Type History Questions

I am in a typography class, and have to do research on three types. I have identified them all, but I now need to find out more about the history of them. The three types are Stymie Medium, New Caslon Italic, and Tudor Black. If anybody has any information on them that would be a big help. Thanks.

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Mac McGrew’s “American Metal Typefaces of the Twentieth Century” should be your first stop.

That was the book I used to identify the fonts. And there was a little bit of history on the New Caslon Italic, and Tudor Black in it. Thanks for the suggestion. I have also been able to find some basic information on all three of them online, but I am still looking for more details.

The information on Tudor Black in McGrew’s book is very short and concise. The punches for Tudor Black were originally jointly cut by Edward Philip Prince and Frederick Tarrant in 1878 for the Miller & Richard Foundry in Edinburgh. Prince was apprenticed to Tarrant in 1862 and this is the first (earliest) face to which his name is credited.

Although not a ‘designer’ per se, he and Tarrant were charged to produce this face modelled on fifteenth century Rotunda forms. This was an opportunity for Prince to demonstrate his technical skill.

Edward Philip Prince went on to hand-cut the punches for the proprietary faces of EVERY English private press of note: Ashendene Subiaco, Avon, Brook, Chaucer, Cranach-Hamlet, Cranach-Jenson Italic, Cranach-Jenson Upright, Distel, Dolphin, Doves Roman, Endeavor, Golden, King’s Fount, Montallegro, Prayer Book Type, Riccardi, Troy and Vale. He also cut many commercial faces, including Caxton Black.

This relatively unknown and humble man was a GIANT in his field, using his art and skills to hand-cut the punches for the greatest private press faces ever!!!!!!

I am lucky enough to possess a copy of Edward Philip Prince, Type Punchcutter by F.C. Avis, published for Avis in 1967 and from which this information has been gleaned.

Tudor Black turned out to be quite popular in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and was offered by many foundries.

Maybe you can get some extra credit for this information?

Good luck.

Thanks so much for that information. I found a bit of information online, and also some on Prince in Rookledge’s International Handbook of Type, but that’s about it so far. Thanks again for that information, it’s a big help.