News and Events

Saturday Workshops & Events 2026
On any given Saturday/Open Day there could be a public event in the Meeting Room, in the Community Studio, or on the Exhibit Floor. Depending on the content of the event (workshop, lecture or demo), there could be more than one in a day.
Click the red links for more info and to register for workshops & events.
November
November 6–8
48th Annual Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair
Visit our table on Cultural Row, Booth 529!
Nov 14
Letterpress Printing on Fabric Workshop
Sign up here→
Book Arts Open Studio
Sign up here→
Nov 21
Garage Sale
December
Dec 5
Aldus and his dream book: A Viewing of Hypnerotomachia Poliphili
A presentation by Frank Romano. See an extremely rare original copy of the book.
More info & registration here→
Dec 5
Letterpress Printing on Fabric Workshop
Sign up here→
Dec 12
Book Arts Open Studio
Sign up here→
WINTER 2027
January
Jan. 19, 10–3
Wood Type Poster with Letterpress
$150 per person
Info & registration→
Read more >
The Museum of Printing’s Typewriter Collection in the News
Our typewriter collection got a nice shoutout in the Sunday Boston Globe Art+Life section on October 25, 2026 courtesy of Globe staff writer Mark Feeney. Mark describes our typewriters as “analog technology at its most proudly clacky” and “a highly satisfying sight for those of us who still cherish names like Olympia, Remington, Underwood, Royal, Olivetti, Smith Corona, and IBM Selectric.”
You can see our typewriters any Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm, or by appointment by emailing us at .
To see the full article, click here.
WBZ News Boston takes a trip to the Museum
Aldus and his dream book: A Viewing of Hypnerotomachia Poliphili
Saturday, October 3 and December 5, 2026
A truly special event this Fall
Saturday, October 3 and December 5, 2026
1pm to 2pm
Members: $25 | Non-members: $50
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/aldus-and-his-dream-book-a-viewing-of-hypnerotomachia-poliphili-tickets-1999809729735?aff=oddtdtcreator
Limited photography will be allowed.
See an original copy of the rarest and strangest book ever printed . . . at the Museum of Printing this Fall.
Frank Romano has spent over 60 years collecting books about printing. His latest acquisition, Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, was published by Aldus Manutius in Venice in 1499.
This book with an unpronounceable title is still a mystery to many bibliophiles. It consists of 172 detailed wood engravings and beautiful typography. It is the supreme illustrated book of the Renaissance.
Original copies sell for $150,000 if you can find one. You will see an original copy of the 200 in various worldwide collections.
Presentation will be limited to 30 attendees. Frank will tell the story of this landmark in the history of printing and reveal some of its secrets.
Workshop: Wood Type Poster with Letterpress
Saturday, January 9, 2027 from 10 am to 3 pm at the Museum of Printing
Work hands-on with Erin Davis in this one-day 5-hour workshop open to beginners and above. Students will print a poster using wood type from our collection and have the option of choosing a variety of pre-printed backgrounds to complete their poster. At the end of the workshop students will have a 12″ × 18″ poster.
January 9th workshop tickets available here→
Read more >
Handmade Journal Workshop with Lydia Harris
October 31, 2026 · 11–2pm
$65 per person
Tickets at Eventbrite→
Hobby Printing Three-Part Series by Brian Lewis
Due to reader demand, we have compiled a booklet of the three-part series that Brian Lewis wrote on Hobby Printing for the Museum’s newsletter. Click here to get your copy of that compilation.
Introducing our New Museum Manager: Mindy Mitrano
The Museum of Printing has named long-time volunteer Mindy Mitrano to the newly created role of Museum Manager. The move is one of a series of actions by the Haverhill, Massachusetts-based museum as it enters its next half century of telling the rich story of print and other forms of communications.
Mitrano, who also lives in Haverhill, began her association with the Museum in 2018 as the librarian. Her other roles at the Museum have included gift shop curation, event management, and the monthly Book Arts Open Studio.
In addition to her work with the Museum, Mitrano is a professionally trained graphic designer with a foundation in fine arts. Originally from the Finger Lakes region of New York, she’s known locally as Mindy Paper. She teaches a variety of classes at her combination art studio and cookie bakery, often integrating watercolor, typography, cut paper manipulation, letterpress printing, paper-making, or book binding.
