Private Press File: P - R

Some of the links included in this list (particularly those that link to holdings in the MERLIN Catalog) are still under construction.

Pacific Editions

Pacific Editions is the imprint of book artist Charles Hobson, who lives and works in Stinson Beach, California. He has published books under the Pacific Editions name since 1986.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Palabra Press

Located Providence, Rhode Island. Proprietor is Leda Black.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Palaemon Press Limited

Stuart Wright is the publisher.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Peacocks Press

G.F. Sims established the Peacocks Press in 1950 in Hurst, Reading, England. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Pear Tree Press

James Guthrie founded the Pear Tree Press at Ingrave, near Brentwood, Essex, England, in 1899. Guthrie was a poet and printmaker who set up his press originally to print his artworks. Many Pear Tree Press books are printed from single blocks or plates, without separate type used. Guthrie also used complicated color processes in printing his images. The press later moved to Shorne, Kent, and then to South Harting, Sussex. Guthrie continued to print into the 1940s. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Pegacycle Lady, Press of the

The Press of the Pegacycle Lady was founded in 1971 by William and Victoria Dailey in Los Angeles, California. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Pegasus Press

The proprietor was John Holroyd-Reece, and the press was located in Paris. It appears to have been active mainly in the 1920s and 1930s, and it published books about art. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Pelican Press

Sir Francis Meynell, also of the Nonesuch Press, established the Pelican Press in 1916 in London. Meynell became known for his ornate borders composed of floral and vegetal elements, and he coined the word "fleuron," which is still used today to refer to a typographic flourish. The Pelican Press became an important laboratory for Meynell's typographic and ornamental designs. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Pelletan, Edouard

Edouard Pelletan set up his publishing company in 1895 in Paris, France. The firm was devoted to the use of older types and fine crafstmanship, and many of the books Pelletan printed were decorated with Art Nouveau color woodcuts.

Pemberton Press

Located Austin, Texas.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Penmaen Press

Penmaen Press was the imprint of book artist Michael McCurdy from 1965 to 1985. It was located in Lincoln, Massachusetts. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Pennyroyal Press

Pennyroyal Press was established in 1970 by Barry Moser in Nothampton, Massachusetts. The press is known for the high quality of its limited edition books, which feature Moser's prints and are often bound by other well-regarded book artists. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Pentagram Press

Michael Tarachow runs the Pentagram Press in Markesan, Wisconsin. He specializes in small letterpress and offset editions of poetry and typographic books. The press has operated since 1976. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Penumbra Press

Bonnie O'Connell is the proprietor of Penumbra Press, which she established in 1971 in Lisbon, Iowa. The press is currently located at the University of Nebraska in Omaha, where O'Connell is the director of the Nebraska Book Arts Center and Abbattoir Editions. O'Connell was a student of Walter Hamady (of the Perishable Press) and Harry Duncan (of Abbattoir Editions and the Cummington Press). Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Perishable Press Limited

Walter Hamady has been proprietor of the Perishable Press in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin, since 1964. Hamady's books feature handmade paper, attention to typographic details, and unique, often humorous elements. These elements have made his works highly sought after among collectors and bibliophiles, and Hamady has also been honored in several exhibitions at libraries and galleries around the country. One of these exhibitions is recorded in a catalogue (available at MU Libraries): Two decades of Hamady and the Perishable Press Limited by Walter Hamady, Mount Horeb, Perishable Press Ltd., 1984. Click here for a list of materials at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Perpetua Press

Perpetua Press is operated by Dean Bornstein in Barnet, Vermont.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Peter Pauper Press

Peter Beilenson established the Peter Pauper Press in the basement of his home in Mount Vernon, New York, in 1928. Together with his wife, Edna, Beilenson specialized in beautifully bound and illustrated small volumes which were sold for reasonable prices. Edna Beilenson promoted and improved the press's offerings by initiating the Peter Pauper cookbook series and suggesting the use of decorative cloth for the bindings of small gift books. A second generation of Beilensons recently restarted the press, which now focuses on gift books, albums and journals.

