Place    From 1893  To 1917

Doves Bindery

Categories: Commerce, Literature

The Doves Press in Hammersmith was founded in 1900 by Thomas Cobden-Sanderson in partnership with Emery Walker and was named after the nearby pub. Sanderson had already set up The Doves Bindery in 1893 and it bound all the books that Doves printed as well as many of the Kelmscott books. The enterprise was an examplar of the Arts and Crafts movement. They used their own type, The Doves Type, based on types from the middle ages. Emery and Sanderson fell out and the partnership was dissolved in 1908. Regarding the typeface they agreed that Sanderson could continue to use it and that eventual ownership would rest with whoever outlived the other. Sanderson (the older man) was not happy with this and by 1917 he had thrown all of the type into the Thames from Hammersmith Bridge (piece by piece, at night), all but one piece which is preserved in the Emery Walker Library, housed at the Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum. Sanderson had already ceased printing during the war but the destruction of the type saw the end of the Press. He moved into the building and died there a few years later.

2015 - amazing, someone has retrieved the type from the river!

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Doves Bindery

Commemorated ati

Doves Bindery and Press

Initially (ha-ha) we were puzzled by the letters at the bottom of this plaque...

Read More

Thomas Cobden-Sanderson

Thomas James Cobden-Sanderson, 1840-1922, founded the Doves Bindery and Doves...

Read More

Other Subjects

Brilliant Sign Company

Brilliant Sign Company

Signage company. It was named after their concept called the 'brilliant letter'. This comprised a pressed copper sheet with a v-shaped cross section so as to imitate the classic incised wooden fasc...

Group, Commerce, Industry

2 memorials
Thornton's Corner

Thornton's Corner

A retail business established by Tom William Thornton and run by his family for over 70 years. The premises (nos 100 - 110) sold stationery, newspapers, books and artists materials, and provided va...

Place, Commerce

1 memorial
Helen Carte

Helen Carte

Born Wigtown, Scotland as Susan Helen Couper Black. Later changed "Black" to "Lenoir", apparently the family's original name in 17th century France. Starting as secretary to Richard D'Oyly Carte s...

Person, Commerce, Music / songs, Theatre, Scotland

1 memorial
Tattersalls race horse auctioneers

Tattersalls race horse auctioneers

Founded at Hyde Park Corner by Richard Tattersall (1724–1795) it stayed in the Tattersall family until about WW2.  The business had to move from 'the Corner' due to the lease running out and the la...

Group, Commerce, Animals

1 memorial
Watney Combe Reid

Watney Combe Reid

In 1837 James Watney (1800 - 84) became a partner in the Stag Brewery, Pimlico and the Watney family were the main partners there for much of the 19th century. In 1889 James Watney & Co., acqui...

Group, Commerce, Food & Drink

2 memorials