In her new role as Museum Manager, Mitrano will oversee day-to-day operations of the Museum. She will also coordinate the work of its dedicated core of volunteers as well as outreach to schools, non-profits, and others.
“Mindy has long been an active and valuable member of the Museum of Printing community,” said Museum of Printing President Frank Romano, who helped to found the Museum and is one of the nation’s leading experts on printing and related topics. “She will help the Museum continue to grow and expand its important work.”
Mindy Mitrano Is a 2026 ECCF Creative County Changemaker!
The Museum of Printing is delighted to announce that Museum Manager Mindy Mitrano has been selected by the Essex County Community Foundation (ECCF) to be a part of the 2026 ECCF Creative County ChangeMakers, an alliance of artists, nonprofit and municipal leaders, and small business owners who are collaboratively driving community change inclusive of arts and culture. For details, see: https://www.eccf.org/blog/2026/03/12/residents-selected-for-eccfs-creative-county-changemakers-program/
Hidden in a closet, a 200-year-old piece of Boston’s printing past emerges
Mitchel Ahern, the director of operations at the Museum of Printing (left), and Peter Corriveau, the assistant director of operations at the museum, lift the press into the back of a truck for transport. Lane Turner/Globe Staff
Stored and forgotten in a cramped closet in a South End basement, a 200-year-old printing press — 600 pounds of iron, wood, and plenty of dust — lurched recently toward a new chapter in its long and mysterious life.
Hauled onto makeshift dollies at Franklin Cummings Tech, a two-year trade college, this throwback innovation from the early 19th century attracted a gaggle of admirers as it rolled toward a moving van parked on nearby, cobblestone alley.
The press, built by Adam Ramage of Philadelphia in about 1815, is among only two or three believed to remain in existence, according to Mitchel Ahern, operations director at the Museum of Printing in Haverhill.
As Ahern helped extract the machine, broad smiles and compliments from movers and school staff greeted the press as it slowly emerged from its hideaway.
“Very cool,” cooed Ahern, who said the press willreceive star treatment among the museum’s displays of printing’s centuries-long evolution.
“It’s really exciting to see a press like this pop up,” Ahern said. “In its day, this was printing technology. Our mission is to keep this kind of thing out of landfills.”
Its recent discovery at Franklin Cummings Tech, which is moving to Roxbury for the spring semester after 117 years in the South End, is a reminder of the school’s close association with Benjamin Franklin, the Boston-born printer and Founding Father whose generosity led directly to the college’s creation.
Read more >
Bible Bound
International Juried Exhibition
May 1 – September 1, 2026
Reception + Award Ceremony
May 9, 2026, 2 – 4pm
The Bible has had a profound impact on humanity, literature, art, history, and culture for over 2,000 years. As one of the oldest and most influential texts, it has shaped civilizations, religious practices, and cultural expressions. From illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages to Johannes Gutenberg’s first printed Bible in 1455, the Bible has played a key role in the development of printing and bookmaking.
The Museum of Printing in Haverhill, Mass. invited artists to create miniature artists books inspired by the Bible, reinterpreting its meaning through form, materials, scale, and various binding techniques. The exhibition highlights the Bible’s enduring impact and is displayed alongside the new “Rare Bible Room,” which features over 100 rare Bibles and 30 Bible leaves.
Curator: Ania Gilmore
Jurors: Ania Gilmore and Frank Romano
Congratulations to all artists invited for the Bible Bound International Juried Exhibition!
List of artists & works →
Read more >
Frank Romano has been elected to membership in the American Antiquarian Society
Museum of Printing President Frank Romano has been elected to membership in the American Antiquarian Society (AAS), a 213-year-old national research library and community of learners dedicated to discovering and sharing a deeper understanding of the American past. Frank joins a distinguished roster of more than 1,200 members from forty-eight states, the District of Columbia, and five other countries.
Read more >
See Revolutionary Technology at the Museum of Printing
Check out this GBH story by Chris Burrell that references the Museum of Printing and quotes Gary Gregory and Museum President Frank Romano.
And come see the English Common Press they are talking about!
