Ottmar Mergenthaler
Encyclopedia
Ottmar Mergenthaler was an inventor who has been called a second Gutenberg because of his invention of the Linotype machine
, the first device that could easily and quickly set complete lines of type
for use in printing press
es. This machine revolutionized the art of printing.
Born in Hachtel
, Baden-Württemberg
, Germany
, Mergenthaler became a naturalized citizen of the United States
in 1878.
, Württemberg
, Germany
. He was the third son of a school teacher, Johann Georg Mergenthaler from Hohenacker
near the city of Waiblingen
.
He was apprenticed to a watchmaker
in Bietigheim
before immigrating to the United States
in 1872 to work with his cousin August Hahl in Washington, D.C.
Mergenthaler eventually moved with Hahl's shop to Baltimore, MD.
In 1876 he was approached by James O. Clephane
, who sought a quicker way of publishing legal briefs., via Charles T. Moore who held a patent on a typewriter for newspapers which did not work and asked Mergenthaler to construct a better model. Mergenthaler recognized the Moore's design was faulty and two years later he had assembled a machine that stamped letters and words on cardboard. Although a fire destroyed all his designs and models, he started to work on the invention again as he wrote to himself "more books --- more education for all. At home we had no money for school books..."
He found a supporter in Whitelaw Reid of the New York Tribune
. Another fifty patents were required before Mergenthaler could show a more or less usable model to the New York Tribune on July 3, 1886. While riding on a train, the idea came to him: why a separate machine for casting and another for stamping? Why not stamp the letters and immediately cast them in metal in the same machine? By 1884 the idea of assembling metallic letter molds, called matrices, and casting molten metal
into them, all within a single machine, was applied. Mergenthaler reportedly got the idea for the brass matrices that would serve as molds for the letters from wooden molds used to make "Springerle," which are German Christmas cookies. His first attempt proved the idea feasible, and a new company was formed, then fights with shareholders and union
s followed with the press even in Germany attacking him. Finally success came with many honors, including a trip to his old home town.
In the printing office of the New York Tribune
the machine was immediately used on the daily paper and a large book. The book, the first ever composed with the new Linotype method, was titled, The Tribune Book of Open-Air Sports.
Initially, The Mergenthaler Linotype Company was the only company producing linecasting machines, but around 1914 a linecasting machine would be produced by the competition - The Intertype Company
- using the same matrices as the Linotype, only where Mergenthaler prided themselves on intricately formed cast-iron parts on their machine, Intertype machined many of their similar parts from steel
and aluminum.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Linotype and similar "hot metal" typesetting machines were retired and replaced with phototypesetting
equipment and later computerized typesetting and page composition systems.
Only in newspaper museums there can still be found Linotype machines in operation, producing printing slugs for use together with handset type.
In 1878, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. He died of tuberculosis
in Baltimore in 1899.
, in the museum's print shop. Baltimore's vocational high school, Mergenthaler Vocational Technical Senior High School
, which opened in 1953, is named after him, although it is commonly referred to simply as "MERVO".
Mergenthaler Hall on the Homewood Campus of the Johns Hopkins University
was constructed in 1940-41 with money provided by Eugene and Mrs. Ottmar Mergenthaler, son and widow of Ottmar Mergenthaler.
Linotype machine
The Linotype typesetting machine is a "line casting" machine used in printing. The name of the machine comes from the fact that it produces an entire line of metal type at once, hence a line-o'-type, a significant improvement over manual typesetting....
, the first device that could easily and quickly set complete lines of type
Type
Type may refer to:In philosophy:*Type–token distinctionIn mathematics:*Type *Type theory, basis for the study of type systems*Type or arity, the number of operands a function takes...
for use in printing press
Printing press
A printing press is a device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium , thereby transferring the ink...
es. This machine revolutionized the art of printing.
Born in Hachtel
Bad Mergentheim
Bad Mergentheim is a town in the Main-Tauber district in the German state of Baden-Württemberg.-History:Mergentheim is mentioned in chronicles as early as 1058, as the residence of the family of the counts of Hohenlohe, who early in the 13th century assigned the greater part of their estates in...
, Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Mergenthaler became a naturalized citizen of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1878.
Life and career
Mergenthaler was born in HachtelBad Mergentheim
Bad Mergentheim is a town in the Main-Tauber district in the German state of Baden-Württemberg.-History:Mergentheim is mentioned in chronicles as early as 1058, as the residence of the family of the counts of Hohenlohe, who early in the 13th century assigned the greater part of their estates in...
, Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. He was the third son of a school teacher, Johann Georg Mergenthaler from Hohenacker
Hohenacker
Hohenacker, once a town, is now part of Waiblingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany....
near the city of Waiblingen
Waiblingen
Waiblingen is a town in the southwest of Germany, located in the center of the densely populated Stuttgart Region, directly neighboring Stuttgart. It is the capital of the Rems-Murr district...
.
