Biography
The Cummington Press was a small letterpress owned and operated by Harry Duncan, typically producing print runs of fewer than 500.
In 1939, Katharine Frazier, head of the Cummington School of the Arts in Cummington, Massachusetts, acquired a used hand printing press for the school. After the press was restored to working order, Harry Duncan was the first person to use it to print letterpress. The Cummington Press imprint first appeared in 1941 on the book Incident on the Bark Columbia.
Frazier and Duncan operated the Cummington Press together until 1943, when Frazier stepped down due to declining health. Frazier died in 1944. Duncan, who had been rejected for military service, became manager of the press. In 1943-1944, Duncan briefly employed German refugee Gustav Wolf to assist with printing and illustrations. In 1944, Paul Wightman Williams joined the press as the illustrator and printing assistant. Duncan and Williams worked well together and formed a close partnership.
In 1952, the Cummington Press temporarily closed. Duncan traveled to Rome and Williams returned to New York. In 1954, the two reunited and moved the Cummington Press to Rowe, Massachusetts, and resumed operation, now fully independent from the Cummington School of the Arts. Lee Hoiby joined the press in 1954. Operations at Rowe ceased soon after death of Williams in 1957. Hoiby returned to New York, and Duncan accepted a job at the University of Iowa in Iowa City.
Duncan took the Cummington Press equipment when he moved from Massachusetts. The Cummington Press resumed operations, located in Iowa City from 1957 to 1963 and West Branch, Iowa, from 1963 to 1972. Duncan's job at the University of Iowa did not allow him much time for printing, though he continued to operate the Cummington Press on weekends. During his tenure in Iowa, Duncan was assisted by several volunteer apprentices. Duncan also worked with Kim Merker of Stone Wall Press, and the book Error Pursued was jointly published by the Cummington Press and Stone Wall Press. Eventually, the iron hand press which had long been used by the Cummington Press was relocated to Stone Wall Press, and later to Qara Press.
In 1972, Duncan relocated to the University of Nebraska at Omaha, taking a full time position which allowed him to teach half the time and operate the press the other half, giving him much more time and freedom to focus on his printing. Duncan founded Abattoir Editions to operate in conjunction with UNO, but continued to publish under the Cummington Press imprint for projects not affiliated with the university. After retiring from UNO in 1985, Duncan continued to operate the Cummington Press until his death in 1997. Although Abattoir Editions continued operations under Bonnie O'Connell, the Cummington Press ceased with Duncan's passing.
Found in 105 Collections and/or Records:
Scope and Contents
Materials related to published book: A Blear Ball, by Wightman Williams (Cummington, Mass.: Cummington Press, 1945).
Dates:
1945
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Materials about the Cummington Press, predominantly journal articles about the press.
Dates:
1947-1978
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Photocopy of article "The Fine Art of Printing," by Stephen Brock, from The Atlantic Monthly, April 1974, pages 112-115. The article discusses Harry Duncan and the Cummington Press on pages 113-114.
Dates:
1974
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Newspaper clipping from The Berkshire Evening Eagle, Pittsfield, MA, March 12, 1955," of an article titled "Cummington Press Keeps Alive an Ancient Art, by S. Lane Faison Jr., chair of the Art Department at Williams College. The article is accompanied by a photograph of Harry Duncan and Wightman Williams at the press and reproductions of three of Williams' illustrations from The Hovering Fly by Allen Tate (Cummington Press, 1947). The article discusses Mary L. Richmond's exhibitions at the...
Dates:
1955
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Books at Iowa, issue number 2, April 1965, from the University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City. The article "Bookworms and Type Lice," by Harry Duncan, appears on pages 17-25 of this issue. "Duncan p.17" is handwritten in pencil on the cover and title page, and a checkmark is penciled next to the article in the table of contents. In the article, Duncan discusses a library display of "Private Printing in Iowa City 1957-1964" and the Typographic Library in the University of Iowa School of...
Dates:
1965
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Books at Iowa, issue number 7, November 1967, from the University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City. The article "The Cummington Press," by Mary L. Richmond, appears on pages 9-31 of this issue. The article presents a detailed history of the press and a chronological list of publications by the press, from 1939 through 1966, with a 1975 publication handwritten at the end. Annotations handwritten in pencil appear throughout the article. On page 47, below the entry on Mary L. Richmond in the notes...
Dates:
1967
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Four pieces of correspondence related to Mary L. Richmond's article "Personal observations of the Cummington Press," which was published in Printing & Graphic Arts, volume V, number 1, February 1957.1) Three-page typed letter from Mary L. Richmond to Ray Nash, dated February 18, 1957, describing her relationship with the Cummington Press. This letter served as a first draft of the article.2) One-page handwritten memorandum to "Mrs. Richmond" from "R" [presumably...
