Dolmen Press Collection, Additions Series
Liam Miller was born April 24, 1924, in Mountrath, Ireland. Educated in Ireland at Ballyfin College and University College Dublin, he studied architecture. He married Josephine Browne in 1947, and together they founded the Dolmen Press in 1951. The Press operated in Dublin from 1951 until Liam Miller's death in 1987. These materials document the professional work of the Dolmen Press, the Cuala Press, and Liam Miller writ large. Some personal correspondence and biographical materials related to Miller are also present. Material types include advertisement flyers, blank dummy books, book dust jackets, booklets and pamphlets, catalogs, broadsides, correspondence, event invitations, galley pages, magazines, newspaper clippings, page proofs, paintings, prints, posters, programs, prospectuses, and set design and other sketches.
Biographical and Historical Note
Liam Miller was born April 24, 1924, in Mountrath, Ireland. Educated in Ireland at Ballyfin College and University College Dublin, he studied architecture. He married Josephine Browne in 1947, and together they founded the Dolmen Press in 1951. The Press operated in Dublin from 1951 until Liam Miller's death in 1987. A printing division was opened in the late 1950s as an additional revenue source, and was eventually shut down in 1979. The division took printing jobs from publishers as well as theaters, art galleries, businesses and individuals.
Founded to provide a publishing outlet for Irish poetry, the Press also heavily featured the work of Irish artists. The scope of the press grew to include prose literature by Irish authors as well as a broad range of critical works about Irish literature and theater. The life and works of W. B. Yeats is a recurring theme in a variety of works, including the Yeats Centenary Series. One highlight in the Press' history was the publication of The Tain in 1969. Thomas Kinsella's translation of the Irish epic poem took 15 years from concept to publication and represented a milestone in Irish publishing. By the 1980s the Press had created the Brogeen Books division for juvenile works, and many of the later publications were under this imprint.
Liam Miller is also associated with the Cuala Press. When the press reorganized in 1969 under the stewardship of W. B. Yeats' children Michael and Anne Yeats, three others - Liam Miller, Thomas Kinsella, and Patrick O'Carroll - joined them. The Press focused on hand-printing and publishing first-edition Irish works through the 1970s, but had stopped by the end of the decade.
Liam Miller was also a book designer. Miller's major design projects stemmed from the post-Vatican II changes to the Catholic Church missals, mass books, etc. Occasionally, jobs for the printing division were also works that he designed. In addition to his role with the Dolmen Press, Miller was very active in the Dublin community. An avid philatelist, he served for many years on the Irish Department of Posts and Telegraphs' Philatelic Advisory Committee. Passionate about live theater, Miller helped revive the Abbey Theatre and the Abbey's Peacock Theatre. He became director of the Lantern Theatre, and frequently used his architectural skills to design and create sets for the Lantern's productions. An authority on Yeats and Irish theater, he wrote and spoke frequently on these topics.
Collection Overview
This collection contains materials that were not processed when the original collection was in 2004. These materials document the professional work of the Dolmen Press, the Cuala Press, and Liam Miller writ large. Some personal correspondence and biographical materials related to Miller are also present. In addition to the presses that Miller was directly involved in, other printers are represented. Collection materials may related to business administration, for example forms, Dolmen Press letterhead and envelopes, and budget notes. Much of the collection are products that made it to shelves or were used in promotion, just as book jackets, prospectuses, catalogues, and brochures. Items used in production, including galley pages, drafts, specimen pages, or art sketches, make up a large portion as well. Materials also document Miller's involvement in the wider Irish art and theatre scene, including play programs and advertisements. Material types include advertisement flyers, blank dummy books, book dust jackets, booklets and pamphlets, catalogs, broadsides, correspondence, event invitations, galley pages, magazines, newspaper clippings, page proofs, paintings, prints, posters, programs, prospectuses, and set design and other sketches.
It is likely but not definite that the collection's materials were collected and maintained by Liam; it is unknown to what extent his spouse Josephine Miller and others contributed to the collection.
Items with similar titles may appear multiple times in the inventory; they likely have a different design or are a different size.
The book The XXII Keys of the Tarot, by Arland Ussher, was also published as The Twenty-Two Keys of the Tarot; in the description, only The XXII Keys of the Tarot is used for ease of locating items. Spelling employed may be that of the British Isles, such as "handcoloured," instead of the American version; both "catalog" and "catalogue" appear.
Collection Arrangement
The collection is arranged into three series: Series 1. Blank dummy book examples, Series 2. Book dust jackets, and Series 3. Oversize additions. This mimics the arrangement of other parts of the Dolmen Press Collection (MS1000).
Controlled Access Headings
Subjects
Administrative Information
- Publication Information
- Processed by Immanuel Eggers, Caroline Fahringer, Elizabeth Crispino, and Stephanie Bennett, 2023
- Conditions Governing Access
- The collection is open for use.
- Copyright Notice
- The nature of the WFU Z. Smith Reynolds Library Special Collections and Archives means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. The Archives and Special Collections of ZSR Library claims only physical ownership of most materials. The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to the U.S. Copyright Law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.
- Preferred Citation
- Dolmen Press Collection, Additions Series (MS1008), Z. Smith Reynolds Library Special Collections and Archives, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.