More information about the Beilensons and the press is available in Recalling Peter: the life and times of Peter Beilenson and his Peter Pauper Press, edited by Paul A. Bennett, New York: The Typophiles, 1964. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also Beilenson, Peter and the Walpole Printing Office.

Petrarch Press

Peter Bishop established the Petrarch Press in Oregon House, California, in 1985. His purpose was to publish important world literature in fine, hand-printed letterpress editions. The press later relocated to New York City. Bishop stopped printing in 1996, and the press relocated to Oregon House, where it is now a non-profit printing company and museum. Bishop died in 2003.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Pickering Press

John Harold Anderson established the Pickering Press in 1932 in Maple Shade, New Jersey. Anderson was a noted typographer, and he worked at the press until 1995. He died in 1997. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Pilot Press

Pilot Press was founded in 1972 by Eric Greinke in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraires.

Pinchon, L.

Leon Pinchon was a bookseller, editor and printer in Paris during the early twentieth century.

Plain Wrapper Press

Richard-Gabriel Rummonds and Alessandro Zanella printed fine limited editions at the Plain Wrapper Press from 1966 to 1988. The press often featured prominent contemporary authors, and printing was done on dampened hand-made paper. The press was located at the University of Alabama. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also Ex Ophidia Press, Edizioni Ampersand, Stamperia Ampersand, and the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Platen Press

Ted Freedman was the proprietor. See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Plantin Press

The Plantin Press was founded in 1931 by Lillian and Saul Marks in Los Angeles, California. The Markses were well known for their fine limited editions and meticulous craftsmanship, and they printed several works for the Limited Editions Club. Lillian's brother, Joe Simon, worked at the press in his early career and went on to become a partner in Anderson, Ritchie & Simon. The Plantin Press was named after the famous Plantin family of printers in seventeenth-century Amsterdam. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Plimpton Press

Located in Norwood, Massachusetts. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Plough Press

Geoffrey Wakeman founded the Plough Press in 1967, and it was located in Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. Wakeman died in 1987, but his family continues printing at the press, which is now located in Kidlington. The Plough Press specializes in limited editions and artists' books. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Poeschel & Trepte

Poeschel & Trepte were located in Leipzig, Germany, and printed several books for the Limited Editions Club, among their other work. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Polyglot Press

Arthur Graham is a professor of music at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, and prints under the Polyglot Press name. His press is known for its fine letterpress editions of works in many different languages.

A discussion of the press and related presses can be found in The Private Press Tradition in Lexington, Kentucky and Fine Printing In Lexington.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Posthorn Press

John Dingman was the proprietor of Posthorn Press, which was located in Oceanside, California.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection .

Prairie Press

The Prairie Press was originally established as the Golden Quill Press in 1920 by Carroll D. Coleman in Muscatine, Iowa. Coleman was also director of the Typographic Laboratory and designer of University publications at the University of Iowa. In addition, he was a friend of the Iowa regionalist painter Grant Wood, and originally his vision was that the press would focus on Midwestern authors. By the end of his career, however, the Prairie Press published literary works of merit from authors of all regions. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection .

Previous Parrot Press

Previous Parrot Press is the continuation of Inky Parrot Press, which was established and run by Dennis Hall at Oxford, England. The press specializes in illustrated books. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

The Printery

Kay and Daisy Kramer established the Printery in 1971 in Kirkwood, Missouri. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection .

Pym-Randall Press

The Pym-Randall Press was founded in 1964 by James Randall, a professor at Emerson College in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The press was named after the founder and his Manx cat Pym, and it specialized in first printings of young poets. The press became a non-profit foundation in 1970 with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, and it closed operations in 1986. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Pynson Printers

Elmer Adler founded the Pynson Printers in 1923 in New York City. He published The Colophon: A Book Collector's Quarterly from 1930 to 1940 and served as typographic consultant to several publications within the city. Adler also established the department of printing and graphic arts at Princeton University in 1940. The press was named after Richard Pynson, a sixteenth-century printer. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Pyracantha Press

The Pyracantha Press is the teaching press of the Book Arts Program in the School of Art at Arizona State University. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Quaritch, B.

