South Street Seaport Museum Announces Winter Holiday Printing Open House

South Street Seaport Museum announces a Winter Holiday Printing Open House, on Saturday, November 19, 2022, 1pm-4pm, at 209 Water Street. With the Winter holidays right around the corner, seasonal printing is in full production at the South Street Seaport Museum's Bowne & Co. Join us for an afternoon in the shop, printing holiday cards, gift tags, and more. No advanced registration needed and attendance is free--just stop by! For more information, visit seaportmuseum.org/holiday-printing.

At the Open House, learn to use working 19th century printing presses from the Seaport Museum's collection, and take home a small batch of holiday stationery. After all that hard work, enjoy hot cider and get a head start on holiday shopping at Bowne & Co., Stationers next door.

Bowne & Co. was established by Robert Bowne in 1775 and is New York's oldest operating business under the same name. By 1900, New York City boasted over 700 printing offices. Most were located in Lower Manhattan and the South Street Seaport Historic District to facilitate shipping, trade, and finance. Maritime trade industries-growing each year as their goods reached the entire country through the Erie Canal-found themselves in need of a flurry of printed materials for conducting business, causing the demand for stationery, invoices, advertisements, and other printed materials.

In 1975, Bowne & Co. Inc. partnered with the Seaport Museum to open a 19th century-style print shop at 211 Water Street, in the South Street Seaport Historic District. Today, in addition to the letterpress printing collection, Bowne & Co. embodies the spirit of a turn-of-the-century store that is unique, eclectic, and like none other in the city.