Above: Lee Schrunk’s Workshop
Through a family member, I was able to stumble upon what seemed to be a legend; Lee Schrunk. About a month ago, Lee was generous enough to invite me to his Salem, OR home and show to me his collection of letterpresses, wood type and artifacts. As letterpress is a huge passion of mine, I was ecstatic to make the trip!
Lee spent most of his career as an Oregon State Printer, retiring in 1989. During my visit, he shared his experiences of typesetting, what we’d now refer to as the “old-fashioned way.”
It was amazing to see his work. One piece, made up of nearly 8,000 pieces, was the Declaration of Independence, in which he hand-set every letter and space. His specialty is restoring historic books, which he continues doing to this day, as well as maintaining his extensive letterpress collection.
Above: Type Case, Right: Flywheel for Platen Press
Above: Desktop Letterpress Printers
Above Left: Flywheel for Platen Press, Above Right: One of Mr. Schrunk’s Largest Presses
Lee was my inspiration to get me moving with my letterpress hobby. I returned home on a Sunday from Oregon; on Monday I had my personal letterpress flywheel spinning and made my first letterpress print: the ice cream sundae you see below.
