Ramage foolscap press
Ramage foolscap press
Usage conditions apply
- Description (Brief)
- This table-top wooden press was made by Adam Ramage of Philadelphia in about 1840. Its tympan is missing and frisket includes a modern table. The press is stamped on the original brass label: “A RAMAGE / PATENT / NO 189.” Its height (without table) measures 38 inches, its width, at cheeks, 20.5 inches, and its length 37 inches. The platen measures 12.5 inches by 16.5 inches.
- Adam Ramage built wooden presses in three sizes: a full-size common press, an intermediate free-standing press which he called his “screw press,” and the smallest, the “foolscap,” named for the size of sheet (13.5 x 8.5 inches) that it would print. Foolscap presses, sturdier than the screw presses, were sold in good numbers for about $65. After Ramage’s death in 1850, foolscap presses were made for some years by his successor, Frederick Bronstrup.
- Donated by Skip Barnhart, 1986.
- Citation: Elizabeth Harris, "Printing Presses in the Graphic Arts Collection," 1996.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Object Name
- Press, Printing
- Date made
- circa 1840
- date made
- ca 1840
- maker
- Ramage, Adam
- place made
- United States: Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
- Physical Description
- metal (overall material)
- wood (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: 38 in x 20 1/2 in x 37 in; 96.52 cm x 52.07 cm x 93.98 cm
- ID Number
- 1986.0890.01
- accession number
- 1986.0890
- catalog number
- 1986.0890.01
- See more items in
- Work and Industry: Graphic Arts
- Communications
- Printing Presses in the Graphic Arts Collection
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
Nominate this object for photography.
Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.
If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.
Note: Comment submission is temporarily unavailable while we make improvements to the site. We apologize for the interruption. If you have a question relating to the museum's collections, please first check our Collections FAQ. If you require a personal response, please use our Contact page.
