Rob Roy Kelly American Wood Type Collection
The Collection
History Publications Specimens Details
American Wood Type
Production Manufacturers Book Lists
Contact & Links
Hand List of Specimen Books
CU (Columbia University) HM (Hamilton Wood Type & Printing Museum) HL&M (Huntington Library) NL (Newberry Library) NYPL (New York Public Library)
March, 1828 / CU
Darius Wells
Darius Wells, Letter Cutter

July, 1838 / CU
George Nesbitt (Edwin Allen)
First Premium Wood Types Cut by Machinery

c. 1838 / NYPL
J.M. Debow (William Leavenworth)
Leavenworth’s Patent Wood Type

1840 / CU
Wells & Webb Specimens of Plain and Ornamental Wood Type

1841 / CU
George Nesbitt (Edwin Allen)
Nesbitt’s Fourth Specimen of Machinery Cut Wood Type

1846 / CU
L. Johnson (Wells & Webb distributor)
Specimens of Wood-Letter

April, 1849 / CU
Wells & Webb
Specimens of Wood Type

April 1853 / CU
Bill, Stark & Co.
Specimens of Machinery Cut Wood Type

1854 / CU
W. & H. Hagar (Wells & Webb distributor)
Specimens of Printing Types

1854 / CU / NL
Wells & Webb
Specimens of Wood Type
(NL copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)


1858 / NL
D. Knox & Co.
Specimens of Wood Type

October, 1859 / CU / NL
William H. Page & Co.
Specimens of Wood Type

c. 1859 / NL
J.G. Cooley & Co.
Specimens of Wood Type
(NL copy also contains parts of two smaller undated specimens: J.G. Cooley & Co. Cooley’s Wood Type and Vanderburgh, Wells & Co.)

May, 1860 / NL
William H. Page & Co.
Supplementary Specimens of Wood Type Rules & Borders, Etc.

January, 1865 / CU
William H. Page & Co.
Price List for Wood Type, Borders, Reglet, Etc.
(Affixed to 1859 Page specimen)

October, 1870 / NYPL
William H. Page & Co.
Specimens of Wood Type

1870 / CU / HM
William H. Page & Co.
German Specimens of Wood Type

August, 1872 / CU / HL&M / NL / NYPL
William H. Page & Co.
Specimens of Wood Type
(HL&M copy contains 2 additional pages of border material)

August, 1872 / NL
Marder, Luce (Page distributor)
Specimens of Wood Type

August, 1872 / CU
Dauchy & Co. (Page distributor)
Specimens of Wood Type

c. 1872–1879 / HL&M
R.H.C Valentine & Co, New York
Valentine’s Printers’ Price Current
(unclear if this was a Page or Wells distributor)

July, 1873 / CU
William H. Page & Co.
Specimens of Wood Type

1874 / CU / NL
William H. Page & Co. Specimens of Chromatic Wood Type, Borders, Etc.
(CU copy is gift from Rob Roy Kelly)

September, 1876 / CU
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Wood Type
(CU copy is gift from Rob Roy Kelly)

1876 / CU / NL
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Poster Specimens
(NL copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

1877 / CU
Vanderburgh Wells & Co. Specimens of Wood Type, Borders, Rules, Etc.

April, 1878 / CU / HL&M / NYPL
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Wood Type
(CU copy is gift from Rob Roy Kelly, NYPL copy contains one additional page showing Aetna Extra Condensed and Egyptian)


April, 1878 / HM
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Wood Type
(interior is different from catalogs held at CU, HL&M and NYPL)

1879 / NL
Vanderburgh Wells & Co. Specimens of Wood Type, Borders, Rules, Etc.

c. 1879 / HL&M
American Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Wood type
(Tubbs’s first wood type catalog)

April, 1879 / CU
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Page’s Wood Type Album, Vol 1, No 1
(CU copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

July, 1879 / CU / HL&M
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Page’s Wood Type Album, Vol 1, No 2
(CU copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

October, 1879 / NL / HL&M
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Page’s Wood Type Album, Vol 1, No 3

January, 1880 / HL&M
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Page’s Wood Type Album, Vol 1, No 4

1880 / NYPL
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Wood Type

c. 1880 / HL&M
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Untitled broadside
(header is imprinted: The New York Wood Type Mfg. Co., 44 Ann St. N.Y.)

c. 1880 / HL&M
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
5 Line Combination Border
(broadside)

c. 1880 / HL&M
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
4 Line Combination Border No 2
(broadside)

1881 / CU
Hamilton & Katz
Specimens of Holly Wood Type

July, 1881 / CU
Morgans & Wilcox Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type, Printing Materials, Presses, Paper Cutters, Etc.

