Kelsey Star Jobber Advertisement Source

Hello,

We have a copy of “Catalogue of Nineteenth Century Printing Presses” by Harold E. Sterne that has a wonderful ad for “The “New Star Jobber” by the Kelsey Press Company. I’m trying to track down the primary source, and I’m wondering if anyone might know of it’s origins. My search is pointing to an elusive Kelsey Catalog from 1913, but I can seem to find an archived copy, or a listing for one in a public collection or Library.

I’ve also seen similar ads in Inland printer, but haven’t seen this specific one yet.

Any help is much appreciated!

image: kelseystarad.jpg

kelseystarad.jpg

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I own a Kelsey Star press and over the years I’ve found out a few things about it. The press was designed by George Prouty, a well known designer and maker of platen presses ijn the late 1800s. The Kelsey Co, bought the design from Prouty and began producing the machine in either 1899 or in 1900.It was advertised for as little as $60.00 up.and in a 1930 kelsey catalog it was priced at $ 150.00. In a 1959 catalog a treadle version of the press was listed at $677.00 and a motorized version was listed at $735.00. The press was modified sometime in the middle or late 1950s, by cutting off the lower portion of the press right below the flywheel shaft and supplying it with a knocked version of a table saw table used on many power tools. It was done in an effort to reduce the weight of the press for shipping and made it easier for an owner to make it easier to move later. I have never been able to find out when Kelsey discontinued the Star, but my guess it was in the early to mid 1960s A 1971 Kelsey does not show the Star. I acquired mine in 2002 for $150.00 in dirty but mechanically good shape. It”s a great little press and I’ve run hundreds of thousands of impressions on it and I’t still going strong, it even survived sitting in 4 feet of hurricane flood waters, after completly being disasembeled and put back together again. Gerald Jenny, at The Four Dogs Press, Harahan La.