UMBC
Albin O. Kuhn Library & Gallery

Overview

Title: Douglas McMurtrie Papers
Call Number: Coll310
Creator: McMurtrie, Douglas Crawford
Dates: 1919-1944
Size: 2 boxes (1.5 linear feet)
Language: English, German
Abstract: This collection contains the typographical scholarship of Douglas Crawford McMurtrie between 1919 and 1944. There are few instances of other authors that wrote on similar subjects or publications that are published in German, although majority of the materials are written in English. Those publications have been kept in the collections and interwoven into the arrangement of the collection.
Citation: Douglas McMurtrie Papers, Collection 310, Special Collections, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (Baltimore, MD).

Administrative/Biographical Note

Douglas Crawford McMurtrie (July 20, 1888- September 29, 1944) was an American typeface designer, historian, and one of the most important bibliographers of printing. After leaving Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) before graduating, he worked as a newspaper reporter and printing broker. Over several years, some of McMurtie's earliest and noted appointments were as general manager of the Cheltenham Press, then as printing manager of the Columbia University Printing Office, the Arbor Press, and Conde Nast Press. McMurtie designed two typefaces, helped design the format of the New Yorker Magazine, and was instrumental in forming the Continental Type Founders Association, which imported types from Europe, serving as the company’s first vice president. In the mid 1920s, he became the editor of the prestigious Ars Typographica magazine. Later in his career, McMurtrie became the typographic director of the Cuneo Press before becoming the director of advertising and typography at Ludlow typograph Company.

Scope & Content

Arrangement

The Douglas McMurtrie Papers are organized chronologically by date and then alphabetically.

Provenance Information

Related Collections

Processing Note

The collection history is unknown. Special Collections staff assumes materials were brought in by the previous curator but no provenance is available. The collections whereabouts before UMBC is unknown in addition to no notes of if Douglas McMurtrie’s estate is the donor or if a separate donor was responsible to sending materials to UMBC.

Descriptive Rules Used

Describing Archives: a Content Standard (DACS)

Archives Processing Manual: Description (2015): The processing manual used in Special Collections for all descriptive platforms, including PastPerfect.

Access & Use

Finding Aids

Finding aid available.

Access Conditions

This collection is open for research. There are no restricted materials.

Conditions Governing Reproductions and Use

Permission required for all reproductions requests. UMBC is the copyright owner.