May, 1882 / CU
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Wood Type & Borders
(CU copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

January, 1883 / NL
American Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Wood Type


1883 / CU
Shniedewend & Lee
Specimens of Page’s Wood Type & Borders
(CU copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

April, 1884 / NL [microfilm]
Hamilton & Katz
Specimens of Holly Wood Type

1884 / CU / NL
Morgans & Wilcox Mfg. Co.
Condensed Specimen Book of Wood Type
(NL copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

1884 / HL&M
Allison & Smith, Cincinnati
Condensed Specimen Book of Wood Type
(distributor for Morgans & Wilcox)

1885 / HL&M
Golding & Co, Boston
Presses, Type, Tools, Materials and Printers Supplies
(unclear if this was a Page or Morgans distributor)

November, 1886 / NL [microfilm]
Hamilton & Baker
Specimens of Holly Wood Type 

1887 / NL
National Printers’ Materials Co.
Specimens of Enameled Wood Type

January, 1887 / NL
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Page’s Wood Type

May, 1887 / CU
Hamilton & Baker
Specimens of Holly Wood Type
(CU copy is gift from Rob Roy Kelly)

1888 / CU
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Specimens of Machine Cut Wood Type
(A facsimile was produced by David W. Peat in 2002)


July, 1888 / CU
Hamilton & Baker
Specimens of Wood Type & Borders
(CU copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

March, 1889 / CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg Co.
Specimens of Wood Type & Borders
(CU copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

August, 1889 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type & Borders
(CU copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

1889 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Calendar Sets

1889 / NL
Vanderburgh Wells & Co.
Specimens of Wood Type, Borders, Rules, Etc.

May, 1890 / CU / NL
William H. Page Wood Type Co.
Page’s New Process Wood Type
(Reprinted by American Life Foundation in 1983)

1890 / CU
Morgans & Wilcox Mfg. Co.
Condensed Specimen Book of Wood Type

1890 / CU
Vanderburgh Wells & Co.
New Styles Wood Letter
(3-color broadside)


1890 / CU
Heber Wells
Specimens of Wood Type

c. 1890 / HL&M
Nelson Chesman & Co, St. Louis
Specimens of Enameled Wood Type
(distributed National Printers’ Materials Co.’s Enameled Wood Type)

c. 1890–1900 / HL&M
Golding & Co., Boston
New Process Wood Type (broadside)
(unclear if this is a Page or Hamilton distributor)

1891 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Page’s Wood Type, Book No. 10

1891 / NL
Heber Wells
Specimens of Wood Type

1891 / CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Process Wood Type Manufactured by Page

1891 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Alphabetical List of Page’s Names & Numbers with The Hamilton Mfg. Co’s Numbers for Same

January, 1892 / CU
Heber Wells
Specimen Book of Wood Letter

1892 / CU / HM / NYPL
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Wood Type & Borders (oversized)
(Front matter indicates that there was an 1891 catalog)

c. 1893 / NL
Nelson & Chessman & Co. (Hamilton distributor)
New Process Wood Type
(NL copy is gift from Hamilton Mfg. Co.)

1893 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Pointers (broadside)

1894 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Perpetual Calendar Sets (broadside)

November, 1895 / CU
Heber Wells Specimens of Wood Type
(Front matter indicates there was an 1893 catalog)


1895 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
DeVinne Series Specimens

c. 1895–1897 / HM
Morgans & Wilcox Mfg. Co.
New Specimens of Wood Type
(six-page brochure)

c. 1895–1900 / HM
Mexican Type Foundry
Catálogo de Tipos de Madera
(Mexico City based Hamilton distributor)

1896 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type (No 13)

1897 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Designs in End Wood Type
(series of 5 two-page brochures)

c. 1897–1899 / HM
Compañia Americana
Muestrario de Tipos y Orlas de Madera
(Santiago based Hamilton distributor)

c. 1897–1900 / HM
John Dickson & Co, Limited
No title
(London based Hamilton distributor)

1899 / CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type (No 14)

1899 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of New Faces of Wood Type
(four-page brochure)

c. 1900 / HM
Compañia Americana
Muestrario de Tipos y Orlas de Madera, Séries B
(Santiago based Hamilton distributor)

c. 1900–1905 / HM
Serra Hermanos & Cia.
Catálogo No 2 De Tipos, Rayas y Adornos, de Madera Para Imprenta
(Buenos Ares based Hamilton distributor)

c. 1900–1906 / HM
Golding & Co (Hamilton distributor)
New Process Wood Type
(eight-page brochure)

c. 1900–1910 / HM
The Liberty Machine Company
Catalogo de Tipos de Madera
(export agent for Barnhardt Bros & Spindler, ATF distributed Hamilton type)

1901 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type (No 15)

c. 1904 / NL
Tubbs & Co.
Tubbs Wood Type

1905 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Hamilton’s Wood Type Cut on End-grain Rock Maple
(series of 3 sixteen-page brochures)

1905 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Some Further Remarks about Wood Type and Modern Printing Office Furniture
(one-page circular)

c.1905–1910 / HM
Mexican Type Foundry
Catálogo de Tipos de Madera
(Mexico City based Hamilton distributor)

