Forest Lodge Library

The Forest Lodge Library is excited to be part of the Rendezvous event taking place at the Sawmill Saloon in Seeley this Sunday, 1/29, from 2:00 until 4:00 p.m. The event is a celebration marking the land transfer of the 100 acre Uhrenholdt estate from Robert  Olson to the Northland College. Robert Olson and Michael Miller, Northland College Presdent, as well as a few other folks, will speak at the event and entertainment will be provided by the Voyageur Singers. The library will be on hand with a selection of Sigurd Olson books from our collection and will also have recording devices, in the hope that some in attendance will care to share their memories about the Namekagon River. We'll also be running a slide-show of photos from some of the legendary Metro's spring river runs, courtesy photos provided by Metro III. Hope you can join us there!

The Forest Lodge Library is pleased to announce a program on the resurgent technology of letterpress printing scheduled for Friday, February 10th at 5:30 at the library. Jim Moran, Director of The Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum, will offer a slide-show presentation. If you have any interest in the graphic arts or the history of printing, you’ll want to be there!

Letterpress printing was the principal means of mass communication for over 500 years. In the 1960’s and 70’s new technologies began to displace letterpress supremacy, and the advent of the digital age, with the appearance of the Apple computer in the 1980’s, lowered the boom. But, what goes around comes around and, in the last decade, there has been renewed interest in the letterpress printing technology that was abandoned in the latter part of the last century. 

One great place to learn about all things letterpress is at The Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum in Two Rivers, WI and one great person to discuss the subject with is Jim Moran, The Hamilton’s Director. Moran is a third generation letterpress printer with 35 years of experience. He grew up in and worked as apprentice, pressman, partner and finally owner of Moran’s Quality Print Shop in downtown Green Bay. This business was sold in 2000 and Moran became familiar with The Hamilton when he donated the family presses to the museum. He “formalized” his relationship with The Hamilton when he was hired on as the Museum’s Director in 2009. Under his directorship, The Hamilton has become a true “working” museum which offers internships and residency programs and has developed some interesting partnerships. Notably, the Target retail store has developed a Vintage Varsity Collection, which will premiere in the fall, featuring wood-type and images from The Hamilton.

The Hamilton Wood Type & Printing Museum was founded in 1999 in an effort to retain an important part of Two Rivers’ history. The Hamilton Wood Type company began as a “rush job” for wood-worker J. Edward Hamilton, who created his first wood-type to fulfill his assignment. He developed an innovation that significantly reduced the time it took to produce wood type and his business, which began in 1880, was the nation’s leading source of wood type by the end of the 19th century. By 1984, new technologies had decreased demand to such a degree that the business halted production and the factory was turned to another use. The Two Rivers Historical Society was behind the effort to establish the Museum and it was originally staffed by an all-volunteer workforce.

Just prior to Moran’s signing on as Director, a documentary film called TYPEFACE was shot, chronicling the efforts and struggles of The Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum and the recurrent interest, particularly among graphics professionals, in the letterpress industry. TYPEFACE is in the Forest Lodge Library’s collection and available for patron check-out.

The Forest Lodge Library welcomes Jim Moran to Cable on Friday, February 10th. Moran will offer a slide-show presentation about the past and present of The Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum and will talk about what’s been going since he’s been on board and his plans for the future. He’ll bring along some samples of the remarkable work being done. The program begins at 5:30 and a reception at the nearby Rivers Eatery will follow. 

Director Lendved is especially excited about this program because Jim Moran is an old friend of hers from her Green Bay days; someone she has recently gotten back in touch with...and was very excited to learn about the fascinating work he's doing at The Hamilton!

To learn more about the The Hamilton in advance of the program, visit their website: http://woodtype.org/ ... OR read the article profiling Moran and his work at The Hamilton in the Summer 2011 edition of Wisconsin People & Ideas, the magazine of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters. It's available for check-out here at the library, or you can read it online by following this link: http://www.wisconsinacademy.org/magazine/right-type-jim-moran-brings-fresh-ink-hamilton.