Rampant Lions Press Collection

Collection

Identifier: Press coll-Archives-Rampant Lions

Staff Only

Scope and Content

This collection contains items related to the Rampant Lions Press and its owners Will and Sebastian Carter. The collection is comprised of materials printed by and about the Rampant Lions Press, including pamphlets advertising books in print, lecture announcements, prospectuses for books for sale, and copies of page proofs for a book about Will Carter, and other printed ephemera. There is also a small amount of correspondence to John Bidwell and Grant and Helen Dahlstrom.

Dates

Creation: 1961-2001

Access

Collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

Copyright has not been assigned to the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, UCLA. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts or printed items must be submitted in writing to the Clark Librarian. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, UCLA as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Biography

William Nicholas Carter (generally known as Will Carter) was born in Slough, Berkshire (England) on September 24, 1912. Carter was foremost a printer, but also designed letters and did his own carving. He founded the Rampant Lions Press in 1924 after visiting the Oxford University Press. Will Carter published his first book in 1936, and officially turned the Rampant Lions Press into a business in 1949 in Cambridge following a stint in the Navy during World War II. He married Barbara Digby in 1939, and the couple had four children (one boy and three girls).

Will Carter's son, Sebastian, joined him in the press during the 1960s and eventually took over in 1991. He toured the United States on multiple occasions, including 1961 and 1967, and lectured at UCLA. He was made an Officer of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 1989. Will died in Cambridge on March 17, 2001. The Rampant Lions Press officially closed in 2008.

Extent

0.42 Linear Feet (1 box)

Language of Materials

Undetermined

Additional Description

Abstract

This collection contains items related to the Rampant Lions Press and its owners Will and Sebastian Carter. Materials include those printed by and about the Rampant Lions Press, including books in print pamphlets, lecture announcements, book prospectuses, and other printed ephemera.

Arrangement

The collection arrived with no order imposed on it; all items were loose. Materials were grouped thematically with like items together and are are arranged in chronological order when possible.

Physical location

This collection is stored at the Southern Regional Library Facility. Please contact Clark Library staff at least 2 weeks in advance if you would like to view the materials in this collection.

Acquisition Information

Items in the collection were accumulated over time by John Bidwell during his employment as a librarian at the William Andrews Clark Library. Correspondence to Grant and Helen Dahlstrom was a gift of Helen Dahlstrom in June, 1984. 3 items, including correspondence and ephemera from the collection of Jacob Zeitlin were a gift of Josephine Ver Brugge Zeitlin in November, 1987 (MS.1988.003).