January, 1906 / CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type, with Wood Ornaments, Flourishes, Dashes, Silhouettes, Catchwords, Corners, Fractions, Calendars & Borders (No 16)

1908 / CU / HM / NL
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type (No 17)
(A facsimile was produced by John Horn at Shooting Star Press in 2010)

1908 / HM
Tubbs Mfg. Co (Luddington, MI)
Tubbs Specimen Book (No 5)

c. 1908–1914 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Calendars Manufactured by the Hamilton Mfg. Co

1909 / HM
Tubbs Mfg. Co (Luddington, MI)
Eight New Wood Type Faces
(series of 2 eight-page brochures)

1909 / HM
Tubbs Mfg. Co (Luddington, MI)
Tubbs Border Poster Supplement
(broadside)

c. 1910–1920 / HM
Eastern Brass & Wood Type Co
No Title
(thirty-three-page brochure)

January, 1915 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Perpetual Calendar Sets
(eight-page brochure)

August, 1915 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Moon Phases for Perpetual Calendar Sets
(one-page circular)

1915 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Faces in Wood Type
(twelve-page brochure)

c. 1915–1930 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Faces in Wood Type
(twelve-page brochure, same content as 1915 brochure but with different cover)

c. 1915–1927 / CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Unit Gothics and Roman Flame Borders
(broadside dated 1927 at CU)

c. 1915–1927 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Hamilton’s New Series Baseball Borders
(broadside)

c. 1915–1927 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
USA Flags, Silhouettes of Military Figures, Ornaments
(broadside)

1916 / HM
Empire Type Foundry
Catalog No 16
(first inclusion of Empire’s wood type)

September, 1918 / CU / HM / NL
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Wood Type & Borders
(Hamilton re-used existing 1908 Tubbs Mfg. Co. specimen book)

c. 1920–1927 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Series of Poster Cheltenham in Wood Type
(sixteen-page brochure dated 1929 at CU)

c. 1920–1927 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Series of Poster Cheltenham in Wood Type
(sixteen-page brochure, matches previous brochure but different cover and wording on page 15)

c. 1920–1928 CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Gothic Faces in Wood Type
(dated 1928 at CU)

1923 / HM
Empire Type Foundry
Catalog No 18
(includes Empire’s wood type)

1925 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Silhouettes Football, Baseball, Basket Ball
(tri-fold circular)

March, 1927 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Popular Wood Type
(twelve-page brochure)

September, 1927 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Gothics and Wood Border
(front cover fragment only)

1927 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Wood Type

c. 1927–30 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Hamilton Wood Type The Standard in Accuracy and Design
(series of 16 one-page circulars)

1928 / CU
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
New Gothic Faces & Wood Type

1930 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Hamilton Wood Type (No 18)

March, 1931 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Wood Type
(twelve-page brochure, same content as 1915 and c. 1915–30 brochure with different cover)

January, 1932 / CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Specimens of Large Wood Type

1932 / CU / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Display Gothics

1935 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Hamilton Wood Type (No 19)

1936 / private collection
American Wood Type Mfg. Co
American Wood Type No 36

after 1936 / HL&M
Missouri-Central Type Foundry
Specimen
(Most likely a distributor for American Wood Type Mfg. Co. or Hamilton)

1938 / CU / HM / NL
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Wood Type Catalog No 38

1939 / HM
American Wood Type Mfg. Co
American Wood Type No 39

March, 1940 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Hamilton Wood Type Supplement to Catalog No 38
(four-page brochure)

March, 1942 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Hamilton Makes Headlines
(four-page brochure)

August, 1943 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Wood Type Low Cost Display Lines
(four-page brochure)

1950 / private collection
Allied Wood Type
Catalog No 50

1951 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Add “Punch” to your printing with Hamilton Wood Type (No 25)

1952 / private collection
American Wood Type Mfg. Co.
Catalog 1952

June, 1955 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Wood Type Display Lines No 25 Wood Type Catalog Supplement
(four-page brochure)

1955 / private collection
American Wood Type Mfg. Co.
Catalog 1955–1956

c. 1956–60 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Wood Type Display Lines No 31 Wood Type Catalog Supplement
(four-page brochure)

c. 1955–60 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Display Lines Hamilton Wood Type Supplement
(set of 7 one-page circulars)

1957 / NL
American Wood Type Mfg. Co.
Interim Catalog 1957

1958 / HM / NL
American Wood Type Mfg. Co.
Catalog 1958–1959

1960 / HM
The Hamilton Mfg. Co.
Woodtype Selective Emphasis for Fine Typography by Hamilton

1961 / HM / NL
American Wood Type Mfg. Co.
Catalog 1961–1962

1969 / HM
Showcard Machine Co.
Type and Supplies Catalog 169

1981 / HM
Showcard Machine Co.
Type and Supplies Catalog 981

Specimen Books Bibliography