He was apprenticed to a watchmaker
Watchmaker
A watchmaker is an artisan who makes and repairs watches. Since virtually all watches are now factory made, most modern watchmakers solely repair watches. However, originally they were master craftsmen who built watches, including all their parts, by hand...
in Bietigheim
Bietigheim-Bissingen
Bietigheim-Bissingen is the second-largest town in the district of Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany with 42,515 inhabitants in 2007. It is situated on the river Enz, close to its confluence with the Neckar, about 19 km north of Stuttgart, and 20 km south of Heilbronn.- Buildings...
before immigrating to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1872 to work with his cousin August Hahl in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
Mergenthaler eventually moved with Hahl's shop to Baltimore, MD.
In 1876 he was approached by James O. Clephane
James O. Clephane
James Ogilvie Clephane was an American court reporter and venture capitalist who was involved in improving, promoting and supporting several inventions of his age, including the typewriter, the graphophone, and the linotype machine...
, who sought a quicker way of publishing legal briefs., via Charles T. Moore who held a patent on a typewriter for newspapers which did not work and asked Mergenthaler to construct a better model. Mergenthaler recognized the Moore's design was faulty and two years later he had assembled a machine that stamped letters and words on cardboard. Although a fire destroyed all his designs and models, he started to work on the invention again as he wrote to himself "more books --- more education for all. At home we had no money for school books..."
He found a supporter in Whitelaw Reid of the New York Tribune
New York Tribune
The New York Tribune was an American newspaper, first established by Horace Greeley in 1841, which was long considered one of the leading newspapers in the United States...
. Another fifty patents were required before Mergenthaler could show a more or less usable model to the New York Tribune on July 3, 1886. While riding on a train, the idea came to him: why a separate machine for casting and another for stamping? Why not stamp the letters and immediately cast them in metal in the same machine? By 1884 the idea of assembling metallic letter molds, called matrices, and casting molten metal
Hot metal typesetting
In printing and typography, hot metal typesetting refers to 19th-century technologies for typesetting text in letterpress printing. This method injects molten type metal into a mold that has the shape of one or more glyphs...
into them, all within a single machine, was applied. Mergenthaler reportedly got the idea for the brass matrices that would serve as molds for the letters from wooden molds used to make "Springerle," which are German Christmas cookies. His first attempt proved the idea feasible, and a new company was formed, then fights with shareholders and union
Union
Union may refer to:* Trade union or labor union, an organization of workers that have banded together, often for the purpose of getting better working conditions or pay...
s followed with the press even in Germany attacking him. Finally success came with many honors, including a trip to his old home town.
In the printing office of the New York Tribune
New York Tribune
The New York Tribune was an American newspaper, first established by Horace Greeley in 1841, which was long considered one of the leading newspapers in the United States...
the machine was immediately used on the daily paper and a large book. The book, the first ever composed with the new Linotype method, was titled, The Tribune Book of Open-Air Sports.
Initially, The Mergenthaler Linotype Company was the only company producing linecasting machines, but around 1914 a linecasting machine would be produced by the competition - The Intertype Company
Intertype Corporation
The Intertype Corporation produced the Intertype, a typecasting machine closely resembling the Linotype, and using the same matrices as the Linotype...
- using the same matrices as the Linotype, only where Mergenthaler prided themselves on intricately formed cast-iron parts on their machine, Intertype machined many of their similar parts from steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
and aluminum.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Linotype and similar "hot metal" typesetting machines were retired and replaced with phototypesetting
Phototypesetting
Phototypesetting was a method of setting type, rendered obsolete with the popularity of the personal computer and desktop publishing software, that uses a photographic process to generate columns of type on a scroll of photographic paper...
equipment and later computerized typesetting and page composition systems.
Only in newspaper museums there can still be found Linotype machines in operation, producing printing slugs for use together with handset type.
In 1878, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. He died of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in Baltimore in 1899.
Legacy
An operational Linotype machine is on display at the Baltimore Museum of IndustryBaltimore Museum of Industry
Baltimore Museum of Industry is a museum at Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Located in an old cannery, the museum has exhibits on various types of manufacturing and industry from the early 20th century...
, in the museum's print shop. Baltimore's vocational high school, Mergenthaler Vocational Technical Senior High School
Mergenthaler Vocational Technical Senior High School
Mergenthaler Vocational–Technical High School, commonly referred to as Mervo, is a public high school and trade school in Baltimore, Maryland. Mervo opened in 1953 as a vocational-technical school, and is named after Ottmar Mergenthaler...
, which opened in 1953, is named after him, although it is commonly referred to simply as "MERVO".
Mergenthaler Hall on the Homewood Campus of the Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
was constructed in 1940-41 with money provided by Eugene and Mrs. Ottmar Mergenthaler, son and widow of Ottmar Mergenthaler.
External links
- Baltimore History Site
- Linotype – Chronik eines Firmennamens (Linotype – Chronologie of a Company Name): e-book on the Linotype machine
- Overview of Mergenthaler's life