1864-1906 – Collection of five scarce stock certificates relating to the U.S. printing industry

Item Details

1864-1906, Unbound

Very Good

These five certificates were once in the collection of The Printing Museum in Houston, Texas. Upon its closure in 2024, they were purchased by a Texas antique dealer.

1864 – Alden Typesetter and Distributing Machine Company. New York, New York. Stock certificate for one share at $1,000 each. Issued to A. V. Stout. Signed by H. W. Walden. 11” x 7 1/8”. Features illustrations of the typesetting machine, Benjamin Franklin, and Walden or one of the Alden Brothers. Light glue stain along left margin.

1869 – Alden Type Setting and Distributing Machine Company.  New York, New York. Stock certificate for one share at $100 each. Issued to Ida Cleveland. Signed by the company president and treasurer  11½” x 6½”. Features an illustration of Gutenberg, his printing press, printed leaves, and assistants. It bears a 25-cent “Certificate” stamp (Scott #R44).

1891 – News Publishing Company. Boston, Massachusetts. 6% 25-year bond at $10. Complete; none of the 22 coupons have been clipped. Signed by Ruben Kelly. 16¾”  x 14”. Features an illustration of a printing press in action and a portrait of Benjamin Franklin. The company published a Boston newspaper, titled The News. Said to be the only known example of this bond. Some light toning.

1875 – Kings County Rural Gazette. Flatbush, Long Island, New York. Stock certificate for two shares at $50 each. 10¾” x 6¾”. Vignette of printing press in the center of the document. In operation during the mid-1870s, the paper covered the daily life, business, politics, education, clubs, and community events that occurred in Brooklyn.

1896 – Merganthaler Linotype Company. Brooklyn, New York. Stock certificate for 10 shares.  Issued to W. E. Spencer. Signed by Philip T. Dodge, President.  10 5/8” x 7¼”. Features an illustration of a linotype machine. Cancelled by handstamp and punch. The company was founded in the United States in 1886 to market the Linotype machine that cast metal type in lines that was invented by Ottmar Mergenthaler. It became the world's leading manufacturer of book and newspaper typesetting equipment. It is franked with two brown 10-cent documentary stamps (#168) on the reverse.

(For more information, see “The Alden Typesetting and Distribution Machine” at the Making Book website. “Did you know that Brooklyn Newsstand includes issues of the Kings County Rural Gazette” at the Brooklyn History Instagram page, and “Merganthaler Linotype Company” at Wikipedia.)

All of these certificates are scarce. The museum valued them at $2,900 when they were acquired from Ted Lee in 1995. However, recent auction results and sales offers suggest that they are presently worth about half that amount. A photocopy of the museum’s valuation sheet will be included.

#10539