#typographic advertisements

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Typography Tuesday

We came across a number of lovely typographic advertisements in a new addition to our collections, Companion to the Apostle Islands & Lake Superior, Time Tables, Routes, Rates, Hotels and the Industries of Wisconsin, an advertising booklet prepared by the Wisconsin Central Lines in the mid-1880s and printed in Milwaukee by the Milwaukee Lithographing & Engraving Company. We just love the array of 19th-century type utilized in these advertisements for businesses, stores, manufacturers, and hotels found along the route of the Wisconsin Central Railroad that connected Wisconsin’s cities and towns to the metropolitan centers of Chicago and St. Paul.

These businesses are defunct today, although the Wisconsin Central Railroad was eventually absorbed by the Soo Line Railroad (as was the famous “Milwaukee Road” railway) and the massive complex of structures that form the Pritzlaff Building still stand today at the corner of Plankinton and St. Paul in Milwaukee, and in the past decade have been renovated for stores, restaurants, event venues, and luxury apartments.

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Typography Tuesday

As we’ve said before, we just love the use of typography in 19th-century American advertisements, with their mishmash of wacky type combinations on every line. That is certainly the case with with the advertisements, and even the title page, of this book that was uncovered by our department manager Alice: Progressive American Architecture by Gilbert Bostwick Croff, an architect based in Saratoga Springs in upstate New York, and published in New York City by Bicknell & Comstock in 1875. Alice will be posting about the lovely Victorian houses from this publication in the near future. The advertisements, which of course are for architectural products, are mainly for businesses in the upstate New York region around Saratoga Springs, and reflect the kind of typographical composition that can be found in type foundry specimen books of the period.

View other posts on 19th-century American advertainments. 

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Typography Tuesday

The Imprint, published from January to November 1913, was a periodical that featured many aspects of the printing industry. Among the editors of the publication were F. Ernest Jackson, an English lithographer who designed posters for the London Underground from 1913 - 1925, and the master calligrapher, Edward Johnston, who designed the san-serif Johnston typeface and the roundel used in the London Underground signage. 

In the first issue there was a challenge put forth to printers and designers “Mr. Gordon Selfridge offers through The Imprint a prize of TEN GUINEAS for the best designed Letter Heading for his store.” 

The images above are a selection of entries that appeared in the final issue of The Imprint from November 1913. The last image shown here was the winner.

“The Prize of Ten Guineas has been awarded to Messrs. Mutries, Ltd., 167 Strand, W.C. An enormous number of headings were received - some of which are reproduced in the following pages - and though many of them showed great dexterity, none were considered entirely suitable for the purpose. No further prizes have therefore been awarded.”

Thanks to our benefactor Jerry Buff, UWM Special Collections has all nine issues of The Imprint and will likely feature more gems from their pages in future posts.

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Typography Tuesday

We just love the use of typography in 19th-century advertisements. Not too long ago we highlighted some Wisconsin examples from an 1880 Oshkosh publication. Today we present examples from an early Milwaukee publication, The Emigrant’s Hand Book and Guide to Wisconsin, by Samuel Freeman, published in Milwaukee by Sentinel and Gazette Power Press Print in 1851, just three years after Wisconsin became a state. Freeman’s effort was to attract European immigrants fleeing political unrest and crop failures to Wisconsin as a safe and prosperous haven. This was deemed necessary as Wisconsin was losing population to the Gold Rush in another new state, California. 

Having snazzy typographic advertisements at the end of the guide demonstrated the prosperity of the state’s major city. The effort seems to have worked, as the population of Wisconsin during the 1850s increased over 200% because of immigration. We particularly appreciate the final advertisement in the guide -- Beer and Books. What more does one need?

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Typography Tuesday

Just a few examples of some of the lovely, 19th-century, typographic advertisements in History of Winnebago County, Wisconsin, and Early History of the Northwest, by Richard J. Harney, published in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, by Allen & Hicks in 1880. The publishers, General Thomas S. Allen and Colonel John Hicks were prominent citizens and co-owners of the hometown newspaper,The Oshkosh Northwestern. Allen had been a colonel during the Civil War and in 1865 was brevetted brigadier general, U.S. Volunteers. Hicks was a colonel in the Wisconsin National Guard.

View some of our other Typography Tuesday posts.