International Printing Museum, Carson

I LOVEEEE this museum. Everyone who works there really appreciates history, education and the processes of our culture. EVERYONE should utilize this amazing place! They are generous, entertaining & excited about type!

I was attending an event at the International Printing Museum last week and was happily surprised at how interesting the museum was. Mark Barbour, the Executive Director, walked our group through all of printing's history and showed us a huge collection of machines, most of which he used to make souvenirs for our group. I took home a printed envelope from the first desktop printing machine, a remnant of the Civil War. What made the event great was Mark Barbour. He is very entertaining. I completely understand why teachers bring their students to the museum. As a book publisher, I gained a lot of knowledge and a stronger appreciation for the art of making books. He, also, took our group into the warehouse to show off the off-set lithography machine. A huge treat!

If you are at all interested in the printed word, you must go to this museum. The guided tour gives you a wonderful history of mechanical printing, beginning with the earliest wood blocks from Asia. The guide also explains how the development of printing affected the course of history in general. For example, it was instrumental in bringing about the Reformation because Bibles became available to more people and could be printed in contemporary languages instead of just Latin. There is a large collection of antique printing presses, which the staff will operate for you. Watching the Linotype machine in action is a real treat! ~BH