Saturday was moving day. It was the day a lot of really strong people came and helped move my amazing, incredibly heavy, 1921 Chandler and Price press from it’s home at the barn to its new home on High Street in Chestertown.
It all started last Wednesday. My dad came to help me take the wheels off and get the press ready to move. Aside from being the best dad in the world, he is also very mechanically inclined. My dad was an off-set printer for 30 years, and is used to working on more complicated machines. I could not have gotten the wheels off without him!
On Thursday, I moved the rest of my supplies. There goes the ink, paper, and various other bits and pieces. The new shop is literally 1/2 a block from the old one, so most of the smaller things travelled by way of my kids’ wagon.
On Saturday, the movers came. Aided by my husband, my dad, and my friends Robbi & Matthew and her dad Bob (whose barn my press has lived in the last 2 years, Thank you Bob & Robbi & Matthew!), the movers loaded it onto a dolly and rolled it out the door.
Here are my dad and Gregg getting the press into position for the last leg of the trip out the door.
Here we are getting ready to winch the press up the ramp my dad made to get it out the side door. Once we had it up the ramp, the rest wasn’t so bad. Thank goodness for Bruce and Dave from Uhaul on Rt 20. When the press move in 2 years ago it came in by brute strength. It left on a winch and saved everybody’s backs! Good thinking Bruce and Dave!
Shortly the press was out and in it’s new space. Now comes the task of getting her back together and working out the kinks. If you’ve ever done letterpress, you know she’ll need a few days to settle in once we put her back together before she settles in. I can’t wait to get back to printing and creating. You can come see the press on April 1 at our grand opening. Hope to see you there!