Dates:
1957
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Fine Print, volume IV, number 1, January 1978. This issue features the articles "Harry Duncan & The Cummington Press," by Mary L. Richmond (pages 1-4); "Harry Duncan, Maker of Books," by Kay Amert and Kim Merker (pages 4-6); "A Checklist of Books Printed by Harry Duncan," compiler not identified, listing works printed by the Cummington Press and Abattoir Editions in chronological order (pages 9-10); and two pages of illustrations from books at the Cummington Press and Abattoir Editions,...
Dates:
1978
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Photocopies of the title page and two unnumbered pages from the book "Methods of Book Design: The Practice of an Industrial Craft," by Hugh Williamson, London: Oxford University Press, 1956. The two pages comprise Figure 49 of "Methods of Book Design" and reproduce pages 10 and 9 (in that order) from Five Prose Pieces (Cummington Press, 1947), showcasing Wightman Williams's "unconventional book illustration" and analyzing Duncan's page format.
Dates:
1956
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Photocopy of article "The Private Press in Iowa," by Dennis C. Wendell, from Missouri Library Association Quarterly, 30 (March 1969), pages 4-9. The article discusses four private presses operating in Iowa City at the time: Prairie Press, operated by Carroll Coleman; Cummington Press, operated by Harry Duncan; Stone Wall Press, operated by Karl Kimber Merker and Raeburn Miller; and Qara Press, operated by Gerald M. Stevenson, Jr. The article notes that Duncan moved to Iowa City on the...
Dates:
1969
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Photograph of Harry Duncan (left) Wightman Williams (right) taken at the Cummington Press, not earlier than 1943 and not later than 1956. They are leaning on opposite sides of the printing press. The image is 12 cm x 15 cm on a 12.5 x 18 cm sheet. The grainy quality of the image suggests it may be a photograph of a photograph. The picture is undated. Written in pencil on the back are the numbers "8-47" which might indicate the date. This photograph was used to illustrate a 1955 newspaper...
Dates:
circa 1947-1955
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Printing & Graphic Arts, volume IV, number 1, February 1956. Handwritten on the front cover in pencil are contents notes, "Terence, p. 27, Prairie Press, p. 9."The book notices on page 27 is titled "Terence Illustrated" and describes the book printed at Cummington Press for the exhibit of the works of Karl Ephriam Weston, curated by Mary L. Richmond.The article on page 9 is titled "The Persistent Prairie Press," and describes the history of Prairie Press in Iowa....
Dates:
1956
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Printing & Graphic Arts, volume V, number 1, February 1957. Pages 9-11 feature the article "Personal observations of the Cummington Press" by Mary L. Richmond, describing Richmond's first meeting with Harry Duncan and Paul Wightman Williams, Richmond's subsequent field trips to Cummington Press while teaching her History of Printing and Book Arts class, the circumstances surrounding the Cummington Press printing of the Terence Illustrated exhibition handbook, the effect of Williams'...
Dates:
1957
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The Mary L. Richmond Cummington Press collection includes more than eighty books printed by the Cummington Press and Abattoir Editions, along with more than twenty Christmas cards other types of publications. All of these have been cataloged and more detailed information about each book may be found in the library catalog.While Mary L. Richmond's collecting of non-book materials related to the Cummington Press focused...
Dates:
1930-1977
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Materials related to published book: An herb basket, by Richard Eberhart (Cummington, Mass.: Cummington Press, 1950). Signed by Wightman Williams and Harry Duncan.
Dates:
1950
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Announcements printed by The Cummington Press and Abattoir Editions for new publications and news about the press.
Dates:
1941-1986
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Announcement of Cummington Press's reopening in November 1954, following a two-year hiatus and move from Cummington to Rowe, Massachusetts. The Press announced its plan to resume production of hand-printed first editions, while also soliciting commissions for custom work. Remaining stock of old items printed at the previous location were being offered for sale at a discount. A list of available publications was included on a separate sheet. Also included is the original envelope with...
Dates:
1954
Scope and Contents
Postcards, flyers, and other announcements of books published by the Cummington Press while the press was at its original location in Cummington, Massachusetts, 1941-1953. Initially, Harry Duncan initially worked under the direction of Katharine Frazier at the Cummington School of the Arts. By 1941, they began publishing under the imprint of the Cummington Press. After Frazier died in 1944, Paul Wightman Williams joined Harry Duncan at the press.Itemized list (10 items):...
Dates:
1941-1953
Scope and Contents
Postcards, flyers, and other announcements of books published by the Cummington Press while the press was at its original location in Cummington, Massachusetts, 1941-1953. Initially, Harry Duncan initially worked under the direction of Katharine Frazier at the Cummington School of the Arts. By 1941, they began publishing under the imprint of the Cummington Press. After Frazier died in 1944, Paul Wightman Williams joined Harry Duncan at the press.Itemized list (2 items):...
