View full size image or right-click on image to save
View full size image or right-click on image to save
Ramage flatbed press No. 913, handmade by Scottish immigrant Adam Ramage in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1800-1830
Handmade by Scottish immigrant Adam Ramage in Philadelphia in the early nineteenth century, this flatbed printing press saw a great deal of use in the western United States for probably forty years. While the early history of this machine is unclear, it is certainly one of the oldest presses on the Pacific coast. The first confirmed use of the press was at a San Francisco newspaper, The Alta Californian, in 1850. Later that year it printed the first issue of Portland's The Weekly Oregonian. On August 5th, 1867, the press printed the first copy of the Intelligencer, the predecessor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. The press changed hands many times until 1880, when it was retired.
ID Number: 1980.7094.438
Date: 1800-1830
Physical Description: 1 Press, Printing; wood, metal; 66 in.H x 40 in.W x 45 in.D
Place Made: United States of America, PENNSYLVANIA, Philadelphia
Credit: MOHAI, 1980.7094.438. Given by Exchange by the Thomas Burke Washington State Memorial