The "Freedom To Secure The Blessings Of Liberty: Part I" Story

My first photograph at LancasterHistory.Org.

It was an ordinary day.  Snapping a photograph of a Monarch butterfly that was enjoying the flowering bushes outside the entrance to LancasterHistory.Org.  The photograph was the first of many I snapped during the next hour or so at the Historical Society in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  

LancasterHistory.org

Decided it was a good day for a visit to see what new items might be on display at the beautiful building at the corner of President Ave. and Rt. 23 in the city of Lancaster.  A few years ago my wife bought me a membership to the Historical Society and ever since I have been a frequent visitor to see the ever-changing displays at the historical society.  I showed the attendant my membership card and headed to one of the display rooms.  

1875 Washington printing press.

The current featured exhibit is titled "Not Too Rash, Yet Not Fearful: 225 Years of Journalism in Lancaster County."  Perfect for me, since I enjoy reading the local newspaper as well as having taught printing in high school for almost 35 years.  So, with camera in hand and my membership card in its plastic sheath around my neck, I entered Ryder Hall & Stoudt Gallery.  The next hour was spent reading all the wall posters and examining the large 1875 Washington printing press.  A few years ago I visited the newspaper office in downtown Lancaster and had a private tour of their small window museum and posted a story about my adventure.  Some of the same items are part of this display, but the main part of the display in front of me today is the first page copy of some of the most memorable dates in the history of Lancaster.  There are 26 front pages which can be viewed with a paragraph or two explaining the lead story on the front page.  It is as if I were back in high school learning about the events that formed our nation and were important to the local residents of Lancaster County.  Follow along for the next three days as I take you through history as seen by a resident of Lancaster.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.
PS - Tomorrow will show several front pages from the newspaper along with an explanation of what was on the cover.

Sculpture of Johannes Guttenberg who was a German blacksmith,
inventor, printer and publisher who started the Printing Revolution
 with his invention of movable type in Europe in 1439. His system
allowed for the mass production of printed books, including the Bible,
 radically changing the way people received and shared information.
The access to written information permanently altered the structure
of society.

The top photograph shows a type drawer of wooden capital letters to be used in typesetting.
The bottom drawer has wooden letters of varied sizes used for headlines.

Eventually metal type replaced wooden type and then the Linotype came into
existence.  The Linotype machine looked like a traditional typewriter and
yielded a metal line of type which could be used to set a paragraph for a story.
In 1942 lines of type could be produced using this teletypesetter.  Its keyboard
operated much faster than a Linotype keyboard. 

The metal lines of type were locked in a metal frame known as a chase such as seen in
this photo.  On top of this frame was placed a heavy mat that was pressed onto
the type.  It hardened and was peeled from the type.  Then semi-circular
lead plates were made that could be fastened on the printing press. (See below)

This is a composition material that is pressed on a layer of type
and would form a mold of the page.  

The above mold would be placed in a circular form and this lead
mold would be made.  This would be fitted onto the press.
It was still known as letterpress since this plate would be inked
and pressed onto paper.  Next came offset printing.

This is an aluminum plate that was made by exposing its surface
behind a negative.  Light went through the negative onto the metal
surface and the light would harden the surface of the plate.   After
the plate was developed it yielded what you see above.  This
would be attached to the press and ink and water would run over it before
it hit the paper.  Known as offset printing.

The top photo shows a newsroom reporter's ID card.  John was a reporter for the
Lancaster New Era and this ID identified him as a legitimate member of the press
and authorized him to report on issues related to American combat forces during WWII.
The middle photograph shows Lancaster's Penn Square welcoming home the
troops after we won the war in 1945.  The bottom photograph shows the Victory
Slavage Float in the Lancaster Flag Day Parade on June 14, 1945.  The wagon
was used to collect salvage for the war effort.