Dates:
1942-1944
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Announcements of books published by the Cummington Press while the press was located at Iowa City, Iowa, 1957-1963, while Harry Duncan was teaching at the University of Iowa.Itemized list (three items):Postcard circa 1959, advertising Error Pursued, by Helen Pinkerton, jointly published by The Cummington Press and The Stone Wall Press. The postcard return address is for The Stone Wall Press in Iowa City, Iowa. (MLR 214.)Flyer circa 1961, advertising...
Dates:
1957-1963
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Announcements of books published by the Cummington Press while the press was located at Omaha, Nebraska, 1972-1986, while Harry Duncan worked at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. During this period, Harry Duncan published works commissioned by outside agencies under The Cummington Press imprint, and works funded by the University under the Abattoir Editions imprint.Itemized list (two items):Postcard circa 1972, advertising The Meeting Place of the Colors, by...
Dates:
1972-1986
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Announcements of books published by the Cummington Press while the press was located at Rowe, Massachusetts, 1954-1957. Harry Duncan and Paul Wightman Williams worked in partnership during this period, which ended with Williams' death in 1957.Itemized list (two items):Postcard circa 1955, advertising "TWO NEW PAMPHLETS OF POETRY," listing The Book, by Harvey Shapiro, and The Traveler, by Don Stanford. (MLR 175.)Untitled order form circa 1954, listing...
Dates:
1954-1957
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Announcements of books published by the Cummington Press while the press was located at West Branch, Iowa, 1963-1972.Itemized list (two items):Pamphlet and order form circa 1970, advertising "A List of the Limited Editions in Print at The Cummington Press, West Branch, Iowa, Iowa 52358. Summer 1970." Printed double-sided on a sheet 20.5 x 26.5 cm, folded into a four-page booklet 20.5 x 13.5 cm. Inserted into the booklet is an order form, printed single-sided on a...
Dates:
1963-1972
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Materials related to published book: Annual report of the officers of the town of Rowe Massachusetts for the year ending December 31, 1954 (Rowe, Massachusetts: Cummington Press, 1954).
Dates:
1954
Scope and Contents
Materials related to published book: Blackberry winter : a story / Robert Penn Warren. Cummington, Mass.: Cummington Press, 1946. From colophon: "This copy is number vii of a first edition limited to three-hundred-thirty [corrected in hand of H.D.: 280 total copies] copies hand-printed from Poliphilus types set up by hand, those numbered 1 to 280 [corrected in hand of H.D.: 230] being on Arches paper from France, and those i to l, signed by the author and the illustrator, on Kelmscott Crown...
Dates:
1946
Scope and Contents
Bookplate reading "AMHERST COLLEGE \\ LIBRARY \\ [logo] \\ from the library of \\ HERBERT L. PRATT \\ of the Class of 1895." The logo is an abstract oval design printed in red. The text and border are printed in black.
Dates:
circa 1940s
Scope and Contents
Bookplate, proofs, and original artwork for the Amherst College Library bookplate for the gift of Thomas A. Ethier. The final bookplate reads, "AMHERST COLLEGE \\ LIBRARY \\ [logo] \\ from the books of \\ THOMAS A. ETHIER \\ of the class of 1921." The logo depicts the face of a dragon in an East Asian style, printed in two colors. The text and the dragon's face are in black.
Itemized list:One proof of the complete bookplate, with the dragon printed in black and red, the text in...
Dates:
circa 1940s
Scope and Contents
Bookplate reading "AMHERST COLLEGE LIBRARY \\ IN MEMORY OF \\ CLEMENT FESSENDEN MERRILL JR. \\ AMHERST COLLEGE MCMXXXVIII \\ PURCHASED FROM A FUND \\ CONTRIBUTED ANNUALLY \\ BY MEMBERS OF HIS FAMILY \\ ON THE OCCASION OF HIS BIRTHDAY."
Dates:
circa 1940s
Scope and Contents
Four bookplates of The Chapin Library at Williams College. The name of the institution is surrounded by an ornamental border. Each bookplate measures approximately 3 x 5 cm.
Dates:
circa 1950s
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Two proofs on a single sheet of the bookplate for the Cummington School library. The design features the initials "CS" inscribed in a circle within a triangle, over the text "CUMMINGTON \\ SCHOOL \\ PLAYHOUSE \\ IN-THE-HILLS \\ INCORPORATED." The word "LIBRARY" appears vertically in the ornamental border on the left. Beneath the lower border are two blanks labeled, "DEPARTMENT OF" and "GIFT OF" with space for additional text.
Dates:
circa 1941-1944
