Stinehour Press (1953-2009)

Dates

• Existence: 1953 - 2009

Biography

The Stinehour Press was first established as the North Country Press in Lunenberg, Vermont, by Roderick Stinehour. After a cease and desist order from another North Country Press, the firm changed its name to Stinehour Press in 1953.

Stinehour learned the trade of printing from Ernest Bisbee, a farmer and seasonal job-printer. Stinehour purchased the business in 1950 upon Bisbee’s death. He then transformed the Press into a printer of scholarly and fine art books.

Learning much of his craft from Ray Nash at the Dartmouth College Graphic Arts Workshop, Stinehour fashioned a press that would become known for its attention to detail and high level of collaboration with clients. Rather than developing a uniform “Stinehour style," the press focused on accuracy and clean design aesthetics informed by the clients’ needs.

Although offset printing was becoming more common, the Stinehour Press continued to complete a majority of their work using letterpress printing, with Monotype equipment.

After many collaborative efforts with the Meriden Gravure Company of Meriden, Connecticut, known for its high quality printing of images, the Stinehour Press acquired Meriden Gravure in 1977. Subsequently Stinehour centralized its printing (both text and images) in 1989 in Lunenberg, VT, with Harold Hugo becoming a director and chairman of the board. Stinehour later added an on-site bindery in 1979. As printing technology advanced, the Press continued to invest in newer equipment in order to compete with lower cost presses. These expensive investments posed a financial strain on the company. The Press closed its doors officially in 2009.

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