Evening Star Newspaper, March 16, 1930, Page 102

TAE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, MARCH .16, 1930, ~ District Printers Who Made History Peter Force, Washington’s most_distin- guished printer and mayor of the city. BY JOHN CLAGETT PROCTOR. OR many years after the Federal Government took over Wendell's prmmofloe-trlonh&plwlnnd H streets and began doing its own printing there were certain times in the year—particularly when Congress was in session—when the establishment could not do ! work required, and largely as a result new private establishments were added already in existence with special Gideon & Pearson, and a few years later R. C. Polkinhorn, Judd & Detweiler, and others. Gibson Brothers, as near as the writer can tell, entered the printing field in 1864; at least he does know that their four-colored advertise- ment, announcing that they did “caloric-power” printing, ‘appears in the city directory for 1865, and that they were then over Schneider’s hard- ware store at 1010-1012 Pennsylvania avenue northwest, where they remained until some time between 1880 and 1883, when they removed to the southeast corner of Pennsylvania avenue and Thirteenth street. At first the firm consisted only of John and George Gibson, but later William was taken into the partnership. All three have long since plued.w.mtunylenbehmd,nwe.u know, a reputation for honesty and fair deal- Gibson. McGill & Witherow, like Gibson Brothers and printing offices, always employed printers, pressmen, bookbinders, At first they were located at Eleventh street and Pennsylvania avenue, but later, and for many years, conducted their establishment at 1107 E street northwest. The records show that Thomas McGill became a member of the union in August, 1848, and his partner, James M. Witherow, in June, 1852. m-neomaco..-qammm& Wallace, became the successors of the old firm, which was originally started by Thomas McGill. GID!:ON .& PEARSON had their printing office at the southwest corner of D and Ninth streets, in the building in which the Grand Lodge of Masons and several subordinate Masonic lodges met prior to moving to Ninth and P streets. George S. Gideon, the senior member of the company, as was mentioned in & former article, was the son of Jacob Gideon, jr., the son of Jacob Gideon, sr., all of whom were jdentified with the printing business in Wash- ington for many years, and were honored mem- bers of the “art preservative of all arts.” The junior member of the firm, Joseph L. Pearson, succeeded to the business, and will be best re- in the neighborhood of which the Gideons— . Jacob, jr., and George S.—had conducted a similar business many years before. James L. Pearson was admitted to member- ship in the old Columbia Society in February, 1858. - Many an old resident will recall Polkinhorn’s printing office on the south side of D street between Sixth and Seventh streets northwest, conducted for many years by R. O. Polkinhorn, who in his time probably employed more help than any other employing printer in Washing- ton. The old building is still standing and ap- parently in good condition,. and no doubt brings to many an old printer a flood of recol- lections as he passes that way. Mr. Polkinhorn learned his trade with his uncle Henry, one of Washington’s pioneer print- ters, who was admitted into the Typographical Eociety in November, 1837, and in 1846 is recorded as living in the block on Seventh ' - 0ld- szeO f fices in Washington Produced Men of Leadership as Well as Fine Examples of Good Workmanship—Author of *“The Old Oaken Bucket”—Important Contributions of Peter Force to National Records of Great American Events. Atmosphere of 0ld Intelligencer. street between E and F streets, west side. 1860, and probably at an earlier date, he established in business at 375 and 377 D . northwest, which quite likely, under changed system of numbering, is the same later occupled by his nephew, R. O. Polkinhorn, prentice printer. . The firm in 1862 was H. Polkinhorn ; Samuel - Polkinhorn being the . junior member of the firm, and he, together with his R. Q. Polkinson, succeeded to the business 1867. The latter had full contro} of the ness ‘a few years later, continuing there many years and until being succeeded in by his son, Joseph H. Polkinhorn, who died re- cently. L and the place where- the latter was an & LIKI many of our Washington business men, R. O. Polkinhorn enjoyed the respect and esteem of the entire community, and had the confidence of such men as President James A. Garfield, James G. Blaine, Col. Robert G. Inger- was one of Washington’s foremost citizens, charitable to the limit and respected by all. He was a strong téemperance advocate and always stood for uplift of his native city. three children: Joseph H., Charles and Ida. B, who married Dr. Lewis J. Battle and who has two daughters and a son. It is the writer's pleasure frequently to meet Mrs. Battle at the Soclety of Natives, and the doctor at the Asso- ciation of Oldest Inhabitants. NOTHER old printer the writer well re- members was the late Maurice Joyce, the vented his Kaolotype process, when he left the Government to engage in private business. At first he was at 517 Seventh street northwest, a lttle south of Odd Fellows’ Hall, and later moved to the approximate present location of the Maurice Joyce Engraving Co. Mr. Joyce was not only a printer, but he re- garded himself as an especially good one. The 1010-1012 Pennsylvania avenue, Rome of the Gibson Brothers, printers in the early days. soll, Anthony Pollock, Alexander A. Stevens, W. W. Corcoran and Senator Vance, who brought all of their printing to his office. Besides this, he at one time did nearly all the theater work and the printing for the Metropolitan Club, the Bar Association, National and Metropolitan Hotels and the first printing ordered by Wood- ward, Lothrop & Cochrane, now the well-known firm of Woodward & Lothrop, when they opened here, Pebruary 25, 1880, at 705 Market Space. ' Richard Oliver Polkinhorn, which was the full name of this old Washington printer, was born in this city in 1832, on the south side of Pennsylvania