holding good on his pecuniary pledge: perdita threatened publication of his love letters. in settlement perdita received £5k compensation & tacit pledge of an annuity from the royal family. the annuity was settled, but in 1783 a bad turn of health left perdita short of money. forced to supplement income, perdita took to the pen becoming poet & novelist: her poetry so well received that the public acclaimed her the english sappho; no less than coleridge admired her gifts—«She is a woman of undoubted genius.»  (cf. ‹Robinson [née Darby], Mary [Perdita]›.)

the specimen title-page illustrated is homage to an american edition of perdita’s memoirs published in 1802 by the printing house of t. & william bradford, no.8 south front street, philadelphia (last vestige of a colonial american printing dynasty*) — the first edition had been posthumously published by perdita’s daughter, maria elizabeth, the previous year [r. phillips, london, 1801]. set in linotype monticello—vide ‹b&r no.1›.   the frontispiece is digital simulation of an intaglio print after the portrait of perdita by sir john hoppner, royal academician, 1797 (none appears in the exemplar; & i do not know if the bradfords had a rolling press, but an engraved frontispiece is consistent with the period). (perdita was also painted by gainsborough, & reynolds.) plate signature & title set in adobe bickham script.

* the patriarch, william bradford, was philadelphia’s first printer; his first known dated work is An Alamanack for the year of the Christian account 1687. but he was also first printer in new york having removed himself there in 1693 due to legal proceedings over perdition; he printed the first newspaper in new york in 1725, The New-York Gazette; he died in 1752 aged ninety-two. william’s son andrew apprenticed to his father before setting up for himself in philadelphia, about 1712—he was the only printer in the colony until 1723; in 1719 he published the first newspaper printed in pennsylvania, The American Mercury. in 1738 andrew bradford purchased the premises shown on the exemplar’s imprint: no. 8 south front street. the william bradford of the imprint is william bradford, iii, a grandson of the first william, & second printer of that name: he was adopted by his uncle andrew, & became a partner at twenty years of age. william iii’s son thomas was made a partner in 1766 & he continued the establishment in the same location until 1814—the t. bradford of the imprint. [cf. isaiah thomas, The History of Printing in America, imprint society, barre, mass., 1970.]

[duardius]

specimen book anomaly

illustrated is title-page from the 1853 specimen book of l. johnson & co., successors of binny & ronaldson through purchase from richard ronaldson in 1833—vide ‹binny & ronaldson›; but this title-page presents an anomaly: «on the base of Sower’s Foundry of 1737» [pink highlighted]. incorrect, for as william mculloch, a philadelphia printer of the next generation, writing in 1812 confirms: «In 1772 Sower 2d obtained materials from Germany, and commenced type casting.» [«William McCulloch’s Additions to Thomas’s History of Printing», Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society, vol. 31, part 1, 1921, p150]; & i cannot anywhere find that sower material was in possession of binny & ronaldson [✓]. in particular, the foundry of sower 2nd was worked by justus fox, son of a german immigrant cabinet maker, who articled the fourteen year old justus to sower 2nd in 1750 [op. cit., pp164-5]. after the concluding peace of the revolution christopher 2nd suffered disenfranchisement as consequence of previous affinities, or lack thereof: «The type foundry alone, of all Sower’s possessions, escaped the general wreck. When it was first imported in 1772, it was conveyed to Fox’s house nearly opposite to Sower, and was there still continued. The types cast were mostly in Sower’s name, and Fox received a salary for his services. But the foundry being so long in the possession of Fox, and he being the operator, as well as ostensible proprietor, the very generally received opinion was, that it was owned bona fide by Fox, hence it escaped.» [op. cit., p155]. «Fox purchased the foundry in 1784, a little before the death of Sower 2d, and continued the business on a tolerable large scale.» [op. cit., p168]. theodore low de vinne does not give sources but reports: «In 1806 Fox’s son [emanuel] sold the foundry to Samual Sower, son of Christopher Sauer 2nd [his 8th child], who had previously tried to establish a type-foundry at Baltimore, which attempt was renewed by him in 1815.» [Plain Printing Types, the century co., nyc, p100]. mcculloch confirms: «In 1806 he [samuel sower] obtained by purchase the foundry worked by Justus Fox; and this brought part of his father’s possessions again into the family. Samuel still continues type casting in Baltimore, with W. Gwynn, who is present editor of the Baltimore Federal Gazette. The firm is S. Sower & Co.» [mcculloch, op. cit., p162]. samuel’s foundry was also know as The Baltimore Type Foundry, & descended through a succession of purchases eventually becoming a constituent of the 1892 atf merger.  i believe we may accept mcculloch’s anecdotes as authoritative: «Brook Watson Sower, only son of Christopher 3d [he & another son, peter, succeeded in christopher 2nd’s printing office] now works in my office. To him you are indebted for some part of the information respecting the Sower family.» [op. cit., p162].

with thanks to the library company of philadelphia for permitting my examination of the l. johnson & co. 1853 specimen book.

[librarycompany]

Flowers, four lines pica, from the 1809 specimen book of metal ornaments offered by the type foundry Binny & Ronaldson.  Binny & Ronaldson, a printer and a baker, went into business together in 1796 to form the highly successful Philadelphia Type Foundry.  

A specimen of metal ornaments cast at the letter foundery of Binny & Ronaldson.  Philadelphia: Printed by Fry and Kammerer, 1809.