Subject Headings

Creators

McMurtrie, Douglas Crawford

Subjects

Series Description & Container List

  1. Folder Title/Description Date Box # Folder # Additional Info.
    (#325) Printing for the Inhabitants of the Island of Hainan, China 1919 1 1
    (#377) Geographic Names: Their Spelling as a Factor in Typographic Style 1921 1 2
    (#5) Anforingstecknets Uppkomst och Utveckling; 1922 1 3
    (#378) A List of Books on Typographical Style and Proofreading 1922 1 4
    (#381) Typographical Style Governing the Use of Marks of Quotation in Italian Composition 1922 1 5
    (#315) The Cost- Finding System of A French Printer in the Eighteenth Century 1923 1 6
    (#383) To the Inland Printer on its Fortieth Birthday 1923 1 7
    (#571) Typography- Announcing Vanity Fair Capitals 1923 1 8
    (#69)Types and Typefounding in Germany, The Work of Christian Egenolff, July 1924" 1924 1 9
    (#67) The Brother Voskens and Their Successors, October 1924 1924 1 10
    (#351) American Type Design in the Twentieth Century 1924 1 11
    (#353) O tvorbe pisma ve Spojenych Statech Severo- Americkych 1925 1 12
    (#235) A Note On North Carolina Printing History 1928 1 13
    (#249) The Price of Printing in Philadelphia, 1754 1928 1 14
    (#295) A Project for Printing in Bermuda, 1772 1928 1 15
    (#71) The First American Paper Trade Agreement, January 1929 1929 1 16
    (#399) The Photomontage, A New Illustrative Technique, December 1929 1929 1 17
    (#116) James Johnston, First Printer in the Royal Colony of Georgia 1929 1 18
    (#73) Present State of Printing and Bookselling in American by Henry Lemaine 1929 1 19
    (#403) What is Modern in Typography? 1929 1 20
    (#405) Active- age Typography 1930 1 21
    (#407) The Fundamentals of Modernism in Typography 1930 1 22
    (#13) The Introduction of Printing into Italy 1930 1 23
    (#409) Some Elementary Principles of Typography 1930 1 24
    (#410) Structure in the New Typography 1930 1 25
    (#404) Typographic Ornament 1930 1 26
    (#127) Pioneer Printing in Illinois, December 1, 1931 1931 1 27
    (#326) Memorandum on the First Printing in Ceylon 1931 1 28
    (#126) Notes in Suppliment to "The First Printers of Chicago" 1931 1 29
    (#261) Pioneer Printing in Tennessee 1931 1 30
    (#201) Pioneer Printing in Nebraska, January 1932 1932 1 31
    (#85) Pioneer Printing in Minnesota, February 1932 1932 1 32
    (#172) Pioneer Printing in Maine, March 1932 1932 1 33
    (#187) Pioneer Printing in Mississippi, March 1932 1932 1 34
    (#273) Pioneer Printing in Washington, April 1932 1932 1 35
    (#174) Pioneer Printing in Maryland, August 1932 1932 1 36
    (#252) Prioneer Printing in Rhode Island, September 1932 1932 1 37
    (#328) Sydney Curfew Law was Premier Printing Produced in Australia, October 1932 1932 1 38
    (#236) Pioneer Printing in North Carolina, November 1932 1932 1 39
    (#138) Pioneer Printing in Iowa, December 1932 1932 1 40
    (#413) Advertising Typography 1932 1 41
    (#152) Antecedent Expericne in Kentucky of William Maxwell, Ohio's First Printer 1932 1 42
    (#574) Aus den Sammlungen des Deutschen Buchmuseums: Vom Amerikanischen Buchdruck und Seiner Erforschung 1932 1 43
    (#124) The Beginning of Printing in Idaho (Sonderabzug aus dem Gutenberg- Jahrbuch) 1932 1 44
    (#414) Calendar Typography and Design 1932 1 45
    (#415) The Economy of Replacing Obsolete Typefaces 1932 1 46
    (#416) Effective Typography and Economy, Reproducing a Speech made before Atlanta Prints 1932 1 47
    (#291) The First Printing in Alberta 1932 1 48
    (#296) The First Printing in Dominca 1932 1 49
    (#106) Pioneer Printing in Connecticut 1932 1 50
    (#245) Pioneer Printing in Oklahoma 1932 1 51
    (#417) Rules and Their Possibilities 1932 1 52
    (#547) The Typography of an Active Age 1932 1 53
    (#419) Typography Overseas 1932 1 54
