The Art of Ephemera: Typographic Innovations of Nineteenth-Century Midland Jobbing Printers

Osbaldestin, David Joseph (2020) The Art of Ephemera: Typographic Innovations of Nineteenth-Century Midland Jobbing Printers. Midland History, 45 (2). pp. 208-221. ISSN 1756-381X

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Abstract

During the nineteenth century jobbing printers in Britain played an important role in the history of printing. In the skilled hands of the provincial printer, new display types were composed into new forms of advertising, contributing to the education and societal orientation of the emergent middle classes. Jobbing printers of the Midlands contributed to the advancement of British typography, working with new foundry types—sometimes before their appearance in foundry specimen books—and by making significant innovations in the composition of printed ephemera. This article considers the craft and invention of three influential nineteenth-century jobbing printers in the region: William Joesbury (1838–1919) of Birmingham, and the two members of the Gitton family, George (1746–1825) and George Robert (1801–85) of Bridgnorth. Joesbury printed Timothy Worsey Watton’s Outline Charts of General History (1848), an early example of progressive visual education for grammar schools; and the Gittons printed ephemera of Bridgnorth is a valuable record of the town’s importance as centre of industry and of its social culture.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	** From Crossref via Jisc Publications Router ** History: ppub 03-05-2020; issued 03-05-2020; epub 27-06-2020.
Identification Number:	10.1080/0047729x.2020.1767975
Dates:	Date Event 25 May 2020 Accepted 27 June 2020 Published
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Bridgnorth, Birmingham, ephemera, George Gitton, George Robert Gitton, jobbing printing, Joesbury, sans serif, typography, Watton
Subjects:	CAH24 - media, journalism and communications > CAH24-01 - media, journalism and communications > CAH24-01-01 - information services
Divisions:	Faculty of Arts, Design and Media > College of Digital Arts
SWORD Depositor:	JISC PubRouter
Depositing User:	JISC PubRouter
Date Deposited:	14 Jul 2020 12:30
Last Modified:	11 Jun 2024 12:18
URI:	https://www.open-access.bcu.ac.uk/id/eprint/9529

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