Allen Press and Dorothy and Lewis Allen Ephemera Collection Press coll. Archives Allen
Finding aid by Britany Valdez
William Andrews Clark Memorial Library
2019
2520 Cimarron Street
Los Angeles 90018
clark@humnet.ucla.edu
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
William Andrews Clark Memorial Library
Title: Allen Press and Dorothy and Lewis Allen Ephemera Collection
Identifier/Call Number: Press coll. Archives Allen
Physical Description:
2 boxes
2 linear feet
Date (inclusive): 1943-1991
Abstract: The Allen Press was a private press founded in 1939 by Lewis and Dorothy Allen and based in the San Francisco Bay area. This
collection includes printed ephemera (predominantly prospectuses), photographs, and correspondence.
Biographical Note
The Allen Press, also referred to as L-D Allen Press, was a private press based in the San Francisco Bay area, founded in
1939 by husband and wife team Lewis and Dorothy Allen. Lewis Allen met Dorothy Caswell when they both studied at the University
of California, Berkeley. The Allens were particularly fascinated by books produced by Aldus Manutius, William Morris, John
Henry Nash, and the Grabhorns (to name a few). These noted presses served as an inspiration for Lewis and Dorothy's work as
full-time hand-press printers.
The Allen Press was founded shortly after their marriage and they produced their first book in 1939. This book, with on hundred
copies printed, was The Trail of Beauty by Lewis' father, Harris Sterns Allen. Lewis' father also served as a catalyst for
their printing ambitions. The Allen Press performed all facets of bookmaking: selection of text, typography, choice of materials
and colors, hand-set types hand-printed on handmade paper, illumination, occasionally illustrations, binding, and marketing.
In the selection of text, the Allens favored readability, depth of thought, and imaginative qualities.
The following editions are considered the most successful by Lewis and Dorothy Allen: Roughing It In California; The Noble
Knight Paris and the Fair Vienne; Murders in the Rue Morgue; Youth; The Splendid Idle Forties; Four Poems of the Occult; The
Mirrour of Genesis; Jealousy; Christopher Columbus; The Bacchae; All For Love; Persian Stories from the Arabian Nights.
Over the course of their careers, the Allens produced a large collection of ephemera consisting of prospectuses of their books,
labels, announcements, Christmas cards, and broadsides of various types.
Information sourced from the records themselves and from The Allen Press Bibliography that can be found at the William Andrews
Clark Library, UCLA.
Scope and Contents
The collection is comprised of ephemera created by the Allen Press, particularly prospectuses for their books. Most of the
prospectuses are small broadsides folded for mailing. All of the prospectuses served as samples of the Allens's work and provided
detailed information about each book. A reply card and return envelope were usually mailed with the prospectuses. Some orders
were directed to the Allens and other orders directed to the Argonaut Bookshop in San Francisco.
The collection also includes ephemera for the Book Club of California and Roxburghe Club of San Francisco as well as envelopes,
labels, announcements, exhibit postcards, and correspondence with Margot and H. Richard Archer, the latter of whom was a librarian
at the Clark Library in the 1940s and 1950s.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into the following series:
Series 1. Correspondence
Series 2. Prospectuses
Series 3. Book Club of California
Series 4. Roxburghe Club of San Francisco
Series 5. Miscellaneous Ephemera
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Provenance
The provenance of this collection is unclear. It is possible that this collection was formed over time by Clark Library staff,
with donations from H. Richard Archer.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Small presses -- California -- 20th century
Private presses -- California -- 20th century
Box 1, Folder 1
Photo of Lew & Dorothy Allen, Hillsborough, July 2
1950
Physical Description:
1 item
Black and white photo.
5 1/4 x 3 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 1
Photo of Lew and Dorothy Allen, and Margot Archer, Hillsborough, July
1950
Physical Description:
1 item
Black and white photo of Lew and Dorothy Allen, and Margot Archer lounging in a yard
5 1/4 x 3 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 1
Letter from L&D Allen to the Archer, July 5
1950
Physical Description:
1 item
Letter describes "hay prints."
5 1/2 x 8 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 1
5 "hay prints"
1950
Physical Description:
5 items
5 colored prints of plants and leaves. Some of the prints have the name of the plant on the back, such as sage and bamboo.
multiple
Box 1, Folder 2
Postcard from Museum Plantin-Moretus at Antwerpen. Correspondence between L&D Allen to Dr. H. Richard Archer.
