The final book

The Young Manhood of Dave Chamlee coming-of-age story of David Samuel Chamlee, born in 1857, told by his grandson (my father) in a Humanities term paper written while attending Claremont Men’s College in the 1950s.

The story begins with Dave Chamlee’s boyhood on a homestead in Tennessee, his travels as a young man to work on the docks of the Mississippi River and on to his years as a working cowboy in Texas. It concludes with his arrival in California where he spent the remainder of his days.

The text is accompanied by research notes supported by public records and census data, a map and photographs from the family archive.

The Young Manhood of Dave Chamlee is letterpress printed with hand set Centaur and Arrighi, Massey Initials and ornaments on handmade Khadi paper. The map background is a suicide linoleum block; the map details and photographs are printed from polymer plates. The signatures are sewn into a bison leather cover with a wrap band, ties, tackets and deer horn buttons.

Printing the map

The map I'm including with the new book is printed using a "suicide" linoleum block in the background with the detail printed using photo polymer plates.

After doing an overall print of light tan, all the states were cut and printed in a darker color

Then all the states except Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas were cut away and the final layer was printed. The route and type was printed with polymer plates.

The title block

Inside the front cover is the pocket for the folded map.

The final map unfolded.