    (#216) Prioneer Printing in New York, January 1933 1933 1 55
    (#331) The Early Vernacular Press in India, February 1933 1933 1 56
    (#265) Pioneer Printing in Texas, February 1933 1933 1 57
    (#145) Pioneer Printing in Kansas, March 1933 1933 1 58
    (#269) Pioneer Printing in Utah, June 1933 1933 1 59
    (#165) A Louisiana Decree of 1770 Relative to the Practice of Medicine and Surgery, July 1933 1933 1 60
    (#274) Wash there a printing press in Washington in 1844?, July 1933 1933 1 61
    (#129) The Rise of Printing in Mount Morris, Illinois, September 1933 1933 1 62
    (#420) City Printers and Country Competition 1933 1 63
    (#421) Contemporary European Typography 1933 1 64
    (#188) The Earliest Extant Mississippi Imprint 1933 1 65
    (#15) The Earliest Use of Type Ornament? 1933 1 66
    (#330) Early Mission Printing Presses in India 1933 1 67
    (#263) An Early Tennessee Paper Mill 1933 1 68
    (#16) An Example of 15th Century Proofreading 1933 1 69
    (#332) The First Printing at St. Helena 1933 1 70
    (#237) The First Twelve Years of Printing in North Carolina with a bibliography of the issues of the North Carolina press, 1749-1760 1933 1 71
    (#423) Fitness to Purpose vs. Beauty in Book Typography 1933 1 72
    (#257) Four South Carolina Imprints of MDCCXXXI 1933 1 73
    (#425) The Layout of Illustrations 1933 1 74
    (#426) March of Lead Soldiers 1933 1 75
    (#189) The Mississippi Militia Law of 1799 1933 1 76
    (#427) The Nagra Colors for Printing Inks 1933 1 77
    (#428) New Architecture Significant of the New Typography 1933 1 78
    (#333) Pioneer Printing Press on the Island of Madagascar 1933 1 79
    (#258) Two Georgia Printed acts of 1757 and 1763 1933 1 80
    (#432) Uncommon colors in Printing Inks the Most Effective 1933 1 81
    (#134) The First Printing in Indiana, May-June 1934 1934 1 82
    (#434) Demand for Readers' Time Your Real Competition, June 1934 1934 1 83
    (#80) Det Forsta Trycket Pa Svenska I Americka 1934 1 84
    (#298) The Early Press of Jamaica 1934 1 85
    (#19) Erhardt Ratdolt, "The Father of Typographic Decoration" 1934 1 86
    (#119) Located Georgia Imprints of the Eighteenth Century Not in the DeRenne Catalogue 1934 1 87
    (#436) Modern School of Typography and Its Present Status 1934 1 88
    (#334) A Printing Press at St. Helena in 1806 1934 1 89
    (#364) Types Grow Tall 1934 1 90
    (#443) Upper and lower case Pays 1934 1 91
    (#447) Specimens showing typogrphic stype of page heaqding for school and college yearbooks...December 1935 1935 1 92
    (#207) A Further Note on the New Jersey Acts of 1723 1935 1 93
    (#202) The General Epistle of the Latter Day Saints 1935 1 94
    (#335) A Memorandum on the History of Printing in the Dutch East Indies 1935 1 95
    (#446) Selling Printing to Meet the Sales Requirements of the Customer 1935 1 96
    (#316) Stereotyping in Bavaria in the Sixteenth Century 1935 1 97
    (#283) The Sweetwater Mines: A Pioneer Wyoming Newspaper 1935 1 98
    (#141) Two Early Issues of the Council Bluffs Press 1935 1 99
    (#449) Typography of Magazines and House Organs 1935 1 100
    (#225) Additional Geneva Imprints, 1815-1849 1936 1 101
    (#336) A Memorandum of Early Printing on theIsland of Malta 1936 1 102
    (#135) The Need of a Printer in Indiana Territory 1936 1 103
    (#227) A Short-Title List of Books, Pamphlets and Broadsides Printed in Auburn, NY 1810 to 1850 1936 1 104
    (#453) Typographic Display in Retail Advertising 1936 1 105
    (#454) Proofs of House Organ Headings, September 22, 1937 1937 1 106
    (#229) A Bibliography of Books and Pamplets Printed at Ithaca, N.Y. 1820-1850 1937 1 107
    (#247) The First Printed Message of the First Governor of Oregon 1938 1 108
    (#193) The Mississippi Territorial Session Laws of May, 1802 1938 1 109
    (#344) Negotiations for the Illinois Salt Springs, 1802-1803 1938 1 110