Read the story: https://www.wgbh.org/news/local/2025-05-07/before-the-american-revolution-these-massachusetts-publishers-rebelled-in-print →
Photo of Gary Gregory inking a replica of a Colonial-era press by Rian Nelson / GBH News
The Museum of Printing Celebrates the Role of Print in the American Revolution
Over the next year and a half, the Museum of Printing is celebrating the start of the American Revolution (April 19, 1775) and the signing of the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) with a series of talks and workshops, including some that are sponsored by a grant from the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism.
Our preparations for this began with the arrival in February of an authentic replica of an English Common Press, courtesy of our friend Gary Gregory, proprietor of the Printing Office of Edes & Gill. The English Common Press is a wooden hand-press that was used for printing in the 17th and 18th centuries. It was the first press that came to America. It was the press that printed the pamphlets, broadsides, and newspapers that energized the revolution and the press that printed the Declaration of Independence. The printing press helped create America and this kind of press is an extremely important part of our history.
This replica will be used to print copies of the Declaration of Independence for Museum of Printing visitors. It is only one of two operational wooden presses in New England. This is the same press that was in the lobby of our previous building in North Andover, Massachusetts. Most recently it has resided at Old North Church in Boston where it was seen by thousands of visitors over the years at the Printing Office of Edes & Gill.
The grant that we received from the Massachusetts Office of Tourism (MOTT) has allowed us to offer four free events to Museum visitors. The first of those has already taken place on March 15th. Entitled “Wood Type Use, History, & Identification” it was led by lecture/workshop led by James Grieshaber of Virgin Wood Type in Rochester, New York. Three more events will follow:
Read more >
The Folding of the Paper Mill: Paper Samples through the Decades
Visitors can explore and learn how paper mills adapted and evolved throughout the years through this new exhibit at the Museum.
$15,000 Matching Gift Opportunity
One of our members has generously pledged $15,000 in matching funds, which means that every dollar donated to the Museum of Printing between now and November 1, 2024 is effectively doubled! Please help us reach this goal. Every dollar counts!
Update: We extended the date of this matching grant to December 31st and we reached our goal. Many thanks to all who contributed.
Thirty five Years of Printing for the Gloucester Fishing Industry, 1977–2012
In early 2024 I was asked by the Director of The Cape Ann Museum to document the history of my printing business and its connection to the Massachusetts fishing industry.
The following story is about my company, and recounts some of the global, national, and local trends that affected us in Gloucester during the last several decades. I hope you enjoy reading it.
Download the story [pdf]
Self-Publishing and On-Demand Printing with Jim Hamilton
Saturday, June 22nd at 1 pm
Did you miss Jim’s talk? Not to worry! He has provided a scripted PDF for those who are interested.
Read all about us in the Globe!
The Boston Globe finds us “fit to print”
What a visitor finds is a museum as marvelous as any in new England. Here is Ali Baba’s cave crossed with a print shop and pressroom. One of only three museums in the United states dedicated to printing and graphic arts, it has “the largest collection of typographic technology and ephemera in the world,” says MoP president Frank Romano. “We’re trying to save the past for the future,” he says.
Read Mark Feeney’s article in the Boston Sunday Globe, October 22, 2023 [pdf] ↠
Haverhill Exchange Club Dedicates Freedom Shrine at Museum of Printing
Members of the Haverhill Exchange Club, who sponsored a “Freedom Shrine” and, local leaders, dedicated it at the Museum of Printing in Haverhill, Massachusetts. This gallery of history includes reproductions of George Washington’s first inaugural address where the first president urged a new Congress to consider a “reverence for the characteristic rights of freemen and a regard for public harmony” in crafting a Bill of Rights. Past National President Haverhill member Bob Harb (pictured here) noted that the 20 original documents were on the Freedom Train that visited Haverhill on October 22, 1947 for a few days.
Perhaps the most interesting part of the preserved documents are editing marks—many documents are preserved in some pre-finished form. In this presentation, it’s clear the authors of some of the most important documents in U.S. history themselves had to revise.
The Museum owes a debt to the Exchange Club, for which the installation of “Freedom Shrines” in public places is a national project.
For more on the Haverhill Exchange Club, see http://www.haverhillexchangeclub.com.