1957
Physical Description:
1 item
Postcard depicts a black and white image of a plaza surrounded by brick buildings
5 1/2 x 3 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 2
Letter from L&D Allen, December 20
1977
Physical Description:
1 item
Allen press heart logo on upper-left corner of letter. "Dear Richard, We just learned of your illness, and are terribly distraught
and unhappy..."
8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 2
Letter from Lew Allen, "Dear Archer, something ought to be done about Wichy..."
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Contain additional annotation: "and we need copy apr 15"
8 1/2 x 5 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 2
Letter from Lew Allen to Richard Archer, May 3
1969
Physical Description:
1 item
"Dear Richard, We've nailed down a couple of cots at Hotel Shoreham..."
5 x 8 in.
Box 1, Folder 2
Letter from Lew Allen to Richard Archer, October 27
1970
Physical Description:
1 item
Letter contains Allen Press footer. Printing press logo on bottom-right corner of letter. "Dear Richard, From your communications
I gather that you haven't had much time for the pool halls..."
8 x 11 in.
Box 1, Folder 3
Handwritten letter addressed to Lewis Allen from Will Chevey. Bottom of letter is a message from Richard Archer.
1953
Physical Description:
1 item
Bottom of has a message from Richard Archer to Lewis Allen. Header is "Nine forty-two Alandele Avenue, Los Angeles, California."
7 1/4 x 10 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 3
Letter from Lew Allen to Richard Archer, May 30
1970
Physical Description:
1 item
Response letter from Richard Archer attached. Letter contains Allen press Footer. Additional annotation: "Will put chapin
down for GENESIS. Adrian's Address: 1 Tuscany Alley, S.F. 9A133."
8 x 10 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 3
Letter from Richard archer to L&D Allen, August 11
1970
Physical Description:
1 item
In Response to the letter from Lew Allen, May 30, 1970
8 1/2 x 11 in.
Box 1, Folder 3
Letter addressed to Lew and Dorothy, 20 May Decoration Day
1969
Physical Description:
1 item
5 1/2 x 8 3/4 in.
Box 1, folder 3
Letter addressed to Lew and Dorothy, July 17
1969
Physical Description:
1 item
5 1/2 x 8 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 3
Original folder with heading, "H. Richard Arthur correspondence with L&D Allen"
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Box 1, folder 5
Aeschylus. The Oresteian Trilogy, Volume 1 - Agamemnon.
1982
Physical Description:
1 item
7 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 5
Aeschylus. The Oresteian Triology, Comprising the Libation Bearers and the Furies.
1982
Physical Description:
1 item
7 x 10 in.
Box 2, Folder 1
The Allen Press Bibliography
1981
Physical Description:
1 item
6 3/4 x 14 3/4"
Box 1, folder 5
Allen Press Bibliography: A facsimile. Book Club of California.
1985
Physical Description:
1 item
With a notice inside.
6 1/2 x 9 in.
Box 1, folder 5
Atherton, Gertrude. The Splendid Idle Forties.
1960
Physical Description:
1 item
6 1/4 x 9 3/4 in.
Box 2, Folder 1
All for love: Antony - Cleopatra
1976
Physical Description:
1 item
6 1/4 x 15"
Box 2, Folder 1
Antigone: A Tragedy of Sophocles
1978
Physical Description:
1 item
6 3/4 x 14 3/4"
Box 2, Folder 1
The Bacchae by Euripides
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
7 1/2 x 15 3/4"
Box 1, Folder 5
Balzac, Honore de. The Hidden Treasures, or The Advencture of Maitre Cornelius.
1953
Physical Description:
1 item
5 1/2 x 7 3/4 in.
Box 1, Folder 6
Clemens, Samuel. Mark Twain: San Francisco Correspondent. Book Club of California.
1957
Physical Description:
1 item
In an envelope addressed to "Mr. Ward Ritchie" from The Book Club of California. Envelope footer: "The Book Club Of California
Announces Its Spring Publication." With order reply card inside prospectus.
8 x 11 1/4 in.
Box 1, Folder 6
Clemens, Samuel. Roughing it in California.