    (#477) American Imprints Inventory: The Historical Records Survey, Manual of Procedure, January 1939 1939 1 111
    (#346) An Early Description of Middle Tennessee, April 20-22, 1939 1939 1 112
    (#482) A Suggested Program for Augmenting Materials for Research in American Libraries, December 18, 1939 1939 1 113
    (#299) A Broadside Issued at Mobile, December 28-30, 1939 1939 1 114
    (#232) A Bibliography of Books and Pamplets Printed at Canadaigua, New York 1799-1850 1939 1 115
    (#132) The Contributions of the Pioneer Printers to Illinois History 1939 1 116
    (#347) The Future of Chicago- in 1834 1939 1 117
    (#337) A Malta Imprint of 1643 1939 2 1
    (#22) Some Facts Concerning the Invention of Printing 1939 2 2
    (#507) The 300th Anniversary of the Printing Press in the United States 1939 2 3
    (#476) Further Progress in the Record of American Printing, May 1940 1940 2 4
    (#38) Boxmakers Join Printers to Commemorate 500th Anniversary of Invention of Printing, July 1940 1940 2 5
    (#504) Gutenberg's Life Recordings in Documents, July 1940 1940 2 6
    (#45) The Invention of Printing and Its Five Century Progress, July 1940 1940 2 7
    (#39) The Chicago Dinner to Commemorate the 500th Anniversary of the Invention of Printing, October 1940 1940 2 8
    (#506) Dinner to Commemorate the Five Hundredth Anniversary of the Invention of Printing, October 1940 1940 2 9
    (#36) Advertising and Publicity Spotlighted by Printing's 500th Anniversary 1940 2 10
    (#318) A Bibiography of the History of Printing in Denmark, Sweden and Norway, as compiled in 1861 1940 2 11
    (#320) A Bibliography of Materials on the History of Printing Published in the Netherlands in the Nineteeth Century 1940 2 12
    (#24) Der Buchdrunk Seine Erfindung und sein Nutzen der Menschheit 1940 2 13
    (#26) An Essay on the Invention of Printing by John Bagford; 1940 2 14
    (#28) The Life and Work of Johann Gutenberg as recorded in comtemporary documents 1940 2 15
    (#47) A Portfolio of Informational Articles on the Invention of Printing and the Beginning of Papermaking in the United States 1940 2 16
    (#585) Printing Publications 1940 2 17
    (#48) Printing: The Story of its invention and its service to mankind 1940 2 18
    (?) The Rotarian 1940 2 19
    (#55) War Blacks Out Celebrations in Shrine Citites of Printing 1940 2 20
    (#522) Footnotes: The Bulletin of The Friends of the Library 1941 2 21
    (#35b) Proposal in 1855 for a Typographic Council to meet in Brussels to determine the facts regarding the Invention of Printing 1941 2 22
    (#462) Una Asociacion que Fomenta la Ensenanza de la Impenta 1941 2 23
    (#304) A List of Printing Offices Currently Operating in the Republic of Guatamala 1942 2 24
    (#314) A Preliminary Check List of Published Materials Relating to the History of Printing in Venezuela 1942 2 25
    (#184) A Printed Broadside dated at Detroit, January 26, 1790 1942 2 26
    (#461a) The Printing Industry After the War 1942 2 27
    (#133a) Project for a Newspaper in Chicago in 1833 1942 2 28
    (#533) The First Printing on the Island of Tobago 1943 2 29
    (#525) Pioneer Printing in Ohio 1943 2 30
    (#514) A Report in the April, 1848, on the Discovery of Gold and Other Minerals in California, and on the People, Commerce, Agriculture, Customs, Religion, Press, etc. of the New Pacific Coast Territory 1943 2 31
    (#543 and 544) Printing Press versus Tyranny February-April 1944 2 32
    (#541) The French Underground Press And Its Support of de Gaulle 1944 2 33
    (#300) The First Printing in Jamaica undated 2 34
    (#60) Johann Guturky (Coast to Coast NBC Broadcast to Honor) undated 2 35
    (#349) Outline Captials of a New Design, An Announcement by the Conde Nast Press undated 2 36
    Typographical Samples & Original Listing undated 2 37

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