A Smith Acorn Press, a historic toggle-style printing press made in 1828, is now on display on the first floor of the Tomás Rivera Library 

Patented by Peter Smith in 1821, the Acorn Press is known for its acorn-shaped frame and precise printing capabilities. 

The press on display was discovered in Philadelphia in the 1930s by Jackson Burke, who used it in San Francisco to produce “Pocket Press” editions. In the 1950s, Burke gifted the press to Lewis and Dorothy Allen of the Allen Press, where it was used to create 12 titles, including Dialogues of Creatures Moralised.

In 1967, the press moved to the University of California, Santa Cruz. There, poet and printer William Everson used it at the Lime Kiln Press from 1968 to 1981, producing works like West to the Water and Granite and Cypress. After the Lime Kiln Press closed, UCSC’s McHenry Library donated the press to UCR in 2005.

Previously kept in the stacks of Special Collections & University Archives on the fourth floor of the Rivera Library, the press is now accessible to all visitors on the first floor, located to the right of the Library Support/IT Support Desk. 

Visit during the library's operating hours to get a glimpse into the history of printing and the craftsmanship that went into making printing presses.