South Street Seaport Museum Hosts FREE FRESH PRINTS Open House in August
Hands-on letterpress event at Bowne & Co. invites visitors to print their own keepsakes
By: A.A. Cristi Jul. 18, 2025
The South Street Seaport Museum will host its popular Fresh Prints open house on Thursday, August 7, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. at Bowne & Co., the Museum’s working 19th-century letterpress print shop located at 211 Water Street. The event is free, but advanced registration is encouraged at seaportmuseum.org/fresh-prints.
Guests ages 12 and up are invited to roll up their sleeves and experience the sights, sounds, and hands-on process of historic letterpress printing. Participants will explore a wide range of equipment and techniques used in small-batch printing and take home their own printed creations. Walkups will be accommodated as space permits.
Founded in 1775, the original Bowne & Co. is one of New York’s oldest printing firms. The current Bowne & Co. at the Seaport Museum honors that legacy, operating as both a traditional printing office and a retail stationer’s shop, blending maritime and print history in one interactive location.
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