Introduction

More has probably been written about printing than about any other trade;

however, little attention has been paid to the social and economic experiences

of the craftsmen who worked in it. This book seeks to redress this imbalance

by examining the experiences of one printing craftsman, the skilled composi-

tor, in the period 1850-1914. Focusing primarily on the workplace and

workplace institutions, the intention is to explore issues of control, co-opera-

tion and conflict in order to determine if the compositor was, as some labour

historians claim, a ‘better sort of workman’.