Washington hand press; Smith press

This Smith press with Washington frame was made by R. Hoe & Company after 1835. It is missing its original toggles, finials, and maker’s plate. The press has a height of 68 inches a width, at cheeks, of 31 inches and a length of 65 inches; its platen measures 19 inches by 25 inches.

Peter Smith, brother-in-law and partner to the more famous Robert Hoe, designed this press about 1822 in answer to John Wells’s iron press, but Smith died in 1823 just after the introduction of his press. The first Smith presses included cast-iron, acorn-shaped frames. In 1835 Hoe acquired the rights to the Washington press, his presses' strongest rival, and thereafter built the Smith toggles into the upright frame of his Washington presses. The Smith press was still manufactured as late as 1880, although it was always a runner-up to the Washington.

This press resided in the Government Printing Office’s branch in the U.S. National Museum for many years before its title was transferred to the Smithsonian in 1939.

Transferred from the Government Printing Office, 1939.

Citation: Elizabeth Harris, "Printing Presses in the Graphic Arts Collection," 1996.

Currently not on view