avenue between Ninth and Tenth streets, and came of a well-known local family of that name, his father, Richard Wallis Polkin- horn having been born in Alexandria—then in the District of Columbia—in 1785, and having engaged in the leather and harness business on Pennsylvania avenue near the National Hotel, at first under the name of Polkinhorn & Camp- bell (as early as 1843), and later under his own name only. His wife was Jane Stephenson, who was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, in 1806, and related to the Stephenson family, old settlers of this city. Charles Polkinhorn, a Bap- tist minister, was a brother to the leather-goods manufacturer. R. O. Polkinhorn, who died some years agc writer knew Mr. Joyce well, for, as & matter of fact, he worked for him back in the early part of 1884, and though a mere lad at the time, he has never forgotten his pleasant experience working for this prince of men. What is known to the printer as rule binding, or rule twisting, was then about going out of style—for printing like everything else, has its periods and its sea- . sons, just the same as short dresses and long dresses, and bobbed hair and long hair come and go with the dress manufacturer and the barber—and the job printer who could make scrolls and flourishes with brass rule, was al- ways assured of a good position. In_landing the merits one day of a certain Mr. Curet, who, according to the writer's way of thinking, was the cleverest and most artistic printer that ever worked in this city, Mr. Joyce did not hesitate to say that he could execute much better work than Curet, which, if nothing else, indicated at least the pride and confidence Mr. Joyce had in himself as a printer. But ir- respective of this, he was truly one of God's noblemen, kind and considerate for his em- ployes and fair and honest in all his dealings. Many years after the writer had left the en- graving company, it was his great pleasure, once in & while to talk over old times with this won- ¢orful man, who always seemed so delighted in George Glboon, er member o‘j-tb,‘ firm of Gibson Bros., printers. doing s0. No enme ever heard him utter a pro=- fane word 6r be othér than the real gentleman Unfortunately, sometimes we do things that we soon forget, but which are ever remembered by others. It was while the writer was working for Mr. Joyee that an incident occurred thas he still vividly recalls. Judd & Detweiler were then in business on the northeast corner of D and Eleventh streets, and Maurice Joyce just north of the old part of The Star building, was stereotyping or electrotyping for them the pages for an octavo book. The pages were lockeéd in chases, two pages each, and some of .the forms at least were returned. by one of Mr. Joyce's apprentices. The writer clearly recalls that he returned some of these forms, which were heavy, for, after climbing Judd & Detweiler’s stairway, with a chase in each hand, to the second floor where the composing room was located, and while going down the center of the long room, some printer said “oh—er!” which, of course, the writer thought was meant for him, and naturally he set his heavy forms down, to see what was wanted. After he did so;’ and turned around, he found the gentieman who made the “oh—er” busily engaged in a deep conversation with one of his fellow printers. : : He saw the joke, and, best of all, it taught him not to be too much interested in other people’s business. Since then, when some one has said “oh—er,” he has waited for some “hailing sign” just a little more pronounced and emphatic. JOHN G. JUDD and Frederick M. Detweiler, who composed this firm, were two sterling characters of the old school; democratic in their habits and reliable in their dealings. Mr, Judd was one of the pioneer residents of Mount Pleasant, having a pice house surrounded by grounds og the west side of old Fourteenth street road a little north of Columbia road, now business section. =Mr. Detweiler, “Ollie” Polkinhorn - somewhat, preferred to live down town. Before staring in business for themselves, both of these men were union printers, Judd joining in April, 1856, and Detweiler in December, 1850. There is a marked change in the methods of printing today from those of 30 or 40 years ago. Indeed, few newspapers are now printed from movable type, the exception, if any, being in some of the smaller country towns. Type- setting machines, particularly, have revolution= ized the industry, and in more than one way have benefited the proprietor as well as the printer. e In days gone by, it was not unusual, when type was not justified properly or the form se~ curely locked, for the rollers to pull the type out of the form, and it was then a question of how soon the press could be stopped &% to how great the damage would be. which sometimes meant considerable loss in time .and money. - Pifty years ago, when the occasion demanded it, corrections were made right on the press. ' Indeed, the writer has often seen this done when the National Republican was printed at Thirteenth street and Pennsylvania avenue, where the former Southern Railway Building stands. Sometimes it was necessary' to wash the form with benzine, and in' ordér to avoid delay by waiting for it to dry out. a-lighted match was touched to it, and the press coold be started up in a few minutes thereafter.' To a kid this : proved an interesting process, and one 'he rather looked for. As printers know, this cannot be done to the same degree with modérn gasoline, because it seems to contain too much oil. : A CCIDENTS often happened yedrs ago which resulted disastrously, but which modern equipment has greatly minimized. This ree . minds the writer of an accident he once saw .. in front of the Mertz Building, at the northwest corner of Eleventh and F streets, which had its ludicrous as well as its dramatic side. It so happened that two colored men . who had been pushing a cart up F street, loaded with a full-page form, newspaper size, stopped in front of the drug store which then occupied . this comner, to settle some sort of an argument. . It was before the days of prohibition, and so