Timberline, No. 5, July 1980
Mason, Texas: Timberline Press, July 1980.
AAPA AWARD-WINNING LETTERPRESS JOURNAL FROM THE EARLY YEARS OF TIMBERLINE PRESS.
The fifth number of Clarence Wolfshohl’s personal letterpress journal Timberline, issued in July 1980 and marking the journal’s second anniversary. Wolfshohl opens with ‘Anniversary 2 — A Little Cackling,’ reflecting on the competing demands of printing, work, and a springtime lumbar laminectomy that delayed completion of the issue.
A PRINTER CELEBRATES TWO YEARS.
The journal combines personal writing with material devoted to printing and bookmaking. Of particular interest is the continuation of Wolfshohl’s discussion of William Morris, examining Morris’s ideas about book production and the influence of the Kelmscott Press.
THE AWARD-WINNING ISSUE—A HAND-PULLED LITTLE JOURNAL.
This particular number has a distinction beyond its contents: Timberline No. 5 won the American Amateur Press Association’s award for Best Letterpress Printed Journal for 1980–81.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS: Stapled red wrappers; approximately 4.25 by 4.75 inches; 8 pages. Front wrapper printed in black with the title arranged vertically in large display type and ‘No. 5 / July 1980’ at lower right.
Printed by Clarence Wolfshohl at Timberline Press. The issue states that it was handset, printed in 8-point Century and 10-point Sans Medium, with additional typefaces used for display. 360 copies were printed for the AAPA bundle and other distribution.
Illustrated with small typographic ornaments and printing-related cuts, including a press vignette and rooster.
CONDITION: Fine. No Flaws or Blemishes; Gift Quality.
SIGNIFICANCE: AN AAPA PRIZE-WINNER—LETTERPRESS AS A PERSONAL JOURNAL
Timberline represents the intersection of amateur journalism and the American private-press tradition. Wolfshohl founded Timberline Press in 1975 and went on to publish more than seventy books, particularly poetry, with much of the press's production handcrafted by letterpress.
No. 5 captures that activity relatively early in the press’s history. Its combination of personal essay, printing commentary, historical discussion of William Morris, handset type, and hand printing illustrates the culture of amateur printing in which the printer was simultaneously writer, editor, designer, compositor, and pressman.
Its significance is strengthened considerably by its contemporary recognition: the American Amateur Press Association selected Timberline No. 5 as the Best Letterpress Printed Journal of 1980–81.
Wolfshohl subsequently developed Timberline into a substantial literary small press, producing handcrafted editions by numerous poets from 1975 through 2010
SUBJECTS: Clarence Wolfshohl, Timberline Press, Timberline, American Amateur Press Association, Letterpress Printing, Amateur Journalism, William Morris, Kelmscott Press, Typography, Hand Printing, Private Press Movement
Item #22364
Price: $24.00
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