1953
Physical Description:
1 item
Third copy. Other 2 copies housed in envelopes.
6 3/4 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 6
Clemens, Samuel. Roughing it in California. (in an envelope addressed to "Mr. H. Richard Archer")
1953
Physical Description:
1 item
In an envelope addressed to "Mr. H. Richard Archer" from the L-D Allen Press
6 3/4 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 6
Clemens, Samuel. Roughing it in California. (in an envelope addressed to "Mr.H. Richard Archer, curator of Spl. Coll.")
1953
Physical Description:
1 item
In an envelope addressed to "Mr.H. Richard Archer, curator of Spl. Coll." from L-D Allen Press. With reply order card.
6 3/4 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 6
Crucial Essay on Cowan's 1914 Bibliography of the History of California and the West. Book Club of California.
1993
Physical Description:
1 item
8 x 10 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 7
Essays of Montaigne
1948
Physical Description:
1 item
With reply card and envelope to Dawson's Book Shop
6 1/4 x 9 3/4 in.
Box 2, Folder 1
From a Good-Humoured Christmas Chapter
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Broadside
11 x 14"
Box 2, Folder 1
Four Fictions
1973
Physical Description:
1 item
6 1/2 x 15 1/2"
Box 1, Folder 7
Harte, Bret. A millionaire of rough-and-ready
1955
Physical Description:
1 item
In an envelope addressed to "The Library, UCLA." With a reply card to L-D Allen Press.
5 1/4 x 4 in.
Box 1, Folder 7
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. Rappaccini's Daughter.
1991
Physical Description:
1 item
6 3/4 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 7
Herodotus. Egypt: fifth century B.C.
1989
Physical Description:
1 item
7 x 10 1/4 in.
Box 1, Folder 8
Lewis, Oscar. On Reaching Seventy.
1982
Physical Description:
1 item
8 1/4 x 13 in.
Box 1, folder 8
Lewis, Oscar. On Reaching Seventy.
1982
Physical Description:
1 item
8 1/4 x 12 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 8
Lewis, Oscar. On Reaching Seventy. (with marking)
1982
Physical Description:
1 item
Yellow mark at bottom of page.
8 1/4 x 12 1/2 in.
Box 2, Folder 1
A Legend of India: The Transposed Heads
1977
Physical Description:
1 item
6 1/4 x 14 3/4"
Box 2, Folder 1
The Mirrour of the World
1964
Physical Description:
1 item
7 3/4 x 15 3/4"
Box 1, Folder 9
On the ambitious projects of Russia (copy to Clark Library)
1955
Physical Description:
1 item
(copy) In an envelope addressed to "William Andrews Clark Memorial Library" from The Book Club of California.
8 x 11 1/4 in.
Box 1, Folder 9
On the ambitious projects of Russia (copy to Ward Ritchie)
1955
Physical Description:
1 item
In an envelope addressed to "Mr. Ward Ritchie" from The Book Club of California. With order reply card.
6 1/2 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 9
Private Journal of Stendhal
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Another copy.
5 1/2 x 7 3/4 in.
Box 1, Folder 9
Private Journals of Stendhal (with reply cards)
1954
Physical Description:
2 item
2 copies in an envelope addressed to "William Andrews Clark Library." Both copies have a reply card.
Box 1, Folder 9
Rich, Adrienne. Knight.
1957
Physical Description:
1 item
6 1/2 x 10 in.
Box 2, Folder 1
Persian Stories from the Arabian Nights
1980
Physical Description:
1 item
7 x 15"
Box 2, folder 1
Printing with the handpress: announcing a definitive manual by Lewis M. Allen
1969
Physical Description:
1 item
7 1/4 x 15 1/2"
Box 2, Folder 1
Quartet: Four Stories
1975
Physical Description:
1 item
6 1/2 x 15"
Box 1, Folder 10
Shakespeare, William. Romeo, Juliet: A Tragedy.
1988
Physical Description:
1 item
7 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 10
Steinbeck, John. Flight.
1984
Physical Description:
1 item
With reader newsletter from Carolyn and James Robertson (the publishers), an order card to Yolla Bolly Press, and order envelope
addressed to Yolla Bolly Press
10 x 12 in.
Box 1, Folder 10
Stevenson, Robert Louis. Across the Plains. (with an annotation)
1950
Physical Description:
1 item
annotation "HRA" at upper-left corner on front page.
