Letterpress at the Minnesota State Fair
September 2, 2009 by Jenni
Our state is abuzz with state fair talk. This time of year, it’s all we Minnesotans can think about! If you’re headed to the Great Minnesota Get-together on Thursday September 2, be sure to visit the Newspaper Museum in Heritage Square, where you’ll find Yours Truly operating the Chandler and Price platen press, 2:30-7:30p.m. (I also worked at the museum yesterday, when I recruited a visitor/letterpress enthusiast to snap a few pics of me printing souvenir bookmarks) The museum is heavy-metal time warp, full of antique printing equipment from the now-defunct Maynard News: the C&P, a linotype machine, a cutter, and big machines for printing and folding the newspaper. The museum is always looking for volunteers, too, so if you know a thing or two about letterpress and are interested in helping out at the Fair next year, they have a volunteer card you can fill out during your visit.
I used to volunteer at the museum at the Fair – I ran the hand-fed press and compositing. I worked in the printing business for 30 years, and I am interested in volunteering again.