Detail of the much larger poster showing the advertisement for "Applegate's Double Mammoth Cylinder Press, 17 Ann Street." at the bottom.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
Detail of the much larger poster showing the advertisement for "Applegate's Double Mammoth Cylinder Press, 17 Ann Street." at the bottom.
Detail map of Manhattan, New York, New York, United States Overview map of Manhattan, New York, New York, United States

A: Manhattan, New York, New York, United States

Theater Poster Printer William Applegate Prints the "United States Historical and Statistical Index" on His Double Mammoth Cylinder Press

1840
Full chart printed by Applegate, larger poster size
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
The huge chart measures 70 x 94 cm. printed on one side of a single sheet of paper. Prior to papermaking machines it was impossible make a sheet of paper this large, and before printing machines no press could print on a sheet this large.
In 1839 and 1840, William Applegate, who specialized in printing theatrical posters, published the United States Historical and Statistical Index. Applegate's huge poster press easily printed the large folding chart 70 x 92 cm on a single sheet of paper. The press was a specially large Two-Revolution press built about 1837 by Hoe & Co. for Applegate sufficiently wide to print a long theater poster in one sheet. This is one of the few obtainable and affordable surviving examples of printing known to have been printed on this huge printing machine. The sheet of paper was also unusually large and could never have been made before the development of papermaking machines.

Richard W. Flint, "A Great Industrial Art": Circus Posters, Business Risks, and the Origins of Color Letterpress Printing in America," Printing History, 25 (2008) 18-43.

Timeline Themes

Printing by Machine
Social / Political