Bernard Quaritch was born in Germany in 1819 and was apprenticed to a bookseller before moving to London in 1847. He worked for a publishing house for a short time before opening his own business as a bookseller. Known for his collection of rare and important books, manuscripts and incunabula, Quaritch edited and authored catalogs which still have great bibliographical value today. Quaritch also operated a publishing company and was the publishing agent for the British Museum. His rare book business still exists in London. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Quelquefois Press

Mary Laird founded Quelquefois Press in 1969 in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin. She was a partner with Walter Hamady in the Perishable Press until 1984 and moved to Berkeley, California in 1988. She specializes in fine letterpress editions and is also a noted teacher of printing. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also Perishable Press and the listing for Quelquefois Press in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Ragpicker Press

Madison, Wisconsin.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Raindust Press

David Briscoe and Frank Higgins founded the Raindust Press in Independence, Missouri, in 1975. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Rather Press

Located in Oakland, California.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Reading Lion Press

W. Gay Reading is the proprietor of the Reading Lion Press of Lexington, Kentucky. Reading is also a former director of the King Library Press at the University of Kentucky.

A discussion of the press and related presses can be found in The Private Press Tradition in Lexington, Kentucky and Fine Printing In Lexington.

See also King Library Press, the Windell Press, and the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Red Butte Press

Red Butte Press is the press of the J. Willard Marriott Library at the University of Utah and has been in operation since 1984. The press publishes fine limited editions of important works that might not otherwise become available in print. These works include contemporary literature and historical works in the holdings of the Special Collections Department at the Marriott Library.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Red Hydra Press

Red Hydra Press is the private press of Steve Miller, formerly proprietor of the Red Ozier Press. Miller is a professor in the Book Arts Program in the School of Communication and Information Sciences at the University of Alabama, where he has lived since 1988. The press specializes in fine, hand-printed limited editions. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Red Ozier Press

The Red Ozier Press was established in 1976 by Steve Miller in Madison, Wisconsin. The press is dedicated to publishing literary first editions and handmade limited editions. The press moved to New York City in 1979 and achieved national recognition both for the craftsmanship of its products and the importance of the authors it published. In 1988 the press closed and the New York Public Library purchased its entire archive of proofs, correspondence, and publications. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

See also Red Hydra Press and the listing for Red Ozier Press in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Risk, Terry (R. T.)

R.T. (Terry) Risk is an author and printer. He also publishes books under the Typographeum Press imprint in Francestown, New Hampshire.

See also Typographeum and the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Ritchie, Ward; Press

Ward Ritchie is renowned as a designer, printer, and historian of books. He established his press in 1932 in Los Angeles, California, although he had been involved in several informal publishing operations before this. Ritchie was known for his innovative designs, making the form of each book fit its contents and meaning. He operated his publishing company until 1974, and even continued to publish books under the Laguna Verde imprint from his retirement home. Ward Ritchie died in 1996 at the age of ninety.

A checklist and history of the Ward Ritchie Press and Anderson, Ritchie & Simon has been published by Ward Ritchie: The Ward Ritchie Press, and Anderson, Ritchie & Simon, Los Angeles, 1961. Click here for a list of materials published by Ward Ritchie Press available at MU Libraries.

Riverside Press

Riverside Press was founded as a book publishing plant in 1852 by Henry Houghton in Cambridge, Massachusetts. George Mifflin became a partner in the business in 1880, a move that resulted in the Houghton-Mifflin Company. Riverside Press was retained as a literary and fine printing division of the larger company. In 1979, the Riverside Press ceased to be a fine printing operation and became a wholly owned subsidiary of Houghton Mifflin. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Robot Press

Robot Press is an imprint of Erespin Press of Austin, Texas.

