Washington Iron Hand Press

Before the large Campbell Press was used in Banks County around 1900, the earlier newspapers were printed on a Washington Iron Hand Press. The press you see in this museum is not original to this site, but is very similar to what would have been used here before 1900. The term “Washington Press” is a generic phrase that refers to various kinds of hand press of the era made by different manufacturing companies. Essentially, they are just modern updates of the old wood hand press used by Gutenburg in 1455. We have documented that a Washington Hand Press was used in Banks County, but not the particular model. This press came to this museum from California via Florida. It was manufactured by the R. Hoe & Company of New York, a press firm that dates back to the early 1800s. This press is on the large end of what was used by hand with a platen of 27.5″ x 21.” 

The press you see here was manufactured around 1898 and was reportedly used on a movie set about the life of Mark Twain.