R. Hoe & Company
Encyclopedia
R. Hoe & Company was a New York City
based printing press
manufacturer established by Peter Smith, Matthew Smith (?–1822), and their brother-in-law, English emigrant Robert Hoe
(1784–1833), in 1805 as Smith, Hoe & Company.
After Smith’s death, Hoe and his sons renamed the company and worked on improving existing machinery. In 1827 Hoe bought and improved a patent on wrought iron framed presses initially owned by Samuel Rust.
After their father’s death, sons Richard
and Robert Hoe (?–September 23, 1909) took control of the company and continued to innovate the printing process. The company developed a mechanical sheet delivery system, invented and patented the rotary printing press
, and developed the first type revolving presses. R. Hoe & Company helped facilitate the rapid and inexpensive production of newspapers.
Their 1855 lithographic presses, in dimensions of 19x24 inches to 38x48 inches, sold for $165–375. A six-cylinder model was able to produce 166,000 16-page newspapers per hour.
In 1902, during the funeral procession of Rabbi
Jacob Joseph
, some employees of the Hoe factory started a riot and assaulted some of the 50,000 mourners as they passed. 200 police responded and joined the riot on the side of the factory workers.
By 1909 the company employed 2,500 at its New York factory and 800 in London.
The company added a subsidiary, Hoe Export-Import Company, in late 1950. The business introduced the Printmaster in 1954. The new printing press was suited to newspapers of medium and small size, with a circulation between 7,500 to 100,000. The presses were first built in the fall of 1954 for a spring 1955 delivery. It was capable of turning out 40,000 newspapers per hour and could easily convert to four color or spot color printing throughout the newspaper. Without stopping the press, the equipment responsible for folding the newspapers could switch from a mail fold to a regular newspaper fold. Additional features were ink economy, cleanliness, and ease of maintenance.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
based printing press
Printing press
A printing press is a device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium , thereby transferring the ink...
manufacturer established by Peter Smith, Matthew Smith (?–1822), and their brother-in-law, English emigrant Robert Hoe
Robert Hoe
Robert Hoe was born in Leicestershire, England. He was indentured to a joiner, in 1802 emigrated to the United States, worked for a time as a master carpenter, and subsequently was an associate of his brothers-in-law, Peter and Matthew Smith, in the business of carpentry and in the manufacture of...
(1784–1833), in 1805 as Smith, Hoe & Company.
Early Years
The company initially specialized in the manufacture of wooden hand printing presses, but later added saw-making. In 1819 the company expanded to printing presses.After Smith’s death, Hoe and his sons renamed the company and worked on improving existing machinery. In 1827 Hoe bought and improved a patent on wrought iron framed presses initially owned by Samuel Rust.
After their father’s death, sons Richard
Richard March Hoe
Richard March Hoe , was an American inventor who designed an improved printing press.-Biography:Hoe was born in New York City. He was the son of Robert Hoe , an English-born American mechanic who, with his brothers-in-law, Peter and Matthew Smith, established a steam-run manufactory of printing...
and Robert Hoe (?–September 23, 1909) took control of the company and continued to innovate the printing process. The company developed a mechanical sheet delivery system, invented and patented the rotary printing press
Rotary printing press
A rotary printing press is a printing press in which the images to be printed are curved around a cylinder. Printing can be done on large number of substrates, including paper, cardboard, and plastic. Substrates can be sheet feed or unwound on a continuous roll through the press to be printed and...
, and developed the first type revolving presses. R. Hoe & Company helped facilitate the rapid and inexpensive production of newspapers.
Their 1855 lithographic presses, in dimensions of 19x24 inches to 38x48 inches, sold for $165–375. A six-cylinder model was able to produce 166,000 16-page newspapers per hour.
Employee's problems
In 1855 the company employed 400 people. By May 4, 1886 the 700 Hoe employees went on strike to demand their ten-hour workday be reduced to nine, without a reduction in pay. After negotiations, the company agreed to reduce the workday, but also to reduce pay accordingly. The company’s machinists went on strike in July 1898, congregating in the surrounding streets. Police were called on day seven to disperse the crowd.In 1902, during the funeral procession of Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
Jacob Joseph
Jacob Joseph
Jacob Joseph served as chief rabbi of New York City's Association of American Orthodox Hebrew Congregations, a federation of Eastern European Jewish synagogues...
, some employees of the Hoe factory started a riot and assaulted some of the 50,000 mourners as they passed. 200 police responded and joined the riot on the side of the factory workers.
By 1909 the company employed 2,500 at its New York factory and 800 in London.
Company growth
During World War II, the company began to manufacture parts for weapons.The company added a subsidiary, Hoe Export-Import Company, in late 1950. The business introduced the Printmaster in 1954. The new printing press was suited to newspapers of medium and small size, with a circulation between 7,500 to 100,000. The presses were first built in the fall of 1954 for a spring 1955 delivery. It was capable of turning out 40,000 newspapers per hour and could easily convert to four color or spot color printing throughout the newspaper. Without stopping the press, the equipment responsible for folding the newspapers could switch from a mail fold to a regular newspaper fold. Additional features were ink economy, cleanliness, and ease of maintenance.