See also Erespin Press and the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Rocket Press

Jonathan Stephenson is the proprietor, and the press is located in Blewbury, Oxfordshire, England. Rocket Press has also done some printing for the Amate Press. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Rogers, Bruce

Bruce Rogers was a prominent typographer and book designer who is responsible for designing the Centaur font and made over five hundred book designs in his lifetime. Highly sought after by book collectors, Rogers was not involved in the physical production of the books, which he saw as mechanical drudgery. Instead he completed commissions for various book arts societies and private presses. He is said to have influenced the book arts in England and the United States more than any other book artist.

Several studies have been made of Rogers' life and influence; click here for a list. Click here for a list of materials designed by Rogers and available at MU Libraries.

Roland-Verlag

Located in Munich, Germany. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Rollins, Carl Purington

Carl Purington Rollins was University Printer at Yale University beginning in the early twentieth century and was instrumental in starting a tradition of student letterpress printing there. His work as a printer, publisher and type designer made significant contributions to the book arts. Purington also printed and designed books for the Grolier Club and the Limited Editions Club.

Rollins' work was the subject of an exhibiton and catalogue at the American Institute of Graphic Arts: The Work of Carl Purington Rollins. Arranged by the American Institute of Graphic Arts and exhibited in the gallery of the Grolier Club April twenty-seventh, nineteen hundred forty nine. New York, 1949 .Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Ronart Press

Ronald A. Ruble founded the Ronart Press in St. Louis, Missouri. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Roundwood Press

Located in Kineton, Warwick, England. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Rowfant Club

The Rowfant Club is an organization of bibliophiles in Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1892 to promote the study and appreciation of books and printing, and it continues to meet yearly. The club was named for the home of Frederick Locker-Lampson, a nineteenth-century English poet. The club advocated fine printing and binding, and it sponsors the publication of limited editions for its members. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Roxburghe Club of London

The Roxburghe Club was founded in England in 1812 upon the sale of the library of the Duke of Roxburghe, an important collector and bibliophile. The club underwrote the publication of important texts and facsimiles, including much medieval literature. Books were published in numbers just sufficient for the members of the club, and editions never exceeded 100.

Several studies of the history and influence of the Roxburghe Club are available at MU Libraries; click here to see a list. Click here for a list of materials published by the club and available at MU Libraries.

Roxburghe Club of San Francisco

The Roxburghe Club of San Francisco is an association of bibliophiles and printers that publishes limited edition books. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Roycrofters

Elbert Hubbard established Roycrofters in 1896 as a handicraft community in East Aurora, New York. Hubbard was strongly influenced by William Morris and his Arts and Crafts aesthetic, and he established a press initially to publish some of his own writings. The community reached its peak in 1910 and was known for the beauty and craftsmanship of the objects it produced. Hubbard and his wife died aboard the Lusitania in 1914, and the Roycroft communitiy closed in 1938.

Several studies exist on the life and influence of the founder of the Roycrofters, Elbert Hubbard; click here to see a list of those available at MU Libraries. For a listing of materials about the Roycrofters, click here. Click here for a list of materials published by the Roycroft Shop and available at MU Libraries.

See also the listing in the Press Ephemera Collection.

Rudge, W.E.

William Edwin Rudge was a noted printer and typographer of the early twentieth century. He established his printing house in Mt. Vernon, New York. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.

Rydal Press

Walter Goodwin originally established the Rydal Press in his house in Rydal, Pennsylvania. In 1932, he and others decided to start a cooperative printing venture in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Goodwin published several books under the Writer's Editions imprints when he first moved to New Mexico in 1933. In 1941, Goodwin sold the company to Gordon Stevenson and Dale Bullock, who began to use the press more for commercial printing than for fine books. The press continued to do commercial work through a few other owners until it closed in 1980. Clark Kimball bought and reestablished the company in 1985 to print fine press books once again. Click here for a list of materials available at MU Libraries.