A Legacy Moves On

Bruce McDonald and his Letterpress Shop, “thumbs up Press”

Last April Red Onion Press and the Atlanta area letterpress community lost a dear friend with a life-long passion for the art of letterpress printing. Bruce, who along with his wife Kathy, established the Craftsmen Printing Company in 1981 in Midtown Atlanta. Bruce retired from the commercial world of printing in 2018, but those who knew him, continued to see his passion for the printing arts flourish in his activities as a letterpress enthusiast.

His involvement with the letterpress arts began at a very young age. As his obituary read, “Before the age of 12, he had found his passion in printing and spent the next 68 years, as he often said, “putting ink to paper.” In addition to his professional career in printing, Bruce continued to maintain a presence as a hobbyist printer in his cherished basement shop as the home of the “Thumbs Up Press” and regularly corresponded with other devotees in several associations. One such group was the APA (Amalgamated Printers Association) of which Bruce was an early member (#56), which was founded in 1958. The organization by design would never have more than 150 active members, with a waiting list for those who wished to join. New members today are awarded numbers above 1028.

I first met Bruce at Craftsmen Printing as he was selling his business. Among the equipment he pointed out in the premises was an old Peerless platen treadle operated letterpress, patented in 1873. He told me that this was his first press, purchased with his newspaper route funds, before he started high school. It had a broken frame which I later repaired and added a motor with a modern speed controller. The Peerless was one of a number of presses I had the pleasure of working on from Bruce’s collection which is one of the most substantial private letterpress collections of printing equipment and letterpress type font in the Southeast.

Bruce’s letterpress collection started small and over the years had grown exponentially. His shop had some 20 printing presses of all types and sizes. Included was an impressive collection of letterpress type fonts from all over the country; many of them rare. His library, filled with technical and biographical printing books was also part of the collection, all of which is being donated to the International Printing Museum in Carson City near Los Angeles, California. APA associates Anthony Guadagnolo and Michael Leeder as well as Mark Barbour, Director of the International Printing Museum spent a number of days last month, working with us to get the collection packed and plan to be back in January to load 2, possibly 3 semitrailers for the road trip back to California.

The Crew at Work

Above Left to right

• A view of some of the 150 type cabinets double stacked throughout the basement shop area

• Our homemade cabinet lifting robot , nicknamed ‘The Big Chicken”

• Shirley Bak lowering a cabinet to the floor using the lifting device.

• APA member Tony Guadagnolo checking out the proof press

• Red Onion Press Director, Clemens Bak assembling a set of platen presses

• International Printing Museum Director, Mark Barbour and APA member Michael Leeder moving a Pearl press

The family, Kathy and daughters, Heather Walker and Claire Benedict have also donated a part of the collection to the Chastain Park Art Center in Atlanta.  The Red Onion Press is also the recipient of a significant gift from the collection, an 1855 tabletop British Albion press. The machine, a quintessential early iron hand press has a long association with the book printing arts in the dawn of the English Industrial Revolution.  The press, one of three Albions in the McDonald Collection will be used and featured in our ongoing book printing project, Classics of English Literature. 

Now Available for Purchase

   The Red Onion Press in collaboration with the Kennesaw State University’s School of Art and Design has completed the hand printing of a limited edition of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the second of six Classics of English Literature from a series of original woodblocks by the late artist, Bronislaw Bak.  These works of art, lost for over 50 years were recovered several years ago in remarkable condition.  The 180 illustrations for six filmstrips produced for Encyclopedia Britannica's Filmstrip Division had been the product of a two year-long commission in 1964 by the late artist, Bronislaw Bak.  Each of the 50 hand bound folios will be available for sale for $500 at completion of each edition, and reservations will be accepted for the complete series, expected to be completed by 2027 or earlier. Buy Now!

Last Spring: Bringing the Twiggs Press back to life…

Red Onion Press Restoration Project AT Kennesaw State University Enters 4th year

The Red Onion restoration of a significant collection of historic printing equipment donated to the University now includes seven floor standing presses, both platen and earlier iron handpress style machines as well as some 20 table top presses of a variety of makes and vintages.

This restoration of a very rare and significant iron press originally designed in 1813 by a Philadelphia mechanic and inventor, George E. Clymer. The Columbian Press has the distinction of being cast with rather distinctive imagery, including dragons, and an eagle counterweight. It was designed to print a full newspaper page and applied pressure via a steel lever system. Many of the design elements of the Columbian press were carried over to other steel hand presses well into the early 20th Century. Clymer later moved to England where he continued to manufacture the press. Our particular model is an 1880 version also manufactured in England.

our Newest additions are related!

This 7 x 11 Golding Pearl press is a 1870’s era “old style” platen press. Both of these presses as are all the floor model platen presses are treadle operated. One distinctive feature is the lack of any throw-out lever. Every press cycle is a print cycle, so make sure you either remove the chase when setting up or have paper loaded on the platen!

Ready for the outdoor classroom

Our converted pre-civil war 350 lb bindery press is a mobile letterpress on wheels, that can be taken on the road and used for hands-on printing demonstrations at schools and art centers in the area! This press, modeled after the hand presses used since the invention of movable type demonstrate the basic principles and origins of publishing.

Shown here in one of our members workshop, the press is equipped with large casters, and a sliding base with all the hardware that was used to print books, posters and newspapers 200 years ago. Built around a Hickok book bindery press, it is similar to one in the American Book Bindery Museum in San Francisco. Contact the Red Onion Press if your school, Art Center or Organization would like to book a session. The demonstration will involve hands-on printmaking and typesetting.

Repairs and Restoration

Since our founding in 2014, the Red Onion Press has been restoring antique printing equipment and other historic machinery, of which several are preserved as part of the cultural heritage of the community. It started in 2017 when members of the Red Onion Press excavated an abandoned 1911 Chandler and Price letterpress in Acworth, Georgia and restored it. Today that press is still in operation with the original motor, belt and clutch.

This press was manufactured in the same time period as it’s bigger sister. We in the shop referred to her affectionately as Mini-Pearl, however she was already quite an antique when her namesake was strutting on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry! The Mini’s feed table only stands about 4 feet high off the floor.

Restored Platen press on permanent display on the grounds at the North Cobb Public Library