Missoula, Montana

 

 

My name is Michael Seitz. After being born in Evergreen Park Illinois, outside of Chicago, my parents whisked me off to Montana, where I got to grow up in the wilds of Martinsdale and Two Dot. I graduated from Harlowton High School in 1983, went to Eastern Montana College for a couple years before finally gravitating to the University of Montana in Missoula Montana. I majored in Print Journalism but life caught up with me before I graduated.

 

My first exposure to letterpress was a demonstration of a Linotype to our 4-H club at the local newspaper in Harlowton. After that I did not see letterpress again until I moved to Missoula. I found a neat little shop in the basement at the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula. I had sufficient interest and knowledge (though now I know much better) that they let me clean things up and run the press (a C&P 8x12 NS). I printed a few things, but marriage, work (at a commercial print shop) and a lack of ready transport kept me away.

 

After ten years of working at the print shop, working my way up from janitor to bindery, I was offered the letterpress department, partly because I was the only one interested in that "old" machinery. The shop was pretty much trade work, but working with the equipment whetted my appetite for letterpress printing again. I picked up a Kelsey 5x8 off of Ebay and then found a Pearl #3 OS in Butte Montana, courtesy of Briar Press. Slowly I got the garage in order, carted off surplus and judiciously applied Ebay to fill out a decent basic shop.

 

The commercial shop closed this past July though, and I've been very cautiously moving forward in making the shop a going concern to provide letterpress printing and trade services to the area. I've picked up a C&P 10x15 OS from the John Hern auction and more type and finally a paper cutter. Once I get electricity into the shop (hopefully next weekend), I'll have no excuse not to make a go of it.

 

I have a most supportive wife and an 7 year old son (who likes to pump the treadle on the Pearl), so I've plenty to look forward to. I also indulge in railroad history and preservation, writing, and keeping rather busy in any instance.