6 1/4 x 9 3/4 in.
Box 1, folder 10
Stevenson, Robert Louis. Across the Plains. (with reply postcard)
1950
Physical Description:
1 item
With reply postcard to L-D Allen Press
6 1/4 x 9 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 10
Stevenson, Robert Louis. Across the Plains. (with 2 reply cards)
1950
Physical Description:
1 item
With a reply card to L-D Allen Press and another reply card to Chiswick Book Shop
6 1/4 x 9 3/4 in.
Box 1, Folder 11
The noble knight paris & the fair vienne
1956
Physical Description:
1 item
In an envelope addressed to "William Andrews Clark Memorial Library" from The Allen Press
7 1/2 x 11 in.
Box 1, Folder 11
Tolstoy, Leo. What men live by.
n. d.
Physical Description:
1 item
4 1/4 x 5 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 11
Tolstoy, Leo. What men live by. (with reply cards)
n.d.
Physical Description:
2 item
2 copies with reply cards.
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 in.
Box 2, Folder 1
Youth
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Broadside
10 1/2 x 14"
Book Club of California Series 3.
Box 1, Folder 12
John Bidwell, Josiah Royce: A letter from Mary Clement Leavitt to Bidwell on behalf of Royce
1943
Physical Description:
1 item
4 1/4 x 6 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 12
The L-D Allen Press. A Portfolio of Book Club Printers: 1912-1962.
1962
Physical Description:
1 item
8 1/4 x 10 in.
Roxburghe Club of San Francisco Series 4.
Box 1, Folder 13
Good for one admission to the Roxburghe Club Meeting, December 8
1947
Physical Description:
1 item
6 1/2 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 13
Judge Louis E. Goodman on the foibles and whimsies of book collectors, May 15.
1956
Physical Description:
1 item
Allen press heart logo on back.
7 x 10 in.
Box 1, Folder 13
October 3. Lawrence Clark Powell Bibliophile & Bibiliomaniac. 2 copies.
1947
Physical Description:
2 item
2 copies. Both copies in envelopes.
3 3/4 x 7 1/7 in.
Box 1, Folder 13
San Francisco Roxburghe Club, Christmas MCMXLVI [1946], Palms XXIII.
1946
Physical Description:
1 item
Broadside. On back-side at the bottom left corner, "Printed by Lewis & Dorothy Allen on English hand-made paper. Stephen Allen,
printer's devil"
9 x 13 in.
Box 2, Folder 2
Roxburghe Club of San Francisco Meetings & Programs Schedule
1945-1946
Physical Description:
1 item
11 x 15 1/4"
Box 1, Folder 14
Miscellaneous Ephemera Series 5.
516 Woodland Road Kentfield California (Envelope Piece)
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 items
A separated envelope piece.
A very merry Christmas. The L.D. Allen Press.
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Recto: "There is such a thing as taking ourselves and the world too seriously..."
6 1/2 x 10 in.
The Allen Press order reply card for Allen Press edition of "Dialogues of Creatures Moralised"
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 items
6 x 7 in.
Award of Merit Twelfth Western Books Exhibition Nineteen Fifty-Three
1953
Physical Description:
1 items
Broadside.
7 x 10 in.
Envelope with Ward Ritchie Label
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Found Empty.
10 x 13 in.
Some Passengers are introduced...The Wreck of the Golden Mary
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
Woodblock print illustration under the header "Some Passengers are Introduced"
7 x 10 1/2 in.
Past Container List, "Contents of Press Coll. Allen Box"
n.d.
Physical Description:
1 item
2 pages.
Toy Sale! Sale, Tuesday June 28th, Place - 20 Laureldale Rd near Bridge Rd. Hillsborough, in Steve Allen's green house
n.d.
Physical Description:
2 items
Small broadside. 2 copies.
5 x 9 1/2 in.
Box 1, Folder 4
First comprehensive exhibit of books, hand-bindings and ephemera of the L-D Allen Press
1951
Physical Description:
1 item
5 1/2 x 3 1/4 in.
Box 1, Folder 4
Four folios produced by hand...an exhibit starting March 9, 1964
1964
Physical Description:
1 item
5 1/